Do Vitamin Mineral Supplements such as Potassium, Calcium or Magnesium Help Lower Blood Pressure?
Research to date has shown that potassium does lower blood pressure. However, these studies have not indicated that calcium and magnesium supplements prevent high blood pressure.
Potassium: can help to prevent and control blood pressure. Be sure to get enough potassium in the foods you eat. Some good sources are various fruits, vegetables, dairy foods, and fish. Read more about Potassium below.
Calcium and Magnesium: have not consistently shown that they prevent high blood pressure, however, they are important nutrients for overall good health.
Good sources of calcium are diary foods such as milk, yogurt, and cheese. Be sure to choose skim or low fat varieties. Low fat and nonfat dairy products have more calcium than the high fat versions.
What about antioxidant vitamins?
Many people are interested in antioxidant vitamins (A, C and E). This is due to suggestions from large observational studies comparing healthy adults consuming large amounts of these vitamins with those who didn’t. These observations are subject to bias and don’t prove a cause-and-effect relationship.
Scientific evidence does not suggest that consuming antioxidant vitamins can eliminate the need to reduce blood pressure, lower blood cholesterol or stop smoking cigarettes. Clinical trials are under way to find out whether increased vitamin antioxidant intake has an overall benefit.
Potassium is an element (and an electrolyte) that’s essential for the body’s growth and maintenance. It’s necessary to keep a normal water balance between the cells and body fluids. Potassium also plays an essential role in the response of nerves to stimulation and in the contraction of muscles. Cellular enzymes need potassium to work properly.
A potassium deficiency due to increased urinary loss often occurs when medication for certain heart diseases is used to prevent sodium and water retention. To overcome this loss, physicians often suggest eating more foods high in potassium. More potassium may be prescribed as a medicine.
Foods high in potassium include bananas, cantaloupe, grapefruit, oranges, tomato or prune juice, honeydew melons, prunes, molasses and potatoes.
Some foods high in potassium are also high in calories. When weight control is important, eat more low-calorie foods. Foods such as fruits, vegetables and low-fat dairy products that are high in potassium and calcium, can helped to significantly lower blood pressure.
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Vedic Meditation is one of the most powerful techniques available for reducing stress and anxiety. It is also one of the easiest to learn and simplest to practice.
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