Salad to lower your blood pressure

Carrying on the theme of eating yourself to lower blood pressure, I should mention that I like to eat salad regularly – sometimes as a meal in its own right.

What’s different about the salads I make and how do they help keep my blood pressure down?

First of all I like to add a small tin of tuna to my salad. Not only does this ‘bulk it out’ and make it more of a meal but fish contains essential oils good for your  circulatory system. (Fish is one of the leanest source of protein and also contains omega-3 fatty acids, which have a positive effect on the blood system. In short, fish fights hypertension (and tastes great).

I buy the tuna in brine but drain it before drowning heaps of extra virgin olive oil, a decent wallop of apple cider vinegar, crushed garlics, and liberal sprinkles of cayenne pepper. This then forms a fantastic tasting salad dressing and every ingredient helps keep the blood pressure get down and stay down.

How so?

Garlic both prevents and cures atherosclerosis (hardening of your arteries). It not only slows the build up of dangerous plaque on the walls of your arteries it can even reverse the process.

Olive oil has a beneficial mix of polyphenols, tocopherols, and oleic acid … all good
allies in the fight against hypertension. Eating garlic can make your arteries young again. (Get the cold-pressed extra virgin stuff as it contains the most benefits – and tastes better).

Both cayenne pepper and apple cider vinegar have been long noted for their beneficial properties to cure all sorts of ailments – including hypertension. As a strong tonic for for high blood pressure some people will drink a glass of water everyday with a few tablespoons of apple cider vinegar and cayenne pepper added. (I’m not quite ready for that one!)

Make sure you have some celery, tomatoes and onions in your salad. Both these vegetables  provide a boost to your blood system and help lower your blood pressure.

There’s a flavonoid in celery called apigenin that dilates blood vessels and lowers blood pressure. Celery also contains a unique chemical called 3-n-butyl phthalide which has been singled out as the main compound that lowers blood pressure.

Tomatoes contain an antioxidant is called lycopene which helps in the prevention of heart disease and some types of cancer – as well as lower blood pressure.

Onions contain a flavonoid called quercetin – a strong antioxidant. Quercetin lowers blood pressure, slow heart rate, and improves the inner lining of arteries.

So there you have it. Here’s a run down of all the blood pressure lowering foods I ad to every salad I eat:

fish, garlic, olive oil, apple cider vinegar, cayenne pepper, onions, tomatoes, and celery.

Of course I add other things like lettuce, peppers, olives, cucumber, etc., and they all taste great and are good for you … but its the upper list that will actively work to lower your blood pressure and keep it low.

Got any great blood pressure lowering recipes? Send them this way!

Good eating folks.

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