Hypertension: Drinking coconut juice may help reduce your reading

High blood pressure affects more than one in four adults in the UK, but the problem that many people with this condition face is that the symptoms are rarely noticeable. A high salt diet is one of the risk factors for the disease. It can therefore be very useful to make simple changes to what you eat. The NHS recommends reducing the amount of salt in your food and consuming lots of fruits and vegetables. Studies have also shown that certain foods and drinks effectively reduce blood pressure.

One of them is coconut water – a popular drink in the Caribbean, which is now available in British department stores.

Experts have found that it is possible to lower blood pressure by increasing potbadium intake and that coconut water is an excellent source of this mineral.

Blood Pressure UK explains: "[Potbadium] helps lower blood pressure by balancing the negative effects of salt.

"Your kidneys help control your blood pressure by controlling the amount of fluid stored in your body. The more fluid you are, the higher your blood pressure.

"Your kidneys do this by filtering your blood and sucking up any excess fluid, which they then store in your bladder in the form of urine. This process uses a delicate balance of sodium and potbadium to bring water through a wall of blood flow cells into a collector channel leading to the bladder.

"Eating salt increases the amount of sodium in your bloodstream and destroys the delicate balance, reducing your kidneys' ability to eliminate water. By eating more fruits and vegetables, you will increase your potbadium levels and help restore delicate balance.

"It will help your kidneys function more efficiently – and help lower your blood pressure to a healthy level."

According to University Health News, coconut water may contain more than 600 mg of potbadium per serving, "more than one serving of other foods or drinks."

A small human essay examined the effects of coconut water on bottles of bottled water and another tropical drink perhaps named in 29 patients with hypertension.

Participants received either bottled water, coconut water, mauby or a mixture of coconut water and mauby for two weeks.

The blood pressure readings were then taken two weeks before and during the two week trial.

A significant decrease in mean systolic blood pressure was observed in 71% of patients receiving coconut water, 40% of patients receiving mauby and 43% of those who received the combination.

However, the researchers agreed that there should be more randomized trials on this subject.

As for the best cooking oil for high blood pressure, it has been proven that olive oil was the best.

A study published in Clinical Nutrition examined the effects on blood pressure of extra virgin oil on elderly patients medically treated for high blood pressure.

Some of the elderly patients affected took extra virgin olive oil, while others took sunflower oil.

After four weeks, the results showed that extra virgin olive oil further reduced blood pressure than sunflower oil.