Natural Ways To Lower Blood Pressure

Many adults deal with high blood pressure. Experts recommend treating it with lifestyle changes and medications, but natural remedies may be just as effective.

- Karta Purkh Singh Khalsa

These days, most of us might feel like we’re about to burst something, but for one third of American adults, that possibility is all too real. Those unlucky souls are living with a ticking time bomb.

When your heart pumps, each life-giving squeeze sends blood coursing through your arteries, which pipe that blood to every corner of your body. The force of blood pushing against those arterial walls is, simply put, your blood pressure. Normal pressure is less than 120/80, but if it climbs above 150/90 (stage 2 hypertension), you’re about to blow.

About 75 million people in the United States age 20 and older—an astounding one in three adults—have high blood pressure. Upwards of 90 percent of those with chronic high blood pressure have no obvious damage or disease, so perhaps 30 percent are unaware of their condition, prompting its “silent killer” moniker. Over time, high blood pressure is likely to damage every one of your organs.

Without a doubt, it’s important to decisively normalize your blood pressure, but rarely would it ever need to be lowered instantly, so you have some time to bring it down. Just don’t ignore it.

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