Low blood pressure can be raised through a combination of dietary changes, increased fluid intake, physical techniques, and compression garments. For most people, the most effective starting points are drinking more water, increasing salt intake, and making simple adjustments to how you eat and move throughout the day. The strategies that work best depend on whether your blood pressure drops when you stand up, after meals, or stays consistently low.
Drink More Water, and Drink It Quickly
Water is one of the fastest and simplest ways to raise blood pressure. A study published in Circulation by the American Heart Association found that drinking about 16 ounces (480 mL) of water raised seated blood pressure by 11 mmHg in older adults, and by a striking 43 mmHg in patients with autonomic failure. Drinking 16 ounces produced a noticeably larger effect than drinking 8 ounces.
The mechanism isn’t what most people assume. Water doesn’t raise blood pressure simply by increasing blood volume. The study found that blood volume didn’t actually change after drinking. Instead, water triggers a spike in sympathetic nervous system activity, the same branch of your nervous system that activates during a “fight or flight” response. This pushes blood pressure up within minutes. The practical takeaway: drink a full glass of water before situations where your blood pressure tends to drop, like getting out of bed in the morning or standing for long periods. Aim for at least 2 to 3 liters of fluid spread throughout the day.
Increase Your Salt Intake
While most health advice tells people to eat less salt, the opposite applies if you have low blood pressure. For people with orthostatic disorders (conditions where blood pressure drops on standing), clinicians routinely recommend more than 2,300 mg of sodium per day, which is actually the upper limit suggested for the general population. The Canadian Cardiovascular Society recommends 4,000 mg of sodium daily for patients with orthostatic conditions, and the Heart Rhythm Society goes even higher at 4,000 to 4,800 mg per day for people with postural tachycardia syndrome (POTS).
One study found that adding roughly 2,400 mg of supplemental sodium per day for two months improved blood pressure regulation, blood flow to the brain, and overall tolerance for standing in people who had fainted from blood pressure drops. A common approach is adding 1,000 to 2,000 mg of sodium to each of three daily meals through salted foods, broth, or salt tablets. This is a significant amount of salt, so it’s worth discussing with your healthcare provider, especially if you have heart or kidney issues.
Adjust How and What You Eat
Blood pressure commonly drops after meals, a condition called postprandial hypotension. This happens because your body diverts blood to the digestive system, temporarily reducing pressure elsewhere. Large, carbohydrate-heavy meals make this worse.
The fix is straightforward: eat six smaller meals throughout the day instead of three large ones, and keep carbohydrates low at each sitting. Carbohydrates cause a bigger blood pressure dip than protein or fat because they trigger a stronger digestive response. If you do eat a carb-heavy meal, sitting or reclining afterward for 15 to 30 minutes can help you ride out the dip safely.
Use Physical Counterpressure Maneuvers
When you feel lightheaded or sense your blood pressure dropping, specific physical techniques can raise it within seconds. The American Heart Association recommends several of these maneuvers:
- Leg crossing with muscle tensing: Cross your legs and squeeze your thigh, abdominal, and buttock muscles simultaneously. You can do this while standing or lying down.
- Squatting: Lower yourself into a squat, which forces blood from your legs back toward your heart. Tense your lower body and abdominal muscles while squatting, and stand up only once symptoms pass.
- Arm tensing: Grip your hands together, interlocking your fingers, and pull your arms in opposite directions as hard as you can.
- Isometric handgrip: Clench your fist at maximum force, with or without something in your hand.
These work by compressing blood vessels and forcing blood back into your central circulation. They’re especially useful in the moment, like when you feel dizzy after standing up. Practice them so they become automatic when you need them.
Choose the Right Compression Garments
Compression stockings are frequently recommended for low blood pressure, but the type matters enormously. A systematic review in the Netherlands Journal of Medicine found that knee-length and thigh-length stockings alone have very limited effect on orthostatic blood pressure drops. Full-length compression (covering both legs and the abdomen) or abdominal compression alone were significantly more effective.
The reason is anatomical: your abdomen is by far the largest fluid reservoir in your body, accounting for over 70% of the fluid shifts that happen when you stand up. Your legs account for less than a third. So if you’re only wearing knee-high compression socks, you’re addressing the smaller part of the problem. Abdominal binders or full-body compression garments with pressures in the 20 to 40 mmHg range were used in most successful studies. An abdominal binder worn under clothing is a practical, less cumbersome alternative to full-length stockings.
Change How You Get Out of Bed
Blood pressure is typically lowest in the morning after hours of lying flat. Sitting bolt upright and standing immediately is one of the most common triggers for dizziness and fainting in people with low blood pressure. Instead, sit on the edge of your bed for a minute or two before standing. Flex your feet and tense your leg muscles a few times while sitting. Drink a glass of water you keep on your bedside table before you even sit up. Elevating the head of your bed by 10 to 20 degrees (using blocks under the bed frame, not just extra pillows) can also help by reducing the abrupt shift in blood distribution when you stand.
Recognize When Low Blood Pressure Is Dangerous
Most low blood pressure is more of a nuisance than a danger. But extremely low blood pressure can lead to shock, which is a medical emergency. According to the Mayo Clinic, warning signs include confusion (particularly in older adults), cold and clammy skin, noticeably pale skin, rapid shallow breathing, and a weak, fast pulse. If you or someone around you shows these symptoms, this is not something to manage at home. It requires immediate emergency care, as organs can be damaged when blood pressure is too low to maintain adequate blood flow.
For ongoing low blood pressure that causes frequent dizziness, lightheadedness, or fainting, combining several of these strategies tends to work better than relying on any single one. Increasing salt and water together, using abdominal compression, eating smaller meals, and practicing counterpressure maneuvers gives you a toolkit for different situations throughout the day.