A Healthy Diet is Important for a Healthy Heart

This article is to help you understand some of the problems caused by high blood pressure and hypertension and to give you some dietary instructions to eat healthy to stay healthy.

The blood pressure of a resting, healthy adult should be 120/80 or lower. If levels between 120/80 and 140/90, then you are considered in the pre-hypertensive stage.  If you blood pressure is above 140/90, then you are considered in the hypertensive stage. Both pre-hypertensive and hypertensive patients must make diet, exercise and lifestyle changes to reduce the risk of hypertension and heart disease.

There are tremendous hazards associated with hypertension and high blood pressure.

Globally, about thirty percent of adults have consistent high blood pressure. It puts a strain on the heart which then causes thickening of the vessels, also known as atherosclerosis. This results in severe heart damage.  Other complications are: kidney failure, coronary artery disease, stroke, and eye damage. Hypertension exhibits itself and it damage silently and once you become aware that you have it, your organs can already be in danger. You do have a choice:  Control your blood pressure and limit the damage to your important organs.

The first step to controlling your blood pressure, is educating yourself about some basics.

First, know that extra weight increases blood pressure. Obese people have twice the risk of being diagnosed with the disorder than their thinner counterparts. Weight reduction significantly decreases blood pressure. Losing just ten pounds can make a huge difference in your blood pressure.

Here is some basic dietary advice for controlling your high blood pressure.  First, find a healthy, balanced diet.  If your goal is to lower your levels, your diet should be mostly low-fat dairy products, vegetables and fruits. You should keep it low in fat and cholesterol.  Eat fair amounts of potassium, magnesium, calcium, fiber, and protein. Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet, recommended by both the U.S. government and the American Heart Association, is a good guide to lower blood pressure.

A major step is to lessen the amount of salt you consume. Salt really raises blood pressure. When you consume too much salt it causes your body to need a larger fluid amount and then it retains it which leads to, not only high blood pressure, but also swelling of the extremities. It also puts more pressure on the blood vessels that open and close to regulate your blood’s pressure and flow, which are called arterioles. Less than twenty-four hundred milligrams of sodium per day is recommended.

What are some good ways to lessen your sodium intake? Well, start by eating fresh food and not canned or packaged food. Although, fresh foods do have sodium, it is in much smaller amounts than in food that have been processed.

Become a label reader. Look at every label of processed foods. Choose those which are labeled as salt-free, very low sodium or low-sodium. Pay special attention to words that show a high amount of sodium. Most of those scientific sounding and confusing terms, will include the word sodium right in them.

Develop lower sodium eating habits.  Simple things like not adding salt while cooking or eating. In fact, don’t even have a salt shaker on your table.  Rinse any salty, processed foods well before cooking or eating them.  Always choose the low-sodium version of you favorite foods.  These simple steps can make an extremely significant lowering in your blood pressure levels.

Avoid high sodium foods. The following items are very high in sodium. Opt for the low-sodium varieties or, even better, avoid them completely.

Keep an eye out for these salty foods and products:  barbecue sauce, baking soda, baking powder, catsup, mustard, garlic salt, soy sauce, salad dressing, steak sauce,  seasoned salts, mustard, peanuts, onion salt, pork rinds, pretzels, corn chips, tortilla chips, canned soups, instant soups, sauerkraut, olives, relish, pickles, Herring, hot dogs, bologna, ham, luncheon meats, sausage, corned beef, cheeses, cheese spreads, soda flavored with saccharin, club soda, cold cereals, instant hot cereals, scalloped potatoes, boxed rice, frozen dinners, pizza, macaroni and cheese, instant rice, pot pies, butter, and. instant noodles.

While this list seems extensive, it does not contain all of the foods you need to avoid.  The most important thing is to talk with your physician and determine what you need to do to control your blood pressure.  Diet and exercise are two of the best things you can do for your heart.