High blood pressure, also called hypertension, is a common health issue that can lead to serious problems like heart attacks and strokes.
Most people know that cutting back on salt can help manage blood pressure, but there’s another nutrient that plays a big role and often gets overlooked—potassium.
Potassium is an important mineral that helps your body work properly. It supports a regular heartbeat, keeps your fluid levels in balance, and—most importantly for people with high blood pressure—it helps relax blood vessels. When blood vessels are relaxed, blood can flow more easily, and this can help lower blood pressure.
Potassium also helps balance out the effects of sodium (salt) in the body. Eating too much salt can raise your blood pressure, but getting enough potassium can help cancel out some of that effect. That’s why people who eat a lot of salty foods may benefit even more from increasing their potassium intake.
Research shows that eating more potassium can lower the top number in your blood pressure reading, even by just a few points. While that might not sound like much, even small drops in blood pressure can lower the risk of serious health problems like heart disease and stroke.
Potassium works by helping your body get rid of extra sodium through urine and by reducing the tension in your blood vessels.
The best way to get potassium is through your diet. Foods rich in potassium include bananas, oranges, potatoes, tomatoes, leafy green vegetables, dairy products, fish, and nuts. These foods are also full of other vitamins and minerals that are good for your heart.
However, there’s a note of caution. Some people—especially those with kidney disease or those taking medications that affect potassium levels—need to be careful.
If the kidneys aren’t working well, too much potassium can build up in the body and become dangerous. So if you have kidney problems or are thinking about making big changes to your diet, it’s best to talk to a doctor first.
While medications are necessary for some people with high blood pressure, healthy lifestyle choices are just as important. Eating more potassium-rich foods is a simple and natural way to support healthy blood pressure. A heart-healthy diet also includes less saturated fat, more fiber, and less salt.
In short, potassium is a powerful ally in the fight against high blood pressure. By helping to relax blood vessels and balance the effects of salt, it plays a big role in keeping your heart and blood pressure in good shape. Making small changes to your diet can lead to big improvements in your health over time.
If you care about blood pressure, please read studies about common blood pressure medication that may extend your healthy life span and common high blood pressure drug linked to sudden cardiac arrest.
For more about blood pressure, please read studies that timing matters when taking high blood pressure pills and 1 in 5 people with high blood pressure taking a drug worsen the disease.
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