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Overview
High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is the disease of the era, brought on by fast-paced lifestyles and stressful conditions. It is also a common ailment of people who are aging. While healthy younger adults may have an average blood pressure of 120/80, this number typically increases with age. Fortunately, there are concrete dietary modifications a person can adopt to lower blood pressure.
Types
The key ingredients that can drive up blood pressure are salt and saturated fat, especially trans fat. Processed foods, fast food, canned food and packaged sauces are typical foods that are extremely high in sodium. Fats can potentially clog blood vessels and strain the heart. Saturated fats are often found in high concentration in fried foods, creamy sauces and soups, chips, fast food and red meat. To a lesser degree, sugar can also affect blood pressure.
Misconceptions
People often assume drinking alcohol is an acceptable part of a diet to fight hypertension. While some research has implied that a small amount of alcohol can benefit overall health and poses no risk to the heart, this is not the case for people who have been diagnosed with high blood pressure. Alcohol can damage blood vessels and increase blood pressure.
Expert Insight
While doctors recommend avoiding specific foods when treating high blood pressure, they also have developed a diet for lowering blood pressure. The DASH plan--short for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension--is a diet that centers upon fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, low fat dairy foods, nuts, seeds, poultry and fish. The plan also recommends that patients eliminate trans fats and sugared beverages.
Significance
Using diet to lower blood pressure is ideal, because many of the prescription medications on the market have uncomfortable side effects. Eliminating trigger foods and replacing them with foods from the DASH plan serves the dual purpose of reducing risk of developing hypertension and lowering existing high blood pressure. Patients who follow the plan consistently have dramatically reduced high blood pressure in as short a time frame as 2 weeks.
Considerations
Some traditional favorite foods may be triggers for high blood pressure, but simple substitutions can transform them into heart-healthy options. For example, egg recipes can incorporate only egg whites. Replace sour cream with yogurt. Switch to low fat or nonfat milk. A meatloaf becomes healthy with a substitution of lean ground turkey. Hold the ground beef on tacos and fill them with grilled skinless chicken breast instead. Top baked potatoes with salsa and end the meal with fruit or sorbet instead of cake.
