6 types of food that lower blood pressure

• Certain foods and nutrients rich in vitamins C and E, potassium, selenium, L-arginine and calcium can help with problems involving the heart and circulatory system by lowering blood pressure.

Santo Domingo.- To promote awareness and efforts to prevent, diagnose and control high blood pressure, the main risk factor for cardiovascular disease, World Hypertension Day is marked every 17 May.

High blood pressure is a chronic disease in which the pressure with which the heart pumps blood into the arteries to circulate around the body increases. Keeping blood pressure under control is important for health. If it is too high, it can lead to serious conditions such as stroke or heart disease.

While the medicines most often used for heart and circulatory problems can help lower blood pressure, certain foods and nutrients can also help.

Dietitian Julia Zumpano, of Cleveland Clinic’s main campus, explains how certain foods can help lower your blood pressure.

Vitamin C options include: peppers, kiwis, Brussels sprouts, strawberries, sweet potatoes, and citrus fruits such as oranges, grapefruits, lemons and limes.

Foods rich in vitamin E. This fat-soluble nutrient acts as an antioxidant to help protect cells from free radical damage; foods include almonds, avocados, sunflower seeds, peanut butter and salmon.

Potassium helps lower blood pressure by relaxing the walls of blood vessels and helping your body get rid of excess sodium. Foods include bananas, potatoes, spinach, tomatoes, carrots, grapefruit, and nuts/seeds such as pistachios, almonds and flax.

Foods rich in selenium. Selenium is an antioxidant that helps protect your body from oxidative stress; these foods include seafood such as tuna, halibut and prawns, Brazil nuts and chicken.

Foods rich in L-arginine. L-arginine helps produce nitric oxide, a chemical that helps relax muscle cells. Some research shows these foods may help lower blood pressure: meat, poultry, nuts and seeds such as pumpkin seeds and peanuts, beans such as chickpeas and soya, and dairy such as milk, yoghurt and cheese.

Studies have shown that meeting the recommended daily amount of calcium of 1,000 milligrams and getting up to 1,500 milligrams a day can improve blood pressure. Calcium-rich foods include dairy products such as milk, yoghurt, cheese and cottage cheese.

Also almonds, dark leafy greens and broccoli, dried beans and peas, fortified tofu and fortified orange juice, and fortified non-dairy milks such as almond, soya, coconut and oat.

Garlic may also help lower blood pressure. Likewise, moderate amounts of alcohol have been shown to help lower blood pressure.

Ranking

Cleveland Clinic is rated the world’s number 2 hospital for specialised care and the world’s number 1 hospital for cardiac surgery.

Cleveland Clinic ranked among the world’s best in all 10 Newsweek categories: cardiac surgery, cardiology, endocrinology, gastroenterology, neurology, neurosurgery, oncology, orthopaedics, paediatrics and pulmonology.

About Cleveland Clinic

Cleveland Clinic is a nonprofit multispecialty academic medical centre that integrates clinical and hospital care with research and education. Located in Cleveland, Ohio, it was founded in 1921 by four renowned physicians with a vision of providing outstanding patient care based on the principles of cooperation, compassion and innovation. Cleveland Clinic has pioneered many medical breakthroughs, including coronary artery bypass surgery and the first face transplant in the United States.

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