Herbs can help you with your High Blood Pressure. On this page will shall discuss 10 natural herbs will assist you with high blood pressure.
Add these herbs to everything else your physician says and you will control your High Blood Pressure.
Today, most of the adults are dealing with a condition known as hypertension (High Blood Pressure) especially in the economically developing countries.
Although this is a condition that can affect anyone, it is more common with the pregnant women but that does not necessarily mean it is dangerous if controlled.
All in all, high blood pressure is a condition that needs attention and care to avoid more related medical problems.
What is High Blood Pressure
Blood pressure is characterized by the amount of blood pumped by your heart as well as the level of resistance to the blood flow.
The narrowness of your arteries determines the level of blood pressure in your body.
When someone is experiencing high blood pressure, it means that the pressure used to push blood in the arteries is unusually high.
For instance, if your blood pressure reading is at 140/90 mm Hg that may be considered as too high.
Factors that Lead to High Blood Pressure
There are a number of factors that elevate the blood pressure in the human body. High blood pressure is commonly known as the silent killer and it always leads to other related health problems. Some of the factors include;
⦁ Inadequate exercise
⦁ Poor dietary plans
⦁ Smoking and alcoholism
⦁ Genetic issues
⦁ High stress levels
Some of the health risks associated with high blood pressure include; heart attacks, kidney diseases, heart failure, diabetes, stroke, metabolic syndrome among other risks. This is why you are recommended to go for blood pressure check-ups as often as you can.
This What You Can Do About the High Blood Pressure Problem
Visit your doctor, and this is very important, get your doctor check you out. If your High Blood pressure is out of control you will be put on chronic medication.
The doctor will also advise you on life style changes which include exercise and controlling what you eat.
You will of-course be advised to either stop or limit your alcohol drinking habit if any and smoking.
Through certain life style change routines and medications, you could curb the effects caused by high blood pressure.
On Top of the Chronic Medication Food and Herbs will Help Control Your High Blood Pressure
As your use the herbs, let them supplement some of your daily routines like regular exercise and healthy diets. This will make sure that you get the best out of your herbal remedies.
The essence of this article will be to highlight some of the factors that lead to high blood pressure and the best herbal remedies for high blood pressure both in general and the specific ones that could do for pregnant women.
The 10 Best Herbal Remedies for High Blood Pressure
⦁ Cinnamon
I bet you have heard about cinnamon but obviously as that tasty seasoning addition to your meal. Well, besides being a great tasty addition to your diet, Cinnamon is great solution to high blood pressure. With just a little effort, it will reduce those sky rocketing numbers to a more stable state. It doesn’t matter if your high blood pressure has been there for a long time or has just began, cinnamon is a proven solution.
However, researchers still aren’t sure if cinnamon is safe when consumed orally. That should not worry you because they are endless possibilities of how you can incorporate your portion of cinnamon to your meals. You may consider adding it to your morning coffee, oat meal or your breakfast cereal. Other options to your main dish would be sprinkling some in your stew, curries or stir fries.
⦁ Basil
Basil is very delicious herb that will blend in so well with a variety of dishes. This herb traces back its history to the medications used by Indians to treat various conditions. More to that, it is known to lower your blood pressure significantly. Although Basil may not be as effective as other herbs, the Eugenol present in it is known to block the substances which normally lead to tightening of arteries. This in turn leads to a drop in the levels of blood pressure in the body.
Basil is a safe combination to some of your everyday meals. From the seeds to the leaves Basil has proven to be a great tonic to the human body. The possible combinations include; stews, salads, pasta or casseroles. Basil comes with other nutritional values too that will be helpful to your body. It is rich in minerals like Zinc, calcium and Iron while other Vitamins A and C are present too.
⦁ Flax Seed
The Flax seed herb is very rich in Omega 3 (ALA) fatty acids. From some studies done on this herb, scientists have proven that it is a great remedy that could take care of high blood pressure too. Whether consumed as whole or ground, flax seeds have a great nutritional and health value to your body.
There is a whole list of heart related conditions that Flax seeds can take care of. Such conditions include; The Flax seed can protect you from Atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases simply by reducing the serum cholesterol in your body. Through this process, the Flax seed acts as an antioxidant therefore increasing the body’s tolerance to glucose.
Most of the products out there have flax seeds as one of the components. However, flax seeds are better consumed in the ground or whole form in order to enhance on its efficiency. You can also consider adding them to some of your home cooked meals like stews. The ground flax seeds blend in so well with baked foods, smoothies and soups. Just remember to store it in your freezer to increase on its optimum potency ability.
⦁ Garlic
Apart from being one of the greatest spices around the world, garlic has presented a variety of medical benefits to the human body. Some conditions that occur during pregnancy especially high blood pressure and inadequate blood supply can be taken care of by this delicious spice. All in all, for pregnant mothers, it is advisable that you consult your doctor for instructions on the safe dosage and potential dangers that may come with the same.
Garlic contains a component known as alliin which is a derivative of sulphurous amino acids which converts it to allicin. The Allicin has the ability to increase the effects of Nitric oxide in your body to lower high blood pressure.
This is because Nitric oxide relaxes and smoothens muscles and dilates the blood vessels in the human body.
More to that, it enhances the general immunity of a pregnant mother because it inhibits attacks by antibodies and improves the selenium in the body which reduces oxidative stress. Whether consumed as ground or fresh, garlic is a great addition to your favourite recipes.
⦁ Hawthorn
Hawthorn is great herbal remedy which will actually reduce high blood pressure when taken in the right amounts. Initially, it was used by the Chinese in their traditional medicine to treat certain medical conditions for thousands of years. Hawthorn has proven to have beneficial medical purposes especially in countering cardiovascular related diseases like high blood pressure.
Hawthorn helps in lowering the blood pressure in human body simply by preventing the hardening of arteries. This is because high blood pressure is as a result of narrowing of arteries. In addition to that, Hawthorn can be used to lower the levels of cholesterol in the body. It is available in herbal pills, a liquid herbal extract or even herbal tea. You just have to choose the form that does best for you.
⦁ Ginger
Ginger, is one of the most delicious yet still the healthiest spice in the world. This is because it is loaded with a whole lot of bioactive compounds and nutrients that are beneficial to the brain and the human body in general. A test done in the rodents showed that ginger improves blood circulation by relaxing the muscles around the blood vessels. This leads to a lower blood pressure.
Studies conducted on the human body are still inconclusive on the ginger. However, it proves to be a promising herbal medicine that might be actually the solution people have been looking for in reducing high blood pressure. Ginger is a common spice especially in the Asian dishes that can be added to beverages or just the whole meals.
It can be taken in minced, chopped or grated form in soups, vegetable dishes, noodles or soups. For beverages, ginger can be added to dessert juice or morning tea to give you refreshing taste.
⦁ Cardamom
Cardamom is a popular spice that is made from plant seeds. It is grown in various countries across the world in a certain plant that has so much resemblance with ginger. Cardamom can be in black or green cardamom where the black one has a greater smell and taste. This spice has magical healing properties making it one of the most expensive spices in the market.
With about 1.5 grams of cardamom daily for about 12 weeks, you are bound to see a great effect to your blood pressure levels. In that, Cardamom will significantly lower your blood pressure. This spice can be added to some of the popular dishes either in the powdered form or just the seeds.
The powdered Cardamom especially is a great addition to soups, stews and even baked foods. This is just the spice that offers a great flavour while still giving the consumers great health benefits.
⦁ French lavender
At the thought of lavender, I know most of you picture the sweet smelling scent or the beautiful colour of the plant only. However, that’s not the only property of Lavender that will melt your heart. This is because it has a very long history of medical treatment from both the flowers and the oil extract from it. It is a safe multi-purpose herb and different people use it for diverse health benefits.
Studies done on Lavender showed that it lowers the blood pressure and the heart beat rate. It helps to keep the Cardiovascular muscles relaxed hence enhances easy flow of blood in to the arteries. Lavender is not so common in making curries but is a great addition to baked foods. You do not have to worry about packing up a whole bunch of lavender in your fridge, it is available as a tea.
⦁ Celery Seeds
Celery is a common herb for making great soups, savoury dishes, stews and casseroles. It has a great tasting flavour. Besides that, studies done in China showed that Celery seeds extracts are a potential for treating hypertension. It can be in juiced form, seeds or the whole plant, the benefits you get are never compromised.
The properties of celery seeds have a phytochemical which relaxes the tissues of artery walls and cardiovascular muscles. The general relaxation of the artery walls and muscles leads to better and increased blood flow. This means that the blood pressure is lowered significantly on the other hand.
In addition to that, researchers believe that the diuretic properties of celery seeds explain the whole idea behind the effect on blood pressure. This is because diuretics increase the amount of salts and water excreted by the body through urine. Simply reduces any fluids that may be available in your blood vessels. This in turn helps to lower blood pressure in the body.
⦁ Cat’s Claws
This is a popular herbal medicine especially in the traditional Chinese medicinal practices. Cat’s Claws was used among the Chinese to treat hypertension and other neurological-related health problems. This herb acts on the calcium channels in the body therefore a great treatment for hypertension. That being the case, it is evident that Cat’s claw is a great herb for reducing high blood pressure.
The calcium property in this herb makes it ideal for pregnant women too. However, with the case of pregnant women, you should always consult your doctor before deciding to incorporate such herbs in your diet. You can consume your Cat’s claws in supplements which are available in most of the food stores for healthy foods.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I hope that the listing of the ten best remedies for high blood pressure in general and in pregnant women will be helpful when choosing the right herbs for your condition. In pregnant women especially, high blood pressure leads to extra stress on the kidneys and heart which may cause heart diseases. It is better to curb the high blood pressure at a younger stage to avoid further complications.
