High blood pressure is often caused by, or, can cause atherosclerosis, or arteriosclerosis which means the arteries have become hardened or thickened due to either fatty deposits or calcium deposits on the walls of the arteries.  If left untreated patient could have a heart attack or stroke.
Cause of heart disease: if the high blood pressure is a result of thickened arteries then the cause is diet, and it can be reversed with diet.  Arteries become thickened and hardened from eating saturated fat and cholesterol.  These are found in all animal foods, even low fat, even organic, even fish, even eggs.  A diet that contains no animal foods, and instead is full of whole plant foods (not refined or processed, and no trans fats) will reverse heart disease.
Sometimes a patient has high blood pressure from excess sodium or salt in the diet.  So removing excess salt, pickled foods, packaged foods, and restaurant foods should help.  When using salt at home to season whole grains, beans and vegetables, use a high quality salt (unrefined sea salt or himalayan mountain salt).  But even these should be used in moderation.

Here are some helpful hints:
Dr. Dean Ornish (check out all of his books and website).  He has reversed high blood pressure and heart disease with diet and exercise.  No drugs!  He also reversed prostate cancer with the same plant based diet (no animal foods).
Dr. John McDougall   www.drmcdougall.com   plus many books
Dr. Neal Barnard  www.nutritionMD.org, www.cancerproject.org  (plus his many books).
All of these websites have recipes!
Plus one of my favorite cookbooks :  Lorna Sass ‘Complete vegetarian cookbook’

Here’s a typical day on the low fat, high fiber, plant based diet shown to reverse this condition (plus reverse diabetes, cancer, osteoporosis, etc.)

Upon Rising: 2 cups hot water with 1/2 a lemon squeezed into it.  Wait half an hour before eating breakfast.
Breakfast: 1 cup whole oat meal (not instant) with unsweetened almond or hemp seed milk.  2 TBS goji berries (very important) and 1/2 a banana.  Also add 1 TBS freshly ground flax seeds to the cooked oatmeal (always buy whole flax seeds and place in coffee grinder to grind seconds before consuming, and use immediately.  Don’t cook flax seeds or heat flax seed oil).

Green tea with unsweetened alond or hemp seed milk, if needed

Snack: Fresh fruit.  skip the juice

Lunch: 1 cup cooked quinoa, 3/4 cup beans, all the steamed or raw veg. that you want.  For seasoning:  Try this recipe for homemade dressing:

1-2 garlic cloves, pressed, 1/2 tsp grated ginger, 1/2 lemon, juiced, 1 TBS mellow white miso, 2 TBS brown rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar, a squirt of agave nectar, 1 tsp dijon mustard?, ¼ cup flax seed oil
1 handful of parsley or cilantro, minced

Blend all of the ingredients except the flax seed oil and parsley in a blender or food processor until smooth.  Slowly add the flax seed oil while blending, until desired thickness is achieved.  Then add the minced herbs. You can substitute water or more lemon for some of the flax seed oil for a lighter dressing.  Keep this dressing stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.  Use on salads or grains.  Please do not heat this dressing.?
*Always buy unpasteurized miso and keep stored in refrigerator.  It can keep for a year in the fridge.  Just remember not to boil miso.

Snack: 1/4 cup RAW or SPROUTED almonds, walnuts, or pumpkin seeds.  Not roasted.  Not salted.
1/2 cup goji berries (these are important)
More fruit or a smoothie (fresh or frozen fruit with green powder, ginger, almond milk)
Herbal teas
Or hummus with veggies.

Dinner: 3 bean chili (no meat), or lentil pumpkin curry with GARLIC AND GINGER, over a bed of brown rice or wild rice.  Don’t add oils to foods.  Add as many steamed veg or raw veg as you want.  Season with fresh lemon or lime juice.  Top with a couple avocado slices.

Chew your foods 50 times per mouthful.

Drink digestion tea:  mint, chamomile, ginger

snack: more fresh fruit

Try and buy high quality foods from local farms, and organic if possible.  Organic local produce WILL have more vitamins and minerals than non-organic foods.
Avoid the “fake meats” and cheeses, especially those containing processed soy.  Think natural foods, unprocessed and fresh.

For extra help take a multi-vitamin from ‘New Chapter’.  Their supplements are made from organic food!!!  WOW!

A diet like this works because there is no saturated fat or cholesterol to clog artery walls.  Plus the little fat that there is comes from healthy plant fats (nuts, seeds, avocado, flax oil)  Don’t add extra fat, like cooking oil.  Must keep fats low, and consume no trans fats or animal fats.  Sodium should also be very low.  A plant based diet is full of fiber – fiber helps rid the body of toxins.  Fiber is only found in whole plant foods, never in animal foods.  And finally, this diet is high in antioxidants and phytochemicals, also only found in plant foods.  These will help reverse disease.  You will feel clean, energized and look beautiful from the inside – out!
Please check the websites and books above for more detailed info.