High blood pressure: Five summer foods to cut your BP reading

HIGH blood pressure has few symptoms, making it difficult to notice. Symptoms it displays when it is very high include chest pain, shortness of breath and headaches. Lower blood pressure is possible, with changes to diet and lifestyle, or by taking tablets. These are six summer foods you should try to lower blood pressure.

High blood pressure, or hypertension, symptoms include headaches, loss of vision and breathlessness. They often occur when the condition becomes more severe, meaning lots of people are living with the condition without realising. Public Health England reckons that for every 10 people diagnosed with the condition, a further seven are unaware they have it.
High blood pressure causes can be eating too much salt, being overweight or drinking too much alcohol, among others.
Blood Pressure UK says high blood pressure is defined as the pressure your heart beats at being over 140mmHg, and the pressure your blood reaches as your heart relaxes between beats being 90mmHg.
Eating these summer foods could help lower your blood pressure.

Strawberries, blueberries and raspberries
As British strawberries begin to hit the shelves from today, grabbing a carton could help you lower your blood pressure.
This is because berries are rich in the natural compound flavonoid, which can cause some blood vessel walls to relax, making blood flow easier.

Avocados
These are a great choice for combatting blood pressure.
This is because they are full of potassium, which is a key mineral in helping your kidneys filter fluids out of the blood, lowering blood pressure.
In sufferers of high blood pressure this is often disrupted because high salt levels in the diet make the kidneys less able to function, according to Blood Pressure UK.


Celery
Eating this vegetable should help lower your blood pressure, according to Dr Josh Axe, a clinical nutritionist.
Celery contains the chemicals phthalates, or NBP, which may also relax your artery walls, increasing blood flow and reducing blood pressure.
A 2014 study recommends consuming celery cooked instead of raw. Published in the Journal of Human Hypertension, scientists found a -1.9 mmHg drop in patients who ate 92 grams of the cooked vegetable a day, when looking at 2,195 American patients aged between 40 and 59.

Add some coriander
Consuming more of this herb has been shown to slash blood pressure, according to clinical nutritionist Dr Josh Axe.
“For people suffering with hypertension, consuming this spice has been shown to reduce blood pressure,” he writes on his website.
“Not only does it help positively modulate gut activity, but it also has a diuretic effect on the body, which is very helpful to people suffering from high blood pressure.”

Kale and other leafy greens
Tucking into some green leaves will boost your magnesium levels, helping combat high blood pressure.
A review published in the journal Hypertension suggested that magnesium could lower blood pressure.
Reviewing over 34 studies involving more than 200 patients, the researchers found that people eating between 240 and 960 milligrams of magnesium a day, had lower blood pressure after three months.
You may want to try other sources of magnesium, however, such as tablets, dark chocolate and nuts, as you would need to eat almost 1.7 kilograms of green leaves a day to get the same amount of magnesium.
You should also try other lifestyle changes to treat your high blood pressure, such as exercising more often and avoiding foods with a high salt content.