Healthy diets lower blood pressure more than medication
- Cutting out salt and eating more fruit can reduce blood pressure by 21 mm Hg
- Anti-hypertension drugs are only approved if they lower levels by 3-4 mm Hg
- Most available medications reduce levels by 10-15 mm Hg but have side effects
- A healthy diet can therefore lower levels by more than approved medications
- Around 32% of US adults have high blood pressure, which causes heart disease
Alexandra Thompson Health Reporter For Mailonline
26
View
comments
Low-salt diets packed with fruit and vegetables lower blood pressure more than medication after just four weeks, a Harvard University study reveals.
Cutting out salt and eating lots of fruit, vegetables and low-fat dairy, reduces people with high blood pressure’s results by an average of 21 mm Hg, the research adds.
To put that into context, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the US’ drug-approving body, will not accept anti-hypertension medications unless they lower blood pressure by at least 3-4 mm Hg.
Most medications typically reduce hypertension readings by between 10 and 15 mm Hg, but come with side effects including fatigue, dizziness and headache.
Study author Dr Lawrence Appel said: ‘What we’re observing from the combined dietary intervention is a reduction in systolic blood pressure as high as, if not greater than, that achieved with prescription drugs.
‘It’s an important message to patients that they can get a lot of mileage out of adhering to a healthy and low-sodium diet.’
Around 32 percent of adults in the US have high blood pressure, which puts them at risk of heart disease and stroke.
Low-salt, healthy diets lower blood pressure more than medication after just four weeks
-
Modern Family star Sarah Hyland opens up about fighting…
Don’t fear the holiday cheer: Therapists explain how to…
Too busy for love: Career women in Britain and the US are…
Struggling to shift the baby weight? 19 tips from Binky…
DAILY MAGNESIUM SUPPLEMENTS ‘SIGNIFICANTLY’ REDUCE BLOOD PRESSURE IN JUST ONE MONTH
Daily magnesium supplements significantly reduce blood pressure, research revealed in September.
Taking a 300mg tablet, the recommended dose for males, lowers hypertension and boosts blood flow after just one month, a study review found.
Researchers from Indiana University recommend magnesium supplements be considered for people suffering from, or at-risk of, high blood pressure.
Yet, other experts argue dietary sources of the mineral, such as leafy greens, bananas and nuts, are sufficient to keep magnesium levels topped up.
Excessive levels of the mineral can cause side effects, including diarrhea.
How the research was carried out
The researchers analyzed 412 people with early-stage hypertension who were not taking high blood pressure medication.
Some of the study’s participants were fed a ‘DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet’, which includes lots of fruit, vegetables and low-fat dairy products, with minimal saturated fat.
The remaining participants ate a typical American diet.
All of the participants were fed different sodium levels equaling around 0.5, one or two teaspoons of salt a day over four weeks with five-day breaks in between.
Approximately one teaspoon is the maximum recommended salt intake in the US to reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke.
Healthy diet as good as medication
Results reveal that, among the participants with the highest blood pressure levels, following a low-salt, DASH diet for just four weeks reduced their hypertension readings by an average of 21 mm Hg.
For the FDA to approve any anti-hypertension medication, it must lower blood pressure by 3-4 mm Hg.
Drugs such as ACE inhibitors, calcium blockers and beta blockers typically reduce blood pressure by between 10 and 15 mm Hg.
Participants with lower blood pressure results at the start of the study also saw their readings reduce by between five and 10 mm Hg.
Dr Appel said: ‘What we’re observing from the combined dietary intervention is a reduction in systolic blood pressure as high as, if not greater than, that achieved with prescription drugs.
‘It’s an important message to patients that they can get a lot of mileage out of adhering to a healthy and low-sodium diet.’
The findings were published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
Share or comment on this article
- Squeaky keen! Adorable moment a boy gawps in amazement as…
- So long, and thanks for all the bamboo! Giant pandas Ba…
- ‘Torturers with whips, families herded on to trains and…
- Aung San Suu Kyi agrees to allow Rohingya Muslims to…
- Campaigners demand urgent cuts to power bill after number…
- British Next executive was stabbed to death by his…
- UK must beef up its jihadi cyber defences, says ex-CIA…
- It’s Connect Paw! Adorable video shows clever dog…
- Shocking moment Brazilian woman is stabbed to death in…
- Saudi princes and billionaires ‘are willing to make a…
- Shell-shocked! Petrified tortoise cowers when a curious…
- Worst polluting plastics facing a tax crackdown:…
- Male teacher resigns at Susanna Reid and Rachel Weisz’s…
- Europe’s oldest chimpanzee Blossom dies at the ripe old…
- Young children were strapped to chairs by staff to manage…
- Moment police officers fire warning shot at a knifeman…
- Family sue hospital after pensioner, 87, ‘was brain…
- Cam-OWL-flaged: Owl finds the perfect hideaway for a…
Comments 24
Share what you think
-
Newest -
Oldest -
Best rated -
Worst rated
The comments below have not been moderated.
The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.
Close
Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline?
Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual.
Close
Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline?
Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual
We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook.
You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.