There are many reasons why you might get high blood pressure, such as eating too much sugar and salt and smoking. Being overweight and not having enough exercise can also lead to high blood pressure.
But what foods should you be eating to help lower your blood pressure?
Top 5 Foods to Lower your Blood Pressure
1. Kiwi’s, in a study by the American Heart Association 188 men and women 55 and older were given 3 kiwi’s a day or an apple for 8 weeks. The people who ate the kiwis had lower systolic blood pressure than those who ate the apples.
2. St Georges Medical School in a study found that foods containing Potassium Citrate helped to lower blood pressure. Some of the best foods containing Potassium Citrate are Bananas, prunes, apricot beans and dark green leafy veg.
3. In a 20 year study by the American College of Cardiology who traced people’s diets for 20 years, showed that foods containing Isoflavones helped to lower blood pressure. Isoflavones are in soy, peanuts and green tea.
4. A study done by Florida State University showed that the amino acid L-Citrulline/L-Arginine in Watermelon could have blood pressure lowering effects. They found that people who had just 6 grams a day over a six week period had better functioning of the arteries.
5. A study done in 2010, Journal of Cell Metabolism showed that the spicy ingredient Capsaicin in chilli peppers helped to lower blood pressure in rats, however the study has not yet been done in humans, to know if would have the same effect.
Sources
http://consumer.healthday.com/circulatory-system-information-7/blood-pressure-news-70/got-high-blood-pressure-kiwi-fruit-may-help-658925.html
http://www.acc.org/about-acc/press-releases/2012/03/25/15/19/soybeans_bp
http://www.fsu.edu/news/2010/10/13/watermelon.study/
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3462993/
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