Nutrients To Help Bring Down High Blood Pressure Part 2

Melatonin. The "sleep hormone" melatonin may increase the normal drop in blood pressure that occurs during sleep, perhaps protecting the heart from damage. Italian researchers recruited healthy women and also women with high blood pressure. They were divided into two groups, and one group was given melatonin for three weeks while the other group was given a placebo. After three weeks, the two groups switched treatments. The study, which was published in the American Journal of Hypertension, found that blood pressure dropped more at night when the women were taking melatonin, but had no effect on daytime blood pressure.

Celery. According to information published by the National Institutes of Health, celery reduced high blood pressure in more than 87 percent of patients participating in a Chinese study. Patients mixed celery juice with honey and took the mixture three times a day for up to a week. The difference in blood pressure after treatment with celery — both systolic and dystolic — was significant, says the NIH. Celery contains phthalides, a type of phytochemical that relaxes muscle tissue in arteries, and lowers blood pressure by increasing blood flow. Like some prescription drug pressure drugs, it also increases urine flow. Some experts recommend eating four stalks or one cup chopped celery (about four ounces) daily.

Pomegranate juice. Drinking pomegranate juice can significantly lower blood pressure. Researchers at Scotland's Queen Margaret University found that when patients with high blood pressure drank about 16 ounces of pomegranate juice daily for four weeks, 90 percent of them experienced a "significant" drop in blood pressure. Another study found that drinking about eight ounces of juice daily reduced the blood pressure of patients with hardening of the arteries from an average of 174 systolic to an average of 162 mm Hg in only one month. After a year, it had fallen to an average of 152 mm Hg. And while patients on placebo saw an increase in the thickness of their carotid arteries after a year, those drinking pomegranate juice reduced the thickness of their carotid arteries by 35 percent. (Check with your doctor since pomegranate juice can react with some medications.)