Foods to Lower Blood Pressure: A UK Guide to What Helps

The foods most linked with lower blood pressure are the everyday ones: vegetables, fruit, beans and lentils, wholegrains, unsalted nuts and seeds, oily fish and lower-fat dairy, eaten as part of a diet that is low in salt. No single "superfood" will fix high blood pressure on its own, but the overall pattern of what you eat can make a real difference. The NHS is clear that "healthy lifestyle changes can help lower your blood pressure", and having a healthy, balanced diet and not eating too much salt are top of its list.

Below, we go through the foods worth eating more of, the ones worth cutting back on, what the research says about eating patterns such as the DASH diet, and simple swaps you can make with food from any UK supermarket.

Why food matters for blood pressure

Blood pressure is the force your blood puts on the walls of your arteries as your heart pumps it around your body. When it stays too high for too long, it puts extra strain on your heart and blood vessels. The NHS warns that if it's not treated, it can increase your risk of serious conditions such as heart attacks and strokes.

The tricky part is that "there are usually no symptoms, so you may not realise you have it". The British Heart Foundation estimates that "as many as 5 million adults in the UK have undiagnosed high blood pressure and do not know they are at risk." That's why it's worth getting your blood pressure checked, at your GP surgery, at many pharmacies, or at home with a validated monitor, rather than waiting for signs.

Food affects blood pressure in a few ways. Salt (sodium) tends to make your body hold on to more water, which raises blood pressure. Potassium helps balance out some of the effects of sodium. Fibre-rich, plant-based foods also tend to be lower in salt and saturated fat, and they can help with weight management, which matters too, because the NHS lists losing weight if you're overweight among the changes that can help.

Foods to lower blood pressure: what to eat more of

1. Vegetables, especially leafy greens

Spinach, kale, cabbage, broccoli, rocket and other greens are naturally low in salt and provide potassium, fibre and other nutrients. Blood Pressure UK says that "eating your 5-a-day of fruit and veg can lower it", referring to your blood pressure. Fresh, frozen and tinned vegetables all count, but choose tins labelled "no added salt" where you can.

Easy ways to eat more:

• Add a couple of handfuls of spinach to pasta sauces, curries and soups
• Keep bags of frozen mixed vegetables or peas in the freezer for quick sides
• Start dinner with a simple salad
• Fill around half your plate with vegetables at lunch and dinner

2. Bananas and other potassium-rich fruit

Bananas are the classic example, but plenty of fruit provides potassium, including oranges, apricots (fresh or dried), melon, kiwi and berries. Blood Pressure UK describes potassium as "a mineral that helps to lower your blood pressure."

Whole fruit is a better choice than juice, because juice loses much of the fibre. It's also worth getting your potassium from food rather than tablets: Blood Pressure UK's potassium guidance advises avoiding potassium supplements and checking with your doctor before dramatically increasing your potassium intake.

3. Beetroot

Beetroot has had a lot of attention because it's naturally rich in dietary nitrate. In a 2015 randomised, placebo-controlled study published in Hypertension, 68 people with high blood pressure drank 250ml of beetroot juice or a nitrate-free placebo juice every day for 4 weeks. Clinic blood pressure fell by an average of 7.7/2.4mmHg in the beetroot group compared with placebo.

That's an interesting result, but it was a small, short study, and it used a daily juice rather than the odd beetroot in a salad. Beetroot is a healthy vegetable to include, but it isn't a substitute for the bigger changes in this guide, or for any treatment your doctor has prescribed. Beetroot juice can also turn your urine and stools pink or red, which is harmless.

4. Beans, lentils and chickpeas

Pulses are cheap, filling and provide fibre, protein and potassium with very little fat. Tinned beans and chickpeas are convenient, but they're often packed in salted water, so look for "no added salt" versions or drain and rinse them before use.

Ideas:

• Swap some of the mince in a bolognese or chilli for lentils
• Add a tin of chickpeas to a curry or tray bake
• Make a quick bean salad with red onion, tomatoes, herbs, olive oil and lemon

5. Wholegrains and oats

Wholemeal bread, wholewheat pasta, brown rice, bulgur wheat, barley and oats are higher in fibre than refined versions. Porridge made with unsalted oats is a good, low-salt breakfast, and many people don't realise that some breakfast cereals and breads can contain a surprising amount of salt, so it's worth comparing labels. Our guide on how much fibre per day explains the UK recommendation and easy ways to reach it.

6. Unsalted nuts and seeds

Almonds, walnuts, pistachios, pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds all fit well into a blood pressure-friendly diet, as long as they're unsalted. They are energy-dense, so a small handful is a sensible portion if you're also managing your weight.

7. Oily fish

The NHS recommends at least 2 portions of fish a week, including 1 of oily fish such as salmon, mackerel, sardines, herring or trout. Oily fish provides omega-3 fats and is a good alternative to fatty or processed red meat. Smoked and cured fish, such as smoked mackerel and kippers, can be high in salt, so keep those for occasional meals and choose fresh, frozen or tinned fish in water or oil more often.

8. Lower-fat dairy

Lower-fat milk and plain yoghurt are part of the DASH eating pattern, described below. Cheese is a different story: many hard cheeses are high in salt and saturated fat, so it's best to use smaller amounts of strongly flavoured cheese rather than larger amounts of milder ones.

9. Olive and rapeseed oil instead of butter

Swapping some saturated fat for unsaturated fat is good for your heart overall. UK guidance on different fats advises cutting down on all fats and replacing saturated fat with some unsaturated fat, such as olive or rapeseed oil. If you're also working on your cholesterol, our guide to normal cholesterol levels in the UK explains what your results mean.

The DASH diet and other eating patterns

DASH stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. It was developed in the United States specifically to test whether an overall eating pattern could lower blood pressure. The DASH diet is rich in fruit, vegetables and lower-fat dairy, includes wholegrains, beans, nuts, fish and poultry, and is lower in saturated fat, red meat and sugary foods and drinks.

In the original DASH trial, published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 1997, adults who followed this pattern for 8 weeks had lower blood pressure than those eating a typical American diet, and the effect was larger in people who already had high blood pressure. A follow-up trial found that combining the DASH diet with a lower salt intake lowered blood pressure more than either change on its own.

You don't need to follow DASH to the letter. A Mediterranean-style diet shares many of the same features, with plenty of vegetables, fruit, beans, wholegrains, fish and olive oil. If you'd like practical meal ideas, our guide to Mediterranean diet ideas has easy breakfasts, lunches and dinners using UK supermarket food. Many of these foods are also lower-GI, and our list of low GI foods has more ideas.

Foods and drinks to cut back on

Salt, including the salt you can't see

The NHS says "adults should have no more than 6g of salt a day (around 1 level teaspoon)." The catch is that "around three quarters of the salt we eat comes from packaged and everyday foods we buy", so simply not adding salt at the table only tackles part of the problem.

Foods that are often high in salt include:

• Bread, breakfast cereals and crackers
• Ready meals, takeaways and shop-bought sandwiches
• Bacon, ham, sausages, salami and other processed meats
• Cheese
• Stock cubes, gravy granules, soy sauce and some cooking sauces
• Crisps, salted nuts and other savoury snacks
• Tinned soups and baked beans in sauce

When you're shopping, the NHS suggests looking for products with green and amber colour-coded labels on the front of the pack. Blood Pressure UK counts a food as high in salt if it has 1.5g of salt or more per 100g.

Cutting down gradually can make the change easier, and herbs, spices, garlic, lemon, black pepper and vinegar can add flavour in place of salt.

Is pink salt or sea salt better?

Not really. Pink Himalayan salt, sea salt and rock salt are still mostly sodium chloride, so they count towards your 6g a day just like table salt. We look at the claims in more detail in our article on the pink salt trick.

What about salt substitutes?

Lower-sodium salt substitutes replace some of the sodium with potassium. Blood Pressure UK notes that "these products contain potassium instead of sodium" and advises that if you have kidney problems or diabetes, you check with your doctor or nurse before using them. The same applies if you take regular medicines for your heart or blood pressure.

Alcohol

Regularly drinking too much alcohol can raise your blood pressure. The NHS advises men and women not to drink more than 14 units a week on a regular basis. Alcohol also adds calories, so cutting back can help with weight too.

Caffeine

You don't need to give up tea or coffee, but the NHS includes "do not drink too much caffeine" in its advice for lowering blood pressure. If you drink a lot of coffee, cola or energy drinks, it's worth cutting down.

Processed and fatty red meat

Processed meats are often high in both salt and saturated fat. Try swapping some meat-based meals for fish, beans or lentils during the week.

Simple swaps that add up

A sample day of blood pressure-friendly eating

Here's how the ideas above might fit together. Portions will vary depending on your appetite, activity levels and goals.

Food is one part of the picture

Diet works best alongside other healthy changes. The NHS also recommends:

• Exercising regularly, aiming for at least 150 minutes of exercise a week
• Losing weight if you're overweight
• Not smoking
• Keeping alcohol within the 14-unit guideline

Sleep and stress can affect your eating habits and energy for exercise too. If you're not sure you're getting enough rest, our guide asking is 7 hours of sleep enough? looks at what the evidence says.

How long does it take for diet changes to lower blood pressure?

It varies from person to person, and depends on your starting point and how many changes you make. In the DASH trial, participants followed the eating plan for 8 weeks, and in the beetroot juice study, the effect was measured over 4 weeks. The best approach is to make changes you can keep up for the long term, then have your blood pressure rechecked so you and your GP can see how things are going.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare professional before starting any treatment.