Lower your blood pressure!

You may have heard that keeping your blood pressure below 120/80 can cut your risk of heart disease in half. And it’s easy to do by eating more of these pressure-taming foods!

1 Dried plums relax arteries!

These sweet fruits (aka prunes) are a time-honored constipation remedy, and now researchers know they also lower blood pressure five points in two months if you eat just three a day. Thanks goes to nerve-soothing nutrients that help keep your arteries relaxed, even when your stress level is creeping up!

2 Acorn squash flushes out fluids!

Acorn squash is full of potassium, a mineral that flushes pressure-rising fluids from your tissues the same way diuretics do. One cup daily could lead to a four-point drop in blood pressure in no time, pros say. Other great potassium picks: sweet potatoes and white potatoes with the skin.

3 Pomegranates tame inflammation!

As the journal Plant Foods for Human Nutrition reports, drinking just 2 oz. of pomegranate juice or eating 1/2 cup of the seeds daily can lower your blood pressure 5% in one month. Ellagic acid, an antioxidant-like compound in pomegranates, breaks down artery-stiffening inflammation, says researcher Tony Lynn, PH.D.

4 Kefir acts like an Rx!

Sipping a 4- oz. glass of plain kefir daily could pare seven points off your blood pressure in three weeks, plus cut your risk of future blood pressure troubles 25%, reports the International Journal of Molecular Science. The friendly bacteria in this nourishing dairy drink release compounds that act like pressure-lowering ACE inhibitors. One cup of plain yogurt with live active cultures also does the trick. Important: Never change your current medication regimen without first consulting your doctor.

5 Eggs heal arteries!

Egg yolks’ vivid color comes from nutrients that also heal damaged arteries, stopping them from stiffening with age. Eating three to seven eggs weekly can cut your risk of high blood pressure as much as 21%, or trim three points if it’s already elevated.