Food is the best medicine

Hippocrates, the father of Western medicine, once said: “Food is the best medicine.” Traditional Chinese medicine believes that “food and medicine have the same origin.” The “Huangdi Neijing” records: “Using it to satisfy hunger is called food, and using it to cure diseases It is called “medicine”, and many daily food materials can also be used as medicinal materials for curing diseases at certain times. For people with high blood pressure or already suffering from high blood pressure, in addition to cooperating with the doctor’s prescribed medication, you can also take more foods that can help lower blood pressure in your diet to help improve blood pressure problems.

Nutrients that Help Lower Blood Pressure

Here are some common blood pressure-lowering nutrients:

1.Magnesium

Magnesium is the fourth most important mineral in the human body. It can relax the smooth muscles of muscles and blood vessels, calm nerves, help sleep and reduce anxiety and tension. It is an indispensable nutrient for stabilizing and lowering blood pressure.
There are quite a lot of studies on magnesium supplementation for lowering blood pressure. For patients with diabetes and hypertension, 450 mg of magnesium per day for 4 consecutive months showed that their systolic and diastolic blood pressure were significantly reduced (Note 1). In addition, there is also an experiment for mildly hypertensive patients, allowing them to supplement 600mg of magnesium per day. After 12 consecutive weeks, the blood pressure of the experimental group (with magnesium supplementation) was lower than that of the control group (without magnesium supplementation) (Note 2).
More research results have shown that continuous daily supplementation of 480mg of magnesium can reduce systolic blood pressure by 2-3.7mmHg, while diastolic blood pressure can be reduced by 1.4-1.7mmHg (Note 3).
Magnesium-rich foods include: dairy products, fish, meat, seafood, apples, apricots, avocado, bananas, brown rice, figs, kelp, emperor beans, chestnuts, peaches, sesame, green vegetables, whole grains , alfalfa, burdock…etc.

2.Potassium

The content of potassium ranks third in the human body and is one of the essential minerals. Potassium has the function of regulating blood pressure, it will promote the excretion of sodium, and at the same time inhibit the effect of renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAS), thereby lowering blood pressure. However, according to the survey, the potassium intake of most people is not enough, but the sodium intake is often exceeded. According to the dietary guidelines of the WHO, the daily potassium intake of adults should be increased to about 3510mg-4680mg, which has the most obvious effect of lowering blood pressure.

The DASH diet is a healthy diet that emphasizes adequate intake of potassium ions, and has become a diet commonly recognized by the medical community for the prevention of high blood pressure.

Potassium-rich foods include: dairy products, fish, fruits, legumes, meat, poultry, various vegetables, whole grains, apricots, avocados, bananas, brown rice, brewer’s yeast, dates, figs, potatoes, Sweet potatoes, tomatoes, etc…etc.

3.Calcium

The mineral with the highest content in the human body is calcium, which is also an essential mineral for the human body. Calcium has the function of regulating cardiovascular circulation, and at the same time helps maintain the balance of sodium ions and potassium ions in the blood, and helps stabilize blood pressure. Many studies have shown that insufficient calcium in the body can also cause high blood pressure.

Some data show that a daily calcium intake of more than 1000mg can reduce the incidence of hypertension by 40%. Due to the high-salt and high-meat diet patterns are too common, the daily calcium intake of women aged 40 to 70 in Taiwan is only about 350 to 400 mg, and the proportion of calcium deficiency among adults is about 80%, while almost 100% of high school children have insufficient calcium intake .

Calcium-rich foods include: dairy products, salmon, sardines, seafood, dark green vegetables, almonds, asparagus, brewer’s yeast, milk, goat’s milk…etc.

4.Q₁₀

CoenzymeQ₁₀, it has a good antioxidant capacity and has a protective effect on the vascular endothelium, preventing it from being damaged by LDL oxidation. It can also reduce the peripheral resistance of blood vessels and help lower blood pressure.

A public trial document about 8 CoQ10 for hypertension mentioned that after administering Q₁₀ to hypertensive patients, the systolic blood pressure of the hypertensive patients was reduced by about 16 mm Hg, while the diastolic blood pressure was reduced by about 10 mm Hg . (Note 4)

Rich in Q₁₀ foods include: mackerel, sardines, tuna, salmon, beef, chicken, pork, spinach, cauliflower, olive oil, coconut oil, walnuts, pork liver, pig heart…etc. …wait.

The new darling of lowering blood pressure

In addition to the 4 important blood pressure-lowering nutrients mentioned above, there is another blood-pressure-lowering nutrient that is quite popular recently: L-arginine (L-Arginine). L-arginine is a conditionally essential amino acid for the human body, and it is a very important nutrient like taurine.

L-The antihypertensive effect of arginine is mainly as the precursor of nitric oxide (NO). After being converted into nitric oxide by the human body, it will act on vascular endothelial cells, relax vascular smooth muscle and dilate blood vessels, and finally achieve the effect of lowering blood pressure. effect. L-arginine can also reduce vascular resistance, reduce cardiac output load, have the benefit of alleviating angina pectoris, and also reduce atherosclerosis caused by bad cholesterol (LDL).

Common arginine-rich foods include: beef, pork, chicken, cod, salmon, tuna, shrimp, cheese, milk, buckwheat, oats, sesame, cocoa, black beans, soybeans, mung beans…etc.

Diversified and balanced diet

To prevent or treat high blood pressure, it is necessary to eat more natural foods and less processed foods. Take in a variety of vegetables, grains, roots, and fruits, and match them with appropriate amounts of high-quality protein such as meat, fish, eggs, and seafood to ensure that your diet has enough Antihypertensive nutrients: magnesium, potassium, calcium, Q10, arginine, etc., are the best way to stabilize blood pressure and protect cardiovascular diet.
/The content of this article is reproduced and published with the authorization of Huang Chenglong, a health promotion manager/
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References
Note 1The effect of lowering blood pressure by magnesium supplementation in diabetic hypertensive adults with low serum magnesium levels: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial. J Hum Hypertens. 2009 Apr;23(4):245-51.

Note 2Oral magnesium supplementation reduces ambulatory blood pressure in patients with mild hypertension. Am J Hypertens. 2009 Oct;22(10):1070-5.

Note 3Effects of magnesium supplementation in hypertensive patients: assessment by office, home, and ambulatory blood pressures. Hypertension. 1998 Aug;32(2):260-5. Yuhei Kawano, Hiroaki Matsuoka, Shuichi Takishita, and Teruo Omae

Note 4 Franklin Rosenfeldt , Deborah Hilton, Salvatore Pepe, Henry Krum. Systematic Review of Effect of Coenzyme Q10 in Physical Exercise, Hypertension and Heart Failure. Biofactors. 2003; 18 (1-4), 91-100
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