10 Mar 5 FREE Ways To Lower Your Blood Pressure

“High blood pressure is public health enemy No. 2,” behind tobacco, says CDC director Thomas Frieden. “There is nothing that will save more lives than getting blood pressure under control,” he says1.

Many Americans taking medicine for blood pressure still have it, but did you know there’s ALOT you can do to control this malady, mitigating further damage to your heart and arteries?

Undoubtedly a low sodium diet is a must to lower blood pressure. Also managing stress is essential! No smoking is also stressed, as “Not only does smoking or chewing tobacco immediately raise your blood pressure temporarily, but the chemicals in tobacco can damage the lining of your artery walls. This can cause your arteries to narrow, increasing your blood pressure”.2

Here’s 5 things you can do for FREE right now to TAKE charge of your hypertension! We think you’ll find them ENJOYABLE too.

1. Breathe in, breathe out. “Sit in a comfortable chair with armrests. Your body should be relaxed. Place one hand on a part of your chest or preferably your abdomen. Watch your hand rise and fall with each breath…feel the breath as it moves into your abdomen,” Dr. John M. Kennedy3, a cardiologist in Los Angeles, Calif., and author of the book The Heart Health Bible. This should be repeated seven times and can become a daily habit by doing deep breathing 10 minutes in the morning.

2. Get some rays! Increasing nitric oxide has blood pressure lowering qualities. Sun exposure is an enjoyable means to get more NO [nitric oxide], having many benefits.
“NO [nitric oxide] along with its breakdown products, known to be abundant in skin, is involved in the regulation of blood pressure. When exposed to sunlight, small amounts of NO are transferred from the skin to the circulation, lowering blood vessel tone; as blood pressure drops, so does the risk of heart attack and stroke,” said Martin Feelisch, professor of experimental medicine and integrative biology at the University of Southampton4.

3. Walk it off! 10-­30 minutes per day of brisk walking can help decrease your systolic blood pressure by 4­9 points.

4. Drink Tea! Amazingly, one to four cups per day has been shown to lower blood pressure. Researchers think the flavonoids found in tea could help relax blood vessels, which ultimately decreases blood pressure and calms the nervous system5.

5. Turn up the Tunes: Listening to half an hour of music each day may significantly lower your blood pressure, according to research reported at the American Society of Hypertension meeting in New Orleans.6

Remember ACL Wellness offers nutrition counseling, personal trainers and life coaches. By connecting with any one of a charitable life wellness coaches you are taking a step in the right direction. To schedule your phone counsultation you may call 888-691-0532 Option 2.

References

1. http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/health/story/2012­09­05/blood­ pressure/57578998/1?csp=34news
2. http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases­conditions/high­blood­pressure/basics/risk­ factors/con­20019580
3. http://www.johnmkennedymd.com/breath­techniq.html
4. http://www.medicaldaily.com/sunlight­lowers­blood­pressure­altering­nitric­oxide­levels­reducing­heart­attack­and­stroke­risk
5. http://www.medicaldaily.com/caffeine­tea­and­coffee­lowers­blood­pressure­researchers­say­4­cups­day­does­deed­247336
6. http://www.reuters.com/article/2008/05/16/us­listening­music­idUSCOL65690420080516#l13Mt0LiyckG4Pzl.99

Tags: Lower Blood Pressure, blood pressure, walking, tea, stress management, smoking, acl wellness, wellness coach