Hypertension, or high blood pressure, affects one in every four adults in the United States, according to the Colorado State University Extension. Uncontrolled hypertension increases your risk of having a heart attack or stroke. While you cannot cure hypertension, making changes to your lifestyle, including diet, can significantly reduce your blood pressure.
Blood Pressure
Your blood pressure is the measurement of the force of blood against artery walls. It includes two measurements. The top number is the systolic pressure, or the force when your heart beats, and the bottom number is the diastolic pressure, or force in between beats. Blood pressure is measured in millimeters of mercury, or mm Hg. Your blood pressure can fluctuate throughout the day, but when it is high for an extended period it makes your heart work too hard and can damage arteries and organs. A normal blood pressure measures 120/80 mm Hg, prehypertension measures 120 to 139 over 80 to 89 mm Hg and hypertension measures greater than 140/90 mm Hg.
DASH Diet
The Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension diet is specifically designed to help lower blood pressure. The DASH diet follows basic heart-healthy diet guidelines, limiting total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol intake and sodium intake while encouraging you to increase your intake of nutrients that can reduce blood pressure, such as potassium, calcium and magnesium. If you have hypertension, you can see an improvement in your blood pressure within two weeks of starting the diet, according to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.
Diet Guide
The DASH diet encourages you to eat more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean sources of protein and low-fat or nonfat dairy foods. It also suggests you include nuts, seeds and legumes in your weekly rotation. On the diet, you eat a certain number of servings from each of the food groups based on your daily calorie needs. For example, on a 2,000-calorie diet you can have six to eight servings of grains, eight to 10 servings of fruits and vegetables, two to three servings of milk, six or fewer servings of lean sources of protein such as white meat poultry and fish, two to three servings of fat and four to five servings of nuts, seeds or legumes a week.
How It Works
The DASH diet works by helping you limit your sodium intake while increasing your intake of nutrients that can help lower blood pressure. High intake of sodium causes your body to retain fluids, which can increase blood pressure in salt-sensitive individuals. Foods high in potassium, such as fruits and vegetables, help balance fluids, blunting the effects of sodium and helping improve blood pressure. Magnesium, found in vegetables, nuts, seeds and legumes, works by promoting normal blood pressure. People with adequate intakes of calcium have lower rates of hypertension, according to the Colorado State University Extension. Calcium helps regulate the contraction and dilation of your blood vessels, which may aid in blood pressure control.
