Lowering and maintaining a healthy blood pressure requires a commitment to a healthy lifestyle. A hypertension sufferer should not rely solely on medication. A healthy diet and exercise regimen should also be put into place. Doing so will lower the risk of heart disease, heart attack and stroke significantly.
Food
What is considered high blood pressure?
Hypertension (High Blood Pressure) 140/90
Prehypertension 139/89
Healthy Blood Pressure 120/80
Hypotension (Low Blood pressure) 89/59 and lower
Diet and Hypertension
A diet that will help lower and maintain a healthy blood pressure is low in refined sugars, has small portions, contains foods rich in omega 3 and fiber and keeps a safe range of cholesterol (LDL, HDL, and triglyceride) levels. Desirable LDL (a.k.a. bad cholesterol) levels are below 130 and desirable HDL (a.k.a. good cholesterol) levels are above 50. In order to increase her HDL levels one should increase aerobic exercise, quite smoking (if it’s a factor), avoiding trans fats all together, have a drink or two of alcohol a day (but no more because that would increase triglyceride levels), and increase monounsaturated fats and soluble fiber in his/her diet. A patient with hypertension should aim for triglyceride levels to be below 200. Elevated triglycerides are the result of eating too many calories.
Other Considerations
If your doctor puts you on a diuretic for hypertension you should avoid taking Advil (ibuprofen) and all nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID’s) because they inhibit the actions of diuretics and ACE inhibitors.
Food
Eat Suggestions
· Grains- 6 to 8 servings/day | Couscous, long grain rice, quinoa, bulgur wheat |
· Fruit- 4 to 5 servings/day | Purple grapes are excellent for BP |
· Vegetables- 4 to 5 servings/day | Green leafy raw, steamed asparagus |
· Dairy- 2 to 3 servings/day | Cottage cheese, milk, yogurt |
· Meat including fish & poultry- 2 or less servings/day | Egg whites |
· Fats and Oils- 2 to 3 servings/day | Olive oil |
· Nuts and Beans- 4 to 5/WEEK | Lentils, almonds |
Don’t Eat Instead
· Sodium | Garlic, chives, oregano, basil, rosemary |
Author: Andrea Antczak, Nursing Student
Works Cited
all-about-lowering-cholesterol.com. (2010). Cholesterol level scale and cholesterol charts. Retrieved Oct. 28, 2010, from all-about-lowering-cholesterol.com: http://www.all-about-lowering-cholesterol.com/cholesterol-level-scale.html
Gloria Tsang, R. (2006, May). How to Lower Triglycerides? Retrieved Oct. 28, 2010, from HealthCastle.com: http://www.healthcastle.com/triglycerides.shtml
Richard N. Fogoros, M. (2010, April 28). Raising Your HDL Levels. Retrieved Oct. 28, 2010, from About.com: http://heartdisease.about.com/cs/cholesterol/a/raiseHDL.htm
RxList.com. (2009, June 24). Diuril. Retrieved Nov. 10, 2010, from RsList.com: http://www.rxlist.com/diuril-drug.htm
WebMD.com. (2010). High Blood Pressure Diet. Retrieved Nov. 9, 2010, from WebMD.com: http://www.webmd.com/hypertension-high-blood-pressure/guide/high-blood-pressure-diet?page=2
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