High Blood Pressure: Here's why you should avoid THESE two drinks

High blood pressure or hypertension is one of the common ailments that people across the world suffer from. Dietary mistakes, less workout, alcohol, stress and smoking abuse, genetics are some of the common causes of the same.

For the unversed, hypertension is when the pressure of blood on the blood vessels is higher than normal. If not treated, then the same can lead to other health complications such as heart, brain, eye and kidney ailments.

Alcohol

Anything is bad in excess and the same is the case with alcohol. For the unversed, a little amount of alcohol is fine as it can help to lower blood pressure. Yes, you read it right! One or two drinks can potentially lower blood pressure by around 4 mm Hg. The one drink should not be more than 12 ounces of beer/ five ounces of wine/ 1.5 ounces of liquor. 

As per Mayo Clinic, if you have three drinks in one sitting then the same can lead to a temporary spike in blood pressure. Regular drinking can lead to long-term blood pressure issues. This is not all, ale can also hinder the medications that you may be taking to counter high BP. 

Also, alcohol is full of calories and the same can lead to weight gain. And as health watchers know, being overweight and obese is also one of the causes of high BP and hence, people with obesity are asked to reduce weight to stay away from several health problems including hypertension.

Caffeinated drinks

Apart from alcohol, one should also avoid and lower caffeinated drinks as well. Yes, I know, there are many people who need a dose of caffeine as soon as they get up but the same spikes the blood pressure. So, ideally one should avoid or lower the intake of coffee, tea, and energy drinks and drinks which have caffeine in it. One can switch to decaf drinks and herbal teas.

Other ways to reduce blood pressure
Lifestyle plays an important role in reducing high blood pressure. If you follow a healthy lifestyle, then you can easily avoid, delay or reduce the need for high BP medications.

One of the best ways to prevent and combat high BP is lowering the intake of salt, increasing intake of healthy food items, weight management and physical activity among others.

Speaking of a healthy diet, one should include more whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and low-fat dairy products. It is vital to increase the intake of potassium-rich foods as they help to remove excess salt from our body. One can also follow the popular Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet which is often recommended for high BP patients.

Talking about exercising, make sure to have at least 150 minutes of exercising a week. 

If you do not like gymming then you can add for walking, jogging, cycling, swimming or dancing in your daily routine. If you love weight or strength training then here's good news, the same also helps to bring down BP to safe levels.