Bring Down Your
Blood Pressure with Diet
Blood pressure is the force of blood against the
walls of arteries. Blood pressure rises and falls throughout the day. When blood pressure
stays elevated over time, it's called high blood pressure, also called hypertension. High
blood pressure is dangerous because it makes the heart work too hard and contributes to
atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries). It increases the risk of heart disease,
stroke, kidney disease and blindness.
One of the possible causes of High Blood
Pressure could be excessive salt intake. Other causes could be low potassium intake and
overweight.
To find out whether your blood pressure is due
to high salt intake, experiment with a low-sat diet and see if it goes down. Low-salt is
no more than 2,400 milligrams of sodium a day (about the amount in one teaspoon of
table salt). That includes the amount that is naturally in food as well as salt that has
been added. If your blood pressure doesn't go down after two months, you probably aren't
salt-sensitive and will need to find other ways
to lower it.
Here are some simple ways to modify your diet to
improve low your blood pressure:
- By paying close attention to food labels when
you shop, you can consume less sodium.
- Eat less frozen dinners, dried soups, canned
foods, fast foods, lunch meats, smoked meats instant noodles, ready-to-eat cereals, chips
and other processed foods
- Use herbs, lemon juice, spices, garlic,
onions, or salt-free seasoning blends to add flavor to your meals without adding more
sodium.
- When you eat out, stay away from dishes that
contain soy sauce or monosodium glutamate (MSG).
- If your are taking taking diuretics to lower
your blood pressure you want to add more potassium to your diet. Banana, potatoes,
avocados, tomatoes, citrus fruits, yogurt, and tuna are good sources of potassium
- Drinking too much alcohol can raise blood
pressure. It also can harm the liver, brain, and heart. Alcoholic drinks also contain
calories, which matters if you are trying to lose weight.
