Steps You Can Take

The foods you eat—and the amount of salt in your diet—can affect your blood pressure. Cutting back on salt and following the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) eating plan are good ways to help keep your blood pressure under control and lower your risk for serious health problems.

Eating less salt

It’s important to limit how much salt you eat, including shaker salt and salty foods. Eating no more than the recommended amount of salt may help lower your blood pressure. Remember—prepared or processed foods have a lot of salt. Here are some tips for cutting back on salt:

• Read food labels to find out how much sodium is in foods. Try to limit your sodium to 1500 milligrams (mg) a day
• Choose foods labeled low salt or no added salt
• Sprinkle less salt on your food to reduce your taste for salt over time
• Avoid smoked or cured foods, such as ham and bacon, and foods that are packed in brine, such as pickles and olives

The DASH eating plan

The DASH eating plan, also called the DASH diet, is not a weight-loss diet. It is a lifelong eating plan to help you make healthy food choices. Along with other lifestyle changes and medicine, the DASH eating plan can help you control your blood pressure. The DASH eating plan recommends eating less red meat, fewer high-fat foods like cheese and baked goods, fewer sweets and sugary drinks, and less salt.

Daily life is filled with stress. Stress can affect the body in many ways:

• When people feel stressed, their hearts beat faster and blood vessels become narrower. This can increase blood pressure
• Some people react to stress by eating too much or eating unhealthy foods, smoking, or drinking too much alcohol. All of these things can raise the risk for high blood pressure

Tips for reducing stress

Learning how to manage stress can help you feel better emotionally and physically.

• Take time to relax. Set aside 15 to 20 minutes a day to sit quietly. Relaxing for short periods during the day may help lower your blood pressure
• Yoga, tai chi, and meditation are other good ways to lower stress
• Try to solve problems that are within your control. And learn to accept things you cannot change
• Give yourself enough time to get things done. Don’t push yourself to do too much at one time

Doing regular physical activity* can help lower high blood pressure. It can also help you:

• Reduce your risk for other health problems
• Manage your weight
• Manage your stress level

Tips to help you get going

Talk with your doctor about ways to be active and the amount of activity you should do. Remember:

• You don’t have to do it all at once. You can break it up—do some activity at one time and some later
• Buddy up with someone. For instance, walking with a family member or friend can make walking more fun and make it more likely that you’ll stick with it
• Set a goal, and reward yourself when you reach it. You could treat yourself to a movie or a massage.You deserve it!

*Talk with your doctor before starting any exercise program.