Can eating more whole-grain foods help lower my blood pressure?
Answers from Sheldon G. Sheps, M.D.It might. Eating more whole-grain foods on a regular basis may help reduce your chance of developing high blood pressure (hypertension).
Whole grains are grains that include the entire grain kernel — they haven't had their bran and germ removed by refining. Whole-grain foods are a rich source of healthy nutrients, including fiber, potassium, magnesium, folate, iron and selenium. Eating more whole-grain foods offers many health benefits that can work together to help reduce your risk of high blood pressure by:
- Aiding in weight control, since whole-grain foods can make you feel full longer
- Increasing your intake of potassium, which is linked to lower blood pressure
- Decreasing your risk of insulin resistance
- Reducing damage to your blood vessels
If you already have high blood pressure, eating more whole-grain foods might help lower your blood pressure and possibly reduce your need for blood pressure medication.
The Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet and the Mediterranean diet both suggest including whole grains as part of a healthy diet.
According to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, as part of an overall healthy diet, adults should eat at least 85 grams of whole-grain foods a day — that's about 3 ounces, or the equivalent of three slices of whole-wheat bread.
- Blood pressure medication: Still necessary if I lose weight?
- High blood pressure and cold remedies: Which are safe?
Products and Services
- The Mayo Clinic Diet Experience
- Mayo Clinic Healthy Living Program
- Book: The Mayo Clinic A to Z Health Guide
- Book: Mayo Clinic 5 Steps to Controlling High Blood Pressure
- Book: Mayo Clinic Healthy Heart for Life!
See also
- Medication-free hypertension control
- Adrenal Nodule Create Health Risks
- After a flood, are food and medicines safe to use?
- Alcohol: Does it affect blood pressure?
- Alpha blockers
- Amputation and diabetes
- Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors
- Angiotensin II receptor blockers
- Antiphospholipid syndrome
- Anxiety: A cause of high blood pressure?
- Arteriosclerosis / atherosclerosis
- Artificial sweeteners: Any effect on blood sugar?
- Avandia and Actos safety
- Beta blockers
- Beta blockers: Do they cause weight gain?
- Beta blockers: How do they affect exercise?
- Birth control pill FAQ
- Blood glucose meters
- Blood glucose monitors
- Blood pressure: Can it be higher in one arm?
- Blood pressure chart
- Blood pressure cuff: Does size matter?
- Blood pressure: Does it have a daily pattern?
- Blood pressure: Is it affected by cold weather?
- Blood pressure medication: Still necessary if I lose weight?
- Blood pressure medications: Can they raise my triglycerides?
- Blood pressure readings: Why higher at home?
- Blood pressure test
- Blood pressure tip: Get more potassium
- Blood pressure tip: Get off the couch
- Blood pressure tip: Know alcohol limits
- Blood pressure tip: Stress out no more
- Blood pressure tip: Watch the caffeine
- Blood pressure tip: Watch your weight
- Blood sugar testing: Why, when and how
- Bone and joint problems associated with diabetes
- Fibromuscular Dysplasia- Patient Experience, Struggles and Living with FMD
- Fibromuscular Dysplasia- Explanation, Treatments and Resources
- How kidneys work
- Bump on the head: When is it a serious head injury?
- Caffeine and hypertension
- Calcium channel blockers
- Calcium supplements: Do they interfere with blood pressure drugs?
- Central-acting agents
- Choosing blood pressure medications
- Chronic daily headaches
- Chronic kidney disease
- Coarctation of the aorta
- Common headache types
- Cushing syndrome
- DASH diet
- DASH diet
- DASH recommended servings
- DASH diet tips
- Diabetes
- Diabetes and dental care
- Diabetes and depression: Coping with the two conditions
- Diabetes and exercise: When to monitor your blood sugar
- Diabetes and Heat
- Diabetes and menopause
- Diabetes and electric blankets
- 10 ways to avoid diabetes complications
- Diabetes diet: Create your healthy-eating plan
- Diabetes diet: Should I avoid sweet fruits?
- Diabetes foods: Is honey a good substitute for sugar?
- Diabetes and liver
- Diabetes management: Does aspirin therapy prevent heart problems?
- Diabetes management: How lifestyle, daily routine affect blood sugar
- Diabetes: Eating out
- Diabetes nutrition: sweets
- Diabetes symptoms
- Diabetes treatment: Can cinnamon lower blood sugar?
- Using insulin
- Diuretics
- Diuretics: A cause of low potassium?
- Diuretics: Cause of gout?
- Dizziness
- Do infrared saunas have any health benefits?
- Do you know your blood pressure?
- Drug addiction
- High blood pressure and exercise
- Feeling overwhelmed? Take a break
- Fibromuscular dysplasia
- Free blood pressure machines: Are they accurate?
- Fruit: To peel or not to peel?
- Home blood pressure monitoring
- Glomerulonephritis
- Glycemic index: A helpful tool for diabetes?
- Guillain-Barre syndrome
- Have you had a good laugh today?
- Headaches 101: Know your type
- Headaches and hormones
- Headache symptoms, treatments
- Is chocolate healthy?
- Healthy eating: One step at a time
- Heart disease risk calculator
- Herbal supplement interactions
- High blood pressure (hypertension)
- High blood pressure and cold remedies: Which are safe?
- High blood pressure and sex
- High blood pressure: Can you prevent it?
- High blood pressure dangers
- Hunter syndrome
- Hypertensive crisis: What are the symptoms?
- Hypothermia
- IgA nephropathy (Berger's disease)
- Insulin and weight gain
- Insulin therapy options
- Intensive insulin therapy
- Intracranial hematoma
- Isolated systolic hypertension: A health concern?
- Kidney Disease: How kidneys work, Hemodialysis, and Peritoneal dialysis
- L-arginine: Does it lower blood pressure?
- Late-night eating: OK if you have diabetes?
- Preventing lead exposure
- Lead poisoning
- Diabetes and carbs
- Medications and supplements that can raise your blood pressure
- Menopause and high blood pressure: What's the connection?
- Molar pregnancy
- MRI: Is gadolinium safe for people with kidney problems?
- New Test for Preeclampsia
- Nighttime headaches: Relief
- Nosebleeds
- Sleep apnea, obstructive
- Obstructive Sleep Apnea
- Pain Management
- Pheochromocytoma
- Picnic Problems: High Sodium
- Pituitary tumors
- Polycystic kidney disease
- Polypill: Does it treat heart disease?
- Porphyria
- Postpartum preeclampsia
- Preeclampsia
- Prescription drug abuse
- Primary aldosteronism
- Pulse pressure: An indicator of heart health?
- Reactive hypoglycemia: What can I do?
- Reading food labels
- Renal diet for vegetarians
- Resperate: Can it help reduce blood pressure?
- Sample DASH menus
- Scorpion sting
- Scorpion sting
- Secondary hypertension
- Serotonin syndrome
- Sleep deprivation: A cause of high blood pressure?
- Sleep tips
- Vegetable recipes
- Blood sugar testing
- Snoring
- Snoring solution: Sleep on your side
- Sodium: Smarten up
- Spider bites
- Stress and headaches: Stop the cycle
- Stress and high blood pressure
- Symptom Checker
- Takayasu's arteritis
- Tetanus
- Tetanus shots: Is it risky to receive 'extra' boosters?
- The dawn phenomenon: What can you do?
- Treating POTS: A Teenage Syndrome Solution
- Vasodilators
- Vegetarian diet: Can it help me control my diabetes?
- Vesicoureteral reflux
- Video: Heart and circulatory system
- How diabetes affects your blood sugar
- How to measure blood pressure using a manual monitor
- How to measure blood pressure using an automatic monitor
- What is blood pressure?
- Water softeners and sodium
- Weightlifting: Bad for your blood pressure?
- What's your high blood pressure risk?
- White coat hypertension
- Wrist blood pressure monitors: Are they accurate?
- Effectively managing chronic kidney disease