Reversing hypertension with a whole food plant diet
Hypertension is a serious medical condition that significantly increases the risks of heart, brain, kidney, and other diseases, affects an estimated 1.28 billion people worldwide (WHO). It is estimated that nearly 50% of adults with hypertension are unaware that they have the condition.
Hypertension is a major cause of premature death and can occur at any age and at any time, however it does increase with age and other risk factors. When symptoms do occur, they can include early morning headaches, nosebleeds, irregular heart rhythms, vision changes, and buzzing in the ears. Severe hypertension can cause fatigue, nausea, vomiting, confusion, anxiety, chest pain, and muscle tremors.
Chronic hypertension can cause serious damage to the heart. Excessive pressure can harden arteries, decreasing the flow of blood and oxygen to the heart increasing the risk of having a heart attack. Hypertension can also burst or block arteries that supply blood and oxygen to the brain, causing a stroke.
Several scientifically proven approaches can safely reduce blood pressure, including exercise, alcohol and sodium restriction, and a high-fiber plant-based diet.
For example, key finding include
- Every kilogram (just over two pounds) of weight loss, systolic blood pressure reduces by an average of 1.6 points.
- Adopting a high-fiber plant-based diet also reduces systolic blood pressure by an average of 2.8 points.
- Restricting alcohol and sodium can reduce systolic blood pressure by 4.8 and 16 points respectively. The sodium reduction is particularly important since a 16-point reduction in systolic blood pressure is a larger effect size than would be expected from standard antihypertensive drug treatment.
- Exercise has has a powerful normalizing effect on blood pressure so walking 45 minutes four to five times a week may reduce blood pressure by an average of about 7 points.
Hypertension can be successfully treated and reversed in most people by implementing a whole food plant-based diet alongside good sleep hygiene and exercise. Changes in these lifestyle choices compare well or better to standard antihypertensive drug treatment which only serves to manage and not reverse hypertension!
