How to Decrease Diastolic Pressure

Diastolic blood pressure indicates your blood pressure when your heart is at rest, between beats. This is the bottom number of your blood pressure reading. The higher this number is, the greater your risk for complications of high blood pressure or hypertension. You can do several things to lower your blood pressure. Lifestyle modifications are vital. The University of Maryland Medical Center and the Mayo Clinic offer several suggestions.

Things You'll Need

• Exercise, including deep breahing
• Supplements
• Acupuncture
• Massage
• Prescriptions (optional)

Show More

Instructions

• 1

  Decrease sodium in your diet. The current recommendations are 2,400 mg daily but cutting back to 1,500 mg will produce a more pronounced effect on your blood pressure. Aim for fresh, unprocessed foods rather than packaged and processed ones; they tend to have large amounts of salt.

• 2

  Exercise regularly and lose excess weight; both will have a positive impact on your blood pressure. Get at least 30 minutes of exercise several days a week.

• 3

  Reduce your alcohol intake and quit smoking. Alcohol raises blood pressure and tobacco damages your blood vessels. Men should limit alcoholic beverages to two a day while women should only have one.

• 4

  Experiment with different relaxation techniques. They reduce stress, which in turn, lowers blood pressure. Deep breathing, yoga, meditation and positive visualization are among some of the most popular ones.

• 5

  Consider using natural supplements to reduce blood pressure. The University of Maryland Medical Center lists the following supplements as having shown some benefit in clinical studies. You should talk with your doctor or a health care provider experienced in using natural therapies before starting a supplement regimen. They include coenzyme Q10 (100 mg daily), magnesium citrate (300 to 500 mg daily), calcium (1,000 mg daily) and potassium ( available by prescription only), alchillea wilhelmsii (20 drops of tincture twice daily) and garlic (400 mg three times a day)

• 6

  Try acupuncture and massage; according to the University, both showed benefit in clinical studies.

• 7

  Talk to your doctor about available medications if lifestyle modifications are proving inadequate. He can prescribe medications that slow the heartbeat, relax the blood vessels and reduce blood volume among other things. He can determine the most appropriate medications for you. Take exactly as prescribed and do not alter your dosages without talking to your doctor first.