High Blood Pressure Diet

Blood pressure is the force that the heart produces in the arteries as it pumps blood around the body and that of the arteries resisting the flow.

Blood pressure when measured presents two readings: Systolic- that is the pressure when the heart contracts to pump blood to the body. Tester will take the reading when they hear the first sound the heart makes. Diastolic- pressure when the heart relaxes between beats.

High blood pressure, or hypertension, is also called ‘The silent killer’ as it usually doesn’t present with many symptoms, besides slight headaches and feeling dizzy.

Did you know? High blood pressure can affect anyone at any age. You can be the calmest and relaxed person but still have high blood pressure diet.

A number of factors put an individual at risk of high blood pressure:

• Inactivity – exercise helps to regulate blood pressure as well as weight.
• Poor diet – having excessive amounts of salts and fats in your diet.
• Excess weight may also rise blood pressure.
• Excessive alcohol intake.
• Smoking – the chemicals in the tobacco can damage the lining of your arteries which will promote their narrowing which in turns increases blood pressure.
• Stress- when stressed you automatically raise your blood pressure.

High blood pressure is managed with medication and a healthy lifestyle. Diet and exercise play a major role in helping to manage blood pressure. For instance, losing just 5 to 10% of excess weight can significantly lower your blood pressure if it is elevated.

Nutritional tips to help you manage hypertension

 1. Decreasing your sodium intake

Sodium, found in salt is something we need in our diets, but most of us eat too much of it. Reducing salt in the diet can lower blood pressure. Try to have less than 2,400 milligrams of sodium a day, the same as 6 grams of salt a day, or about 1 teaspoon. That includes ALL sodium and salt — what’s in the product, and added in cooking and at the table. If reading labels of the food you are eating then aim for less than 500 mg sodium per serving.

Typically high sodium foods include:

• Bakery items – breads, biscuits and pastries
• Canned or tinned foods
• Convenience or ready-made  foods – frozen dinners, pizza, cereals and packaged mixes
• Cheese
• Deli items – bacon, luncheon meats, corned beef, smoked meats or fish, sardines, anchovies and mayonnaise-based salads such as coleslaw
• Savoury snack foods – crackers, crisps, chips and dips
• Condiments – stock, mustard, ketchup, mayonnaise, salad dressings, pickles, olives and salsa
• Sauces – gravy, barbecue, pasta, teriyaki and soy sauces

Note: You can eat your entire daily requirement of salt, and more, in a single fast food meal!

 2. Increasing potassium and magnesium

Make an effort to eat fresh fruit or vegetables at every meal. Ideally half of every meal you eat should be made up of colour from nature’s colour palette so salad, vegetables and/or fruit.

Take a magnesium supplement that ensures the intake of 500mg elemental magnesium per day. This may be a simple inexpensive way of supporting a healthy blood pressure and boosting your health.

3. Omega 3 fatty acids – eat more fish!

Omega-3 fish oils are a must for anyone with cardiovascular risk. Omega-3s also lower blood pressure. A daily intake of 1,500 mg of EPA and DHA is suggested. In this case it’s the EPA that seems most important.

Fish oils contain both EPA and DHA. A serving of oily fish, such as a 150g piece of wild salmon, can provide around 3,000 mg of omega-3 fats. Of this, perhaps a quarter (800 mg) is EPA. You should aim for a minimum of 400 mg EPA per day. That’s either two high-potency omega-3 fish oil capsules a day, or half a serving of an omega-3 rich fish such as sardines, herring, or mackerel. Having three servings of fish a week and an omega-3 fish oil supplement providing around 200 mg of EPA a day is a good way to start.

Flax seed oil is also a good source of Omega-3 fatty acids but take note: You have to eat a balanced diet with enough fruits and vegetables and take a multivitamin supplement to ensure that your body metabolises the flaxseed oil effectively

4. Fluid intake

If your blood level goes down, so does your blood pressure. By making your kidneys work harder, certain medications lower blood pressure. But you also lose valuable minerals such as magnesium and potassium. You’d do better by drinking more water. When there’s a lack of water, your body does everything it can to reserve what water it has. That means the sodium level inside your body goes up, because sodium can hold water inside cells. Therefore, your blood pressure goes up. Drinking about 2 liters (8 glasses) of water a day can ensure proper kidney functioning and assist with blood pressure control.

5. Supplementation

• A good all-round multivitamin formula
• Vitamin C
• Magnesium, 500 mg elemental per day
• Calcium, 1000 mg elemental per day
• Omega 3 (see section above)

REMEMBER, high blood pressure is not a life sentence. Through exercise, medication and correct eating plan it can be managed.

Foods That Give You Energy

There are many factors to consider if you want to optimize your energy levels. Not only what you eat, but how much and when you eat is just as important.

Choosing slower release, higher fibre foods as such as possible is probably a great place to start!

The glycemic index (GI) is nutritional tool that can help you to easily differentiate between fast release, and slow release carbohydrates, which will enable you to optimise your ‘fuel’ levels in your body.

Not only can the GI help you to sustain your energy levels but by using the GI concept in combination with low fat eating, both cholesterol and blood pressure can be lowered. For those wanting to lose weight, the increased sense of fullness given by the lower GI foods, and the fact that less insulin (a hormone that also encourages the body to store fat) is secreted by a low GI diet, results in better weight loss.

All foods that have a GI of 55 or less are slow release carbohydrates and classed as LOW GLYCAEMIC INDEX FOODS. Foods with a lower GI, if eaten in the correct portions, release glucose slowly and steadily into the bloodstream.

They are the best choices in preventing a large rise in blood glucose levels. The low GI foods are more satisfying and do not cause the release of as much insulin as high GI foods do.

Fluctuating blood glucose levels and high insulin levels are implicated in all the diseases of our modern lifestyles such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, high triglycerides, diabetes, obesity and heart disease.

Here are some lower GI foods that give you energy:

Legumes: baked beans, butter beans, chickpeas, kidney beans, sugar beans, lentils, etc.
Oat bran
Barley
Dense & heavy breads: seed loaf, rye bread, low GI bread
Pasta (Durum wheat)
Tastic rice, Brown rice
Sweet potato and Sweet corn

Cereals: Hi-Fibre Bran, Fibre Plus, Bran Flakes
Deciduous fruits: apples, pears, grapes, etc
Citrus fruits: oranges, grapefruit, naartjies, etc
Vegetables (with a few exceptions)
Yoghurts: low fat, fruit and plain

Note: Product formulations differ from country to country even though they may have the same name therefore it is best to stick to those for the country you live in.

Excellent low GI recipe books called EATING FOR SUSTAINED ENERGY can be ordered from www.gabisteenkamp.co.za.

Dash The Weight While Dining Out

From business lunches to braais and coffee shop visits to Friday night take aways. Eating out seems to be more popular than eating in as part of our modern lifestyles! Eating out is a nice treat, a great way to socialise or a convenient option when you don’t have time to cook a meal … But the kilojoules, fat, sugar and sodium can add up quickly! It certainly is possible to dine out and still dash the kilos, as long as you make some smarter choices most of the time.

BEFORE eating out:

• When possible, go to places that make it easier for you to order healthier options.
• It helps to decide what you would like to eat before getting to a restaurant to help with ‘wont power’ as you peruse the menu.
• Don’t go out ravenous as it may encourage overeating – eat a smart snack such as a fresh fruit, yoghurt or handful of nuts before hand.
• Watch out for drinking alcohol on an empty stomach; wait for the meal to arrive before enjoying your glass of wine.

WHEN ordering:

• Downsize it. Most marketplace food and drink portions are distorted and now exceed standard serving sizes. Pick nutrition over value. Order from the starter selections or split a meal with your friend or colleague.
• Avoid the bread and rolls that are offered as you arrive unless you would prefer to eat this in place of your starch at your meal.
• Preparation is key. Order foods that have been steamed, baked, broiled, grilled, stir-fried or roasted. The hidden fat and calories add up quickly when food is fried, crumbed or served with sauces. Read the menu carefully to ascertain the preparation methods used.
• Ask for the nutrition information of menu choices or check out the restaurant’s website ahead of time to look for healthier options.
• Compensate by skipping parts of the meal you like less.  Have an “I can eat that food any time” approach.

DURING eating:

• No matter where you are eating, remember to fill half of your plate with colourful foods from nature’s colour palette – salad and/or vegetables. The meat, fish or chicken portion should be about the size of the palm of your hand and the starch (including the bread and pudding) should be the size of your fist.
• Chew your food slowly, savoring every bite. We tend to rush though our meals, forgetting to actually taste the flavors and feel the textures of what is in our mouths.
• Engage in conversation and stop eating while doing so, this will help you to pace your meal.
• Salads are generally a good choice. A salad should not be drowned in dressing – only drizzle on enough to enhance the flavours of the salad and use ones that are fat or oil free such as flavoured vinegars or lemon juice with seasoning.
• Sauces are usually high in fat or sugar. Order them on the side and only drizzle the sauce over the food.
• Omit the starch with your main meal (bread, potato, chips, pasta) if you choose to have a starter or a pudding.
• Fruit juices, soft drinks and alcoholic beverages are very energy dense. Rather have water as the beverage of choice with meals.

AFTER dining:

• Listen to your body. During a meal, stop eating before you feel full. It actually takes a few minutes for your brain to tell your body that it has had enough food, so eat slowly.
• Make sure you send your plate away so that you are not tempted to eat more just because the food is still in front of you.
• Be careful of dessert denial as it can be counter productive. Most people feel a dessert rounds off a good meal. However, desserts are high in fat and kilojoules. Rather share a dessert between two to four people to satisfy the need for a sweet ending.
• Remember that healthy eating and weight loss is about enjoying your food and balancing food choices over time. So if you overindulge at one meal, try to make healthier choices at your next meals.