Eat More Potassium And Less Sodium
Increasing your potassium intake and cutting back on salt can also lower your blood pressure .
Potassium is a double winner: It lessens the effects of salt in your system, and also eases tension in your blood vessels. However, diets rich in potassium may be harmful to individuals with kidney disease, so talk to your doctor before increasing your potassium intake.
Its easy to eat more potassium so many foods are naturally high in potassium. Here are a few:
17 ). Popular high-salt items include deli meats, canned soup, pizza, chips, and other processed snacks.
Foods labeled low-fat are usually high in salt and sugar to compensate for the loss of fat. Fat is what gives food taste and makes you feel full.
Cutting down on or even better, cutting out processed food will help you eat less salt, less sugar, and fewer refined carbohydrates. All of this can result in lower blood pressure.
Make it a practice to check labels. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration , a sodium listing of 5 percent or less on a food label is considered low, while 20 percent or more is considered high (
Tips For Making Healthy Lifestyle Changes
If you suffer with high blood pressure, its easy to feel intimidated by the changes you need to make in order to improve your health. While some people may only need to work on one or two areas to reduce their blood pressuregetting more exercise or quitting smoking, for examplemost of us find that we need to improve our habits in at least 3 or 4 areas. But even if you smoke, drink heavily, are overweight, stressed out, sedentary, and eat nothing but junk and processed food, that doesnt mean you have to tackle everything all at once. Making lots of different lifestyle changes at the same time can be overwhelming. And when we feel overwhelmed, its easy to opt for doing nothing rather than doing something.
Start gradually and make one or two changes to begin with. Once those changes have become habit, you can tackle one or two more, and so on. For example, you may decide to start by giving up smokingand adopting some relaxation techniques to help with the stress of quittingthen move on to losing weight or improving your diet.
Lose the all or nothing thinking. Doing something, no matter how small, is always better than doing nothing. If youre eating healthy food during the week, for example, then resorting to takeouts at the weekends, your blood pressure and overall health will still be in better shape than if you were eating takeout every day.
Drugs Vs Lifestyle Change
First, keep in mind that drugs have limited success. Most studies on diuretics and other blood pressure-lowering drugs suggest they lower the risk of cardiovascular events among those with blood pressure between 140/90 and 159/99 by 15 to 20%.3 The problem is, with this range of blood pressure, the risk of cardiovascular-related deaths has increased by 300 to 400% compared to people with normal blood pressure.
So, while treating hypertension with drugs is generally better than no treatment, it is far from a cure, asserts Dr. Fruge.
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When Treatment Is Recommended
Everyone with high blood pressure is advised to make healthy lifestyle changes.
Whether medicine is also recommended depends on your blood pressure reading and your risk of developing problems such as heart attacks;or strokes.
Your doctor;will carry out some blood and urine tests, and ask questions about your health to;determine your risk of;other problems:
- if;your blood pressure is consistently above 140/90mmHg , but your risk of other problems is low you’ll be advised to make some changes to your lifestyle
- if your blood pressure is consistently above 140/90mmHg and;your risk of other problems is high you’ll be offered medicine to lower your blood pressure, in addition to lifestyle changes
- if your blood pressure is;consistently above 160/100mmHg you’ll be offered medicine to lower your blood pressure,;in addition to lifestyle changes
How To Keep Normal Blood Strain
Exercise every day If you do a mild level of exercise day by day, it could decrease the risk of blood strain. One of the handiest methods to get some workout is to stroll for 30 minutes.
Healthy weight If you are overweight, youve got an extra threat of having high blood pressure.
Healthy eating regimen The pleasant sorts of food to ensure that your blood pressure remains regular are the result, veggies, whole grains, and merchandise that have low dairy. It is also relatively recommendable to keep away from eating ingredients that have a large amount of salt.
Manage stress If you are feeling moments of pressure, you must take the time to take a second and do little breathing sports. Stress can result in high blood stress. If you certainly loosen up and cope with any problems that come your way, then you definitely could be able to decrease your risk of excessive blood strain.
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Prevent High Blood Pressure
Practice healthy living habits, like being physically active, to help prevent high blood pressure.
By living a healthy lifestyle, you can help keep your blood pressure in a healthy range. Preventing high blood pressure, which is also called hypertension, can lower your risk for heart disease and stroke. Practice the following healthy living habits:
What Not To Eat
There are some foods you definitely want to avoid if youre trying to reduce your sodium intake. Canned soups can be loaded with salt. Frozen dinners, packaged foods, and fast food in general are usually high in sodium, too.
Canned sauces and instant soups are also packed with sodium. In addition to being high in sugar, baked goods contain high levels of sodium because of the baking soda used to prepare them, and additional salt may be added for flavor.
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Home Remedies For Managing High Blood Pressure
What is high blood pressure?
Blood pressure is the force at which blood pumps from the heart into the arteries. A normal blood pressure reading is less than 120/80 mm Hg.
When blood pressure is high, the blood moves through the arteries more forcefully. This puts increased pressure on the delicate tissues in the arteries and damages the blood vessels.
High blood pressure, or hypertension, affects about half of American adults, estimates the American College of Cardiology.
Known as a silent killer, it usually doesnt cause symptoms until theres significant damage done to the heart. Without visible symptoms, most people are unaware that they have high blood pressure.
Reducing Your Salt Intake
The American Heart Association recommends no more than a teaspoon of salt a day for adults. That may sound alarmingly small, but there are many painless ways to reduce your sodium intake.
Reduce canned and processed foods.;Much of the salt you eat comes from canned or processed foods like soups, convenience meals, and fast food.
Cook more meals at home. Preparing your own meals gives you more control over your sodium intake. Use fresh ingredients whenever possible and cook without salt.
Use spices as alternatives to salt. Try fresh herbs like basil, thyme, or chives, or dried spices such as allspice, bay leaves, or cumin to flavor your meal without sodium.
Substitute reduced sodium versions.;Choose your condiments and packaged foods carefully, looking for foods labeled sodium free, low sodium, or unsalted.
See Heart-Healthy Diet Tips to learn more.
The effects on your blood pressure
- Adopting the DASH diet, eating plenty of fruit and vegetables, and reducing your consumption of unhealthy fats can lower your blood pressure by about 11 mm Hg.
- Cutting back on sodium by about 1,000 mg per day can reduce your blood pressure by 5 to 6 mm Hg.
- Increasing your potassium intake from food to 3,500-5,000 mg can knock 4 to 5 mm Hg off your reading.
- Limiting your alcohol intake to two drinks per day if youre male, or one drink per day if youre female can lower your reading by about 4 mm Hg.
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Limit Your Alcohol Intake
Regularly drinking too much alcohol can raise your blood pressure over time.
Staying within the recommended levels is the best way to reduce your risk of developing high blood pressure:
- men and women are advised not to regularly drink more than 14 units a week
- spread your drinking over 3 days or more if you drink as much as 14 units a week
Reduce Your Sodium Intake
Itâs a prime offender in raising blood pressure. The American Heart Association recommends that people with hypertension keep it under 1,500 milligrams a day. Check your food labels to see how much youâre getting. If you cut back gradually, youâre less likely to notice the difference.
One way to cut back is to prepare your food at home. Seventy-five percent of your sodium intake comes from eating out and packaged foods. Use more spices for flavor instead of salt. Eating more potassium helps move sodium out of your body. A small effort can bring blood pressure down as much as two to eight points.
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Reduce Stress Through Meditation And Rest
Chronic stress can lead to chronic elevations in the stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline, says Dr. Desai. These hormones constrict the arteries and cause weight gain, which further increases blood pressure.
He recommends reducing stress by using breathing exercises, practicing meditation, completing physical exercise, practicing yoga, logging quality sleep, taking breaks throughout the day, spending time in nature, listening to music and eating a balanced diet.
How Can I Prevent High Blood Pressure
You can help prevent high blood pressure by having a healthy lifestyle. This means
If you already have high blood pressure, it is important to prevent it from getting worse or causing complications. You should get regular medical care and follow your prescribed treatment plan. Your plan will include healthy lifestyle habit recommendations and possibly medicines.
NIH: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
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Symptoms Prior To A Massive Blood Pressure Change
Since the blood is responsible for oxygenating most of the bodys organs, when the pressure increases, the body suffers in other ways. Among other things, we can mention blurred vision, headache and dizziness. Other symptoms include poor appetite, vomiting and nausea. These symptoms usually have other origins. However, in people suffering from hypertension it is almost always due to an increase in blood pressure.
What Is Blood Pressure
Blood pressure is the force of your blood pushing against the walls of your arteries. Each time your heart beats, it pumps blood into the arteries. Your blood pressure is highest when your heart beats, pumping the blood. This is called systolic pressure. When your heart is at rest, between beats, your blood pressure falls. This is called diastolic pressure.
Your blood pressure reading uses these two numbers. Usually the systolic number comes before or above the diastolic number. For example, 120/80 means a systolic of 120 and a diastolic of 80.
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How To Maintain Normal Blood Pressure
Great news you have a normal blood pressure reading. To keep it that way, use these tips to avoid developing high blood pressure.
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Do you know what your blood pressure reading is? Have you had your blood pressure checked in the last year? If you are a man over age 45 or a woman over age 55, especially if you are African-American, high blood pressure is a condition you can’t ignore. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than half of all men and women will develop high blood pressure, also called hypertension, after age 55.
High blood pressure can lead to heart attack and stroke, two of the three leading causes of death for Americans. You can have high blood pressure without experiencing any symptoms that’s why its important to have your blood pressure checked regularly. And even if you know that you have a normal blood pressure reading today, you want to do everything you can to keep it in that healthy range.
Normal Blood Pressure Basics
Blood pressure is the force your blood exerts on the walls of your arteries, the blood vessels that carry oxygen-rich blood away from your heart. When your heart beats and forces more blood into your arteries, the force is a little higher; this is called your systolic pressure. Between beats, the pressure drops; this is called your diastolic pressure.
What’s Your Blood Pressure Reading?
Tips for Keeping Normal Blood Pressure
Tomatoes And Tomato Products
Tomatoes and tomato products are rich in many nutrients, including potassium and the carotenoid pigment lycopene.
Lycopene has been significantly associated with beneficial effects on heart health, and eating foods high in this nutrient, such as tomato products, may help reduce heart disease risk factors like high blood pressure .
A review of 21 studies concluded that consuming tomato and tomato products improves blood pressure and may help reduce your risk of heart disease and heart-disease-related death 30010-2/fulltext” rel=”nofollow”>26).
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Sodium Intake And Blood Pressure Values
Available evidence suggests a direct relationship between sodium intake and blood pressure values . Excessive sodium consumption has been shown to produce a significant increase in BP and has been linked with onset of hypertension and its cardiovascular complications . Conversely, reduction in sodium intake not only decreases BP levels and hypertension incidence, but is also associated with a reduction in cardiovascular morbidity and mortality . A large meta-analysis showed that modest reduction in salt intake for four or more weeks causes a significant fall in BP in both hypertensive and normotensive individuals, irrespective of sex and ethnic group, and larger reductions in salt intake are linked to larger falls in systolic BP . However, the current health policies have not reached an effective achievement for the reduction of dietary sodium in the population and the positive effects of a reduced sodium intake on BP levels tend to decrease with time, owing to poor dietary compliance.
In this paper, we have reviewed the evidence regarding the effects of sodium intake on arterial function, and their implication in the pathogenesis of hypertension. We have first addressed the debate on salt-sensitivity, in light of recent evidence, and then discussed the effects of sodium handling on arterial function and structure.
Lifestyle Changes To Lower Blood Pressure
1. Limit Your Alcohol Intake
Studies show that alcohol consumption can greatly influence your blood pressurefor better or worse. When drinking, try to limit your intake to no more than two drinks per day if youre male and no more than one daily for females, while going without when you can.
Although light-to-moderate drinking may lower your blood pressure and general risk of heart disease, there is no reason to start drinking if you currently do not.
Drinking too much alcohol can raise your blood pressure to unhealthy levels.
2. Quit Smoking
Smoking offers a host of health problems, the biggest being an increased cancer risk. But it can also lead to acute increases in blood pressure immediately following a cigarette, likely due to oxygen constriction.
Furthermore, lung cancer can create problems to your entire cardiovascular system and massively increase the risk of heart attack.
3. Get Adequate Sleep
Sleep is strongly associated with blood pressure, and if youre not getting enough deep, restful sleep you could be at increased risk for hypertension.
This could be, in part, because a lack of sleep leads to increased stress, cravings for junk food, weight gain, and lower activity levels.
4. Manage Stress
Experiencing chronic stress can boost blood pressure and diminish heart health by keeping your heart pumping at a rapid pace. This can be heightened by stresss ability to stimulate fat storage, trouble sleeping, uncontrolled eating, smoking, and drinking.
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Managing Blood Pressure Is A Lifelong Commitment
If you have high blood pressure, its vital that you listen to your doctor. Remember: Youre a part of your healthcare team. You and your doctor are partners.
Educate yourself about HBP and learn how to monitor your blood pressure at home. Armed with this information, you can commit to living heart healthy.
- Reduce high blood pressure.
- Prevent or delay the development of high blood pressure.
- Enhance the effectiveness of blood pressure medications.
- Lower your risk of heart attack, stroke, heart failure, kidney damage, vision loss;and sexual dysfunction.
Habits That Prevent Hypertension
Salt can be a cause of hypertension. So watch that your daily intake of salt does NOT exceed 2300 mg per day. It is also very good to walk or do some sport. Remember not to eat too many sausages, beers or cured cheese. These foods have high levels of amines that promote hypertension.
Among the foods that improve your blood pressure are watermelons, kiwis, bananas, blueberry juices and skim milk. Hibiscus tea, coconut water, tofu and soy will also be very helpful. Generally, a healthy and balanced diet is one that will help you prevent dangerous rises in pressure.
If you think this article might be useful for other people, do not hesitate to it. There are lives at stake that, simply by making this information known, you can save.
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