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High Blood Pressure

How to help to control blood pressure?

10/02/2007

Question:

What kind of foods can someone eat daily to help control high blood pressure without taking medications?

Answer:

The following are a list of lifestyle modifications that are recommended as part of the treatment for hypertension:

1.  Follow a diet rich in fruit, vegetables and lowfat dairy.  Also, try to reduce the amount of saturated and total fat in your diet.

2.  Reduce the amount of salt you eat to less than 6 gm per day (that corresponds to less than 2.4 gm of sodium).

3.  Reduce alcohol consumption to no more than two standard drinks per day in men and no more than one standard drink per day in women.

4.  Maintain normal body weight (body mass index between 18.5 and 25), and engage in regular aerobic physical activity (such as brisk walking) at least 30 minutes per day.

For more information:

Go to the High Blood Pressure health topic, where you can:

Response by:

Max C Reif, MD Max C Reif, MD
Professor of Medicine
Director of Hypertension Section
College of Medicine
University of Cincinnati