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FAMILY HEALTH
HEALTH
GO FOR DARK CHOCOLATE
Just a couple of squares a day (about 0.2 oz or 6 grams)
can lower blood pressure in people with mild hypertension
without any effects on body weight. But it’s got to be the dark
14
stuff; white chocolate has no effect. Choose chocolate with a
cacao content of 70 percent or more for maximum benefit.
GET
MOVING
Aerobic exercise,
which includes
walking, running,
cycling, dancing
and swimming, is
a powerful natural
way to reduce
15
blood pressure. If
you’re not already
physically active,
find an activity you
enjoy and aim to do
An ancient Chinese method of
movement and breathing control, at least 20 minutes
qigong was found to slash blood pressure each day.
readings after 10 weeks in a trial of
16
people with mild hypertension. Tai chi,
a related technique, also appears to have
MEDITATE 1 Curr Hypertens Rep, 2008; 10:
blood pressure-lowering effects. 17 REFERENCES
355–8; Clin Exp Pharmacol Physiol,
CHECK YOUR MEDS In a four-month trial of 2 2014; 41: 46–53
Lancet, 2002; 359: 1969–74
J Hypertens, 1991; 9: 465–73; J
3
Transcendental Meditation (a form
Hypertens, 1992; 10: 195–9
Various drugs may cause of silent mantra meditation) in heart 4 J Nutr, 2013; 143: 818–26
high blood pressure, so check disease patients, the meditators saw a 5 Adv Nutr, 2017; 8: 830–8
with your doctor whether any significant reduction in their systolic 6 Am J Clin Nutr, 2008; 87: 323–31
Food Sci Nutr, 2019; 7: 2271–9
7
medication you’re on could be a blood pressure compared to the 8 Postgrad Med, 2014; 126: 37–43
cause of your high readings, and control group. 18 9 Indian J Med Res, 1999; 110: 27–9
10 J Nutr, 2016; 146: 389S–96S; BMC
investigate natural alternatives Cardiovasc Disord, 2008;8:13
whenever possible. Here are 11 J Hum Hypertens, 2007; 21:
297–306
some drugs to watch out for: 12 Circulation, 1993; 88: 523–33
• Oral contraceptives 19 13 Medicine (Baltimore), 2016; 95:
• Tricyclic antidepressants 20 e4247
14 JAMA, 2007; 298: 49–60
• Decongestants such as 15 Medicine (Baltimore), 2017; 96:
pseudoephedrine 21 e6150
16 Am J Chin Med, 2003; 31: 489–97
•Stimulantssuch
17 J Altern Complement Med, 2003;
asmethylphenidate 9: 747–54
(Ritalin) 22 18 Arch Intern Med, 2006; 166:
( (Ritalin)
1218–24
19 J Clin Hypertens (Greenwich), 2017;
19: 1032–41
20 Am J Cardiol, 1992; 70: 1306–9
21 J Fam Pract, 2017; 66: E1-E2; Arch
Intern Med, 2005; 165: 1686–94
22 Int J Environ Res Public Health,
2018; 15. pii: E1789
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