High blood pressure: The one drink you must avoid if you want to lower your reading

HIGH blood pressure is a common condition among the population in the UK, but left untreated, it can lead to serious health complications. The best way to prevent the condition is by eating a healthy, balanced diet and avoiding certain food and drink - one drink in particular is strongly advised against by experts.

High blood pressure may be a common condition but many people don’t realise they have it because symptoms can easily go unnoticed. If symptoms do become obvious, a person may experience headaches, shortness of breath and chest pain. To reduce a high blood pressure reading simple lifestyle changes are recommended. One of these should be diet, and alongside eating healthily, a certain drink should be avoided.

You should avoid alcohol or reduce your intake. This is what’s advised by Superdrug Online Doctor because alcohol can raise your blood pressure

It adds: “Alcohol is also high in calories, which can lead to unwanted weight gain.

“The recommended weekly alcohol limits are 21 units for men and 14 units for women.”

Even if you haven’t been diagnosed with high blood pressure, just one drink can increase the risk of developing the condition, says Dr Louisa Draper for the health and beauty retailer.

She explains: “Drinking more than three alcoholic drinks a day increases your chances of eventually developing hypertension by up to 70 per cent.

It doesn’t matter if you drink every day or regularly drink lots of alcohol in one go - the basic rule of thumb is that the more you drink in total, the higher your risk of developing hypertension.”

If you do want to enjoy a night out, or in, with a drink, particularly with the festive season underway, and don’t want to worrying about your blood pressure, there are some simple tips to remember, recommended by Blood Pressure UK.

It advises:

• Try low-alcohol options - there are now a number of lower-strength beers on the market.
• Check the label - many drinks’ labels now tell you how many units they contain.
• Make your drinks last longer by adding mixers or water.
• Don’t eat bar snacks like crisps and peanuts - the added salt will make you want to drink more, and will raise your blood pressure.
• If you drink at home, buy a measure so that you know how much you are drinking.

As well as cutting down on alcohol, other changes you should consider are cutting down on our salt intake.

Salt causes the body to retain water, which can raise your blood pressure, and there are three foods you should be wary of that can tip you over your daily recommended allowance of salt.

Adults are recommended not to eat more than 6g of salt a day.

Three foods that contain hidden salt are:

• Bread
• Biscuits
• Ready meals

However, there are certain foods that have been found to help lower your reading - in particular three drinks. 

Express