drinks to help lower blood pressure
drinks to help lower blood pressure tom wieden - Pixabay

Normally, high blood pressure varies throughout the day and may even be impacted by certain situations. It is already a cause for concern. However, if blood pressure readings, even while resting, are consistently high.

Having a high blood pressure means your heart needs to work overtime to pump blood throughout the body. While the process may appear harmless, and even normal to some, it can lead to the development of lethal diseases like stroke or heart attack. To prevent such conditions from worsening, it is important to implement some changes in your lifestyle.

Blood Pressure Friendly Drinks

Having a regular healthy diet that is good for the heart is crucial to lowering blood pressure. Having blood pressure, friendly drinks can help achieve this goal. Recent studies reveal that unsalted tomato juice, beetroot juice, and hibiscus tea contain properties that could help lower blood pressure readings.

Unsalted Tomato Juice

Food Science & Nutrition recently published a study showing that drinking unsalted tomato juice can lower blood pressure readings in Japanese adults deemed at higher risk of developing cardiovascular diseases. The same drink has also been found to help lower their LDL cholesterol.

Around 184 males and 297 females participated in the study. Each of them was given maximum amounts of unsalted tomato juice, which they consumed throughout the year.

After one year, researchers found that many of the participants saw their blood pressure significantly drop. Some with a systolic blood pressure of 141.2 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure of 83.3 mmHg at the study’s commencement enjoyed lower readings at 137.0 mmHg and 80.9 mmHg, respectively

Beetroot Juice

In another study, researchers found that beetroot juice also helps in lowering blood pressure. Individuals who regularly drank eight ounces of beetroot juice enjoyed lower systolic and diastolic blood pressure.

Researchers concluded that nitrates, a compound that beetroot juice is abundant with, were transformed into nitric acid as it entered the bloodstream. This helped relax and even widen the blood vessels, allowing for a smoother flow of blood to the heart and around the body.

Hibiscus Tea

This beverage is made by boiling some parts of the hibiscus plant. Research shows 65 people suffering from high blood pressure were given either placebos or hibiscus tea.

After several weeks, those who took hibiscus tea displayed a considerable decrease in their systolic blood pressure as compared to those who drank placebo. In a 2015 review of some five studies showed that hibiscus tea helped lower systolic and diastolic blood pressure by at least 7.58 mmHg and 3.53 mmHg, respectively.