The best foods to lower blood pressure

The foods you eat can affect how hard your heart has to work.

A diet high in processed foods, often packed with salt and unhealthy fats, can contribute to high blood pressure over time.

On the flip side, eating plenty of vegetables, fruit, wholegrains and legumes helps blood vessels relax and takes pressure off the heart.

It’s not about any single food, but the overall pattern of what you eat over time.

Some nutrients affect blood pressure more than others:

Sodium (salt)

Sodium attracts water, which raises the pressure in your arteries. It can be a big contributor to high blood pressure.¹

Potassium

Potassium can lower blood pressure. It helps the body get rid of excess sodium through our urine and relax our blood vessels.²

Fibre

Dietary fibre helps lower blood pressure by reducing inflammation and slowing sugar absorption. One study found those with hypertension should aim for a minimum 28g per day for women and 38g per day for men, with an additional 5g per day linked to a reduction in systolic blood pressure by nearly 3mmHg.³

Healthy fats

Healthy fats (including mono and poly unsaturated fats) improve blood vessel elasticity and reduce inflammation which can help reduce blood pressure.⁴

Fruits and vegetables

Fruit and veg are full of nutrients like fibre and potassium which helps relax blood vessels and flush excess sodium from the body. Boost your intake by including foods like berries, bananas, leafy green veg, sweet potato and avocado in your diet.

Wholegrains

Wholegrains include rolled oats, brown rice, grainy bread, wholemeal pasta and quinoa. These foods are an excellent source of fibre to help lower your blood pressure and look after your overall heart health.

Healthy fats

Healthy fats include extra virgin olive oil, nuts and seeds. Extra virgin olive oil is high in polyphenols, which can reduce inflammation in our arteries. Research shows that 2 to 4 tablespoons per day can lower blood pressure within 3 weeks.⁵ Full of fibre and potassium, nuts and seeds also support healthy blood pressure. Aim for a handful a day and choose unsalted options to keep your sodium intake low.

Remember, it's your overall dietary pattern that will help keep your blood pressure healthy.

Diets high in processed foods and low in plant-based foods can contribute to high blood pressure over time. These foods may directly increase blood pressure, or they can commonly contribute to weight gain which is linked to higher blood pressure. These foods include:

• High-salt and fat processed foods and snacks
• Sugary drinks
• Excess alcohol

The DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet⁶ is a healthy eating plan designed specifically to prevent and reduce high blood pressure in just a few weeks.

It’s based on eating 4 to 5 servings of fruit and vegetables a day, 6 to 8 servings of wholegrains a day, 6 or fewer servings of fish, poultry or lean meat, and 2 to 3 servings of low-fat dairy a day.

It recommends a maximum of 2300mg of sodium daily, limited fat intake, and a maximum of 5 servings of sweets per week.

• Read labels. Around 75% of the salt in our diet comes from packaged or processed foods; bread, crackers and sauces can all contain a lot of sodium.7 Ideally, look for packaged foods with less than 120mg of sodium per 100g. This can be hard to find, so less than 400mg per 100g is acceptable.
• Taste food before you add salt. Add herbs, spices or lemon to add flavour. It can take 4 to 6 weeks for your taste buds to adjust to using less salt.
• Rinse canned beans or legumes before eating. This can reduce the sodium in the liquid significantly.
• Eat more vegetables. Throw any extra servings you can into your diet to increase your potassium and fibre intake. A big bag of spinach in the fridge is very handy.

The Heart Foundation offers information about blood pressure and how to manage it.

Health Direct provides the latest information and online resources on healthy blood pressure.