How to Get Rid of High Blood Pressure

High blood pressure, or hypertension, affects most people at some point in their lives and increases the risk of stroke, heart disease and kidney failure, according to the U.S. National Institutes of Health. Often people with high blood pressure show no symptoms. Medical institutes define high blood pressure as anything above 140/90. If you've been diagnosed with hypertension, instituting some lifestyle changes at times can be sufficient to getting blood pressure numbers below that level, although sometimes a medicinal fix also is required.

Things You'll Need

• Home blood pressure monitor

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Instructions

• 1

  Change your diet. Follow the U.S. National Institutes of Health's Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension program, which it says can lower blood pressure in just two weeks. Eat at least three whole-grain foods each day, four to six servings each of fruits and vegetables and three to six servings per week of nuts, seeds and legumes. Also consume two to four servings a day of non-fat or low-fat dairy products and about two daily servings of fish or poultry. Minimize red meats, sweets and sugary beverages.

• 2

  Limit your sodium intake to less than 2,400 milligrams, or about a teaspoon of table salt, per day. Avoid prepared foods, such as frozen dinners and canned soups, or look for a low-sodium version. Rinse canned vegetables or tuna before preparing them to remove sodium. Flavor foods with herbs and salt-free seasoning instead of salt. Favor fresh pasta and cereal over instant versions, which have added salt.

• 3

  Start an exercise program, getting at least 30 minutes of moderate activity each day. This could include vigorous walking or biking and also can be accomplished through such chores as gardening, washing the car or shoveling snow.

• 4

  Cut down on alcohol consumption. The NIH recommends women limit themselves to one drink per day and men to two drinks per day. Smoking also raises blood pressure, so view this as another reason to quit.

• 5

  If your blood pressure remains high after lifestyle changes, talk to your doctor about medication options. These might include diuretics to help the body remove sodium, enzyme inhibitors to relax blood vessels or beta blockers to reduce the heart's workload, according to the Mayo Clinic.

• 6

  Ask your doctor about other conditions that might be aggravating blood pressure, such as sleep apnea or kidney problems.