Dietary Steps To Lower High Blood Pressure
No high blood pressure can be considered safe. Even if your blood pressure stays only marginally above the normal levels there is increased risk of organ damage, heart attack and stroke. The longer it stays high and the higher it gets, the greater the health risk.
The good news is that there are natural steps you can take to help reduce your blood pressure or prevent it from increasing to dangerous levels. Studies have been conducted that show a strong positive correlation between certain diet plans and a lowering of high blood pressure - so you can eat your way to normalised blood pressure with a diet for high blood pressure!
Scientists discovered that lowering cholesterol, red meats and saturated fats in the diet and increasing fruits and vegetable and low fat milk products as well as whole grains can have a significant impact on high blood pressure. Including plenty of fish and organic poultry and cutting out processed sugars added to the blood pressure lowering effect.
The key minerals in the fight against high blood pressure are magnesium potassium and calcium, so including foods rich in these elements is important. Of course the optimum blood pressure diet is very low in salt, as salt and sodium are key elements that contribute to high blood pressure and the hardening of the arteries if consumed in disproportionate amounts.
Some of the foods that are great for lowering blood pressure are ordinary enough, they just may have been forgotten in your diet. Skim milk is great for providing calcium and vitamin D. Together these two nutrient work in the body to lower blood pressure and have been known to see results of about 4% lower, doesn't sound like much but can make a huge difference to your life expectancy. For vitamin D it is essential that you also get around half an hour sun exposure on about 25% of you body for optimum absorption.
Spinach is not just for Popeye, but is another great food for lowering blood pressure. Unsalted nuts and seeds as well as beans and legumes are also essentials. The aforementioned are all high in the key blood pressure minerals calcium, magnesium and potassium. It is important that you get your intake of potassium through foods, as taking supplements can actually have detrimental effects on your body, so only take potassium supplements with the advice of a healthcare professional otherwise your body balance may be tipped.
Bananas, soybeans and potatoes compose another trio of hypertension fighters rich in potassium. Potassium is important because of its relationship with sodium. Potassium and salt are inextricably bound together, if one is high the other is low, so for the sake of your blood pressure you want potassium to be high! Potassium particularly works in the kidneys, so you can avoid the risks of kidney disease or chronic renal failure associated with high blood pressure.
And here is some great news for hypertensive chocolate lovers. Your favourite indulgence just became healthy. Yay for dark chocolate! Medical studies have shown that about 14 grams (30 calories) of dark chocolate helps high blood pressure without causing weight gain. It is also rich in antioxidants and iron among other minerals, so eat it with nuts or fruit to get the best out of it.
It is important to remember that changing your diet for your high blood pressure doesn't spell culinary doom and gloom. What you will be getting is a healthy life, full of yummy foods that will see you not only get healthier but regain control of your life, no more living in the shadow of high blood pressure.
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