10 Effective Ways to Lower Your Blood Pressure without medication

High blood pressure often develops without noticeable symptoms but can leave serious consequences. With a few simple lifestyle changes, you can make a significant difference. Here are 10 effective ways to manage it naturally – combining scientific recommendations with the wisdom of Traditional Chinese medicine.

1. Exercise regularly

Regular physical activity — at least 30 minutes most days of the week — can lower your blood pressure by 4 to 9 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg). It's important to be consistent because if you stop exercising, your blood pressure can rise again. [Read more: Hypertension from the TCM perspective]

If you have slightly high blood pressure (prehypertension), exercise can help you avoid developing full-blown hypertension. If you already have hypertension, regular physical activity can bring your blood pressure down to safer levels.

The best types of exercise for lowering blood pressure include walking, Qi Gong, Yoga or Tai Chi. Strength training can also help reduce blood pressure.

2. Make sure to get good, restful sleep

Your blood pressure dips down when you’re sleeping. If you don’t sleep well, it can affect your blood pressure. People whose sleep is disturbed, especially the middle-aged, have an increased risk of high blood pressure.

For some people, getting a good sleep isn’t easy. There are many ways to help you get good sleep. Try setting a regular sleep schedule, relaxing, exercising during the day, avoiding daytime naps, and making your bedroom comfortable. [Read more: 9 Essential Tips for Better Sleep with TCM] [Read more: Simple mindfulness exercises]

3. Reduce sodium in your diet

Even a small reduction in the sodium in your diet can reduce blood pressure by 2 to 8 mm Hg. To decrease sodium in your diet, consider these tips:

• Read food labels. If possible, choose low-sodium alternatives of the foods and beverages you normally buy.

• Eat fewer processed foods. Only a small amount of sodium occurs naturally in foods. Most sodium is added during processing.

• Don't add salt. Just 1 level teaspoon of salt has 2,300 mg of sodium.

• Ease into it. If you don't feel you can drastically reduce the sodium in your diet suddenly, cut back gradually. Your palate will adjust over time.

[Read more: TCM Dietary Advice]

4. Limit the amount of alcohol you drink

Drinking too much alcohol can raise blood pressure to unhealthy levels. Having more than three drinks in one sitting temporarily increases your blood pressure, but repeated binge drinking can lead to long-term increases.

Keep in mind that alcohol contains calories and may contribute to unwanted weight gain — a risk factor for high blood pressure. Also, alcohol can interfere with the effectiveness and increase the side effects of some blood pressure medications.

If you have high blood pressure, avoid alcohol or drink alcohol only in moderation. Moderate drinking is generally considered to be:

• Two drinks a day for men younger than age 65

• One drink a day for men age 65 and older

• One drink a day for women of any age

• A drink is 3.5dl of beer, 1.5dl of wine or 0.4dl distilled spirits.

Drinking more than moderate amounts of alcohol can actually raise blood pressure by several points.

5. Quit smoking

Each cigarette you smoke increases your blood pressure for many minutes after you finish. Quitting smoking helps your blood pressure return to normal. People who quit smoking, regardless of age, have substantial increases in life expectancy. [Read more: Quitting smoking with TCM]

6. Cut back on caffeine

The role caffeine plays in blood pressure is still debated. Caffeine can raise blood pressure by as much as 10 mm Hg in people who rarely consume it, but there is little to no strong effect on blood pressure in habitual coffee drinkers. [Read more: Coffee In The View of Chinese Medicine]

Although the effects of chronic caffeine ingestion on blood pressure aren't clear, the possibility of a slight increase in blood pressure exists.

To see if caffeine raises your blood pressure, check your pressure within 30 minutes of drinking a caffeinated beverage. If your blood pressure increases by 5 to 10 mm Hg, you may be sensitive to the blood pressure raising effects of caffeine. [Read more: 7 steps to cut down on coffee consumption] [Read more: The Hidden Health Risks of Energy Drinks]

7. Reduce your stress

Chronic stress is an important contributor to high blood pressure. Occasional stress also can contribute to high blood pressure if you react to stress by eating unhealthy food, drinking alcohol or smoking.

Take some time to think about what causes you to feel stressed, such as work, family, finances or illness. Once you know what's causing your stress, consider how you can eliminate or reduce stress.

If you can't eliminate all of your stressors, you can at least cope with them in a healthier way. Try to:

• Change your expectations. Give yourself time to get things done. Learn to say no and to live within manageable limits. Try to learn to accept things you can't change. [Read more: Stress Management: How to Reduce, Prevent, and Cope with Stress] [Read more: Yin Yang philosophy and mental health]

• Think about problems under your control and make a plan to solve them. You could talk to your boss about difficulties at work or to family members about problems at home. [Read more: Effects of financial stress on your health and how you can cope]

• Know your stress triggers. Avoid whatever triggers you can. For example, spend less time with people who bother you or avoid driving in rush-hour traffic.

• Make time to relax and to do activities you enjoy. Take 15 to 20 minutes a day to sit quietly and breathe deeply. Try to intentionally enjoy what you do rather than hurrying through your "relaxing activities" at a stressful pace. [Read more: See things differently to manage stress and depression]

• Practice gratitude. Expressing gratitude to others can help reduce stressful thoughts. [Read more: Practicing gratitude brings health benefits]

• Deep relaxation with acupuncture and herbs. Even though needles like scary and stressful, when applied correctly at certain acupoints, it helps the body to regenerate and relax better. It works even better with energy support from herbs. [Read more: Deep relaxation with TCM]

8. Medicinal herbs

Chinese herbal medicine has been used for thousands of years to help patients with hypertension to subdue symptoms and support your body’s natural circulatory functions. Scutellaria, gardenia and salvia are just a few of the herbs that may be chosen to address your blood pressure. Consult a trainer herbalist to work with you closely to formulate an herbal combination suited to your particular blood pressure condition. [Read more: 7 common Chinese Herbs used for hypertension at Aku Energija]

9. Acupressure and/or Acupuncture

Many studies have illustrated the efficacy of acupuncture for hypertension. In fact, it is one of the most researched aspects of acupuncture, showing that it significantly reduces hypertension and can have long lasting effects. Acupuncture helps relieve the symptoms of hypertension such as headache, dizziness and shortness of breath, leaving you calmer, less inflamed, and with less stress on your nervous system. Your heart will be less stressed too. [Watch our video on self massage for hypertension]

10. Get support

Supportive family and friends can help improve your health. They may encourage you to take care of yourself, drive you to the doctor's office or embark on an exercise program with you to keep your blood pressure low.

If you find you need support beyond your family and friends, consider joining a support group. This may put you in touch with people who can give you an emotional or morale boost and who can offer practical tips to cope with your condition. [Read more: 7 Habits For Managing Chronic Illness]