i have high blood pressure on both sides of my family and actually have a grand-dad who died at 45 because of complications with his heart (i'm assuming it had to do with his high blood pressure.. correct me if i'm wrong!)
anyways, i love foods that have flavor.. (grew up in a latin culture) and i admit i use waaaay to much salt.
these last few months have made me consider what i'm doing to my body as i've had some strange symptoms that all point toward excessive high blood pressure.
what diet can i put myself on that would be good for this? obviously low sodium, but what else would be good to cut out or add?
thanks
Anonymous2009-05-31T13:07:39Z
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sodium isnt necessarily bad for you as long as you dont over due it, unfortunately food from the latin culture does contain alot of sodium (BUT IT IS SOOO GOOD!) drinking lots and lots of water can help, also using different spices, some of the "Mrs Dash" seasoning (that you can buy at the grocery store) taste super salty, but contain no sodium or very little. high blood pressure is actually very scary, most of the time people dont know they have it until it is too late here is a good site that gives you tips on how to lower your blood pressure naturally without medication http://www.book-of-cures.com/ remember to drinks lots of water, it will help
The American Heart Association has a Low Sodium Cook Book, that has wealth of info on nutrition as well. Take the salt shaker out of the house. Try using Mrs. Dash seasonings, lemon or lime juices,and flavored vinegars. There is another approach to help lower the blood pressure by, eating more fresh fruits and veggies, more whole grains, fish,poultry, low fat or non fat diary products and less meat called the D.A.S.H. diet, Dietary Approaches to Stopping High blood pressure. Stay away from canned or processed foods which are high in sodium/salt. I've been a lower sodium/salt diet for the past 10 yrs. I'm allowed 4% of sodium/salt in food. Some baked goods have hidden sodium. So READ your labels.
I have high blood pressure too. and I am very salt sensitive so I really have to watch my sodium
it's usually not too hard if you're cooking your own food and not eating a lot of processed foods or eating at restaurants all the time.
When you are cooing try and use less cheeses and things like that because they have a lot of sodium. Some grocery stores have certain products that are low sodium or with no added salt. Look for these especially with canned foods.
gradually use less and less salt in your cooking, your taste buds will adapt.
it's good to add more potassium to your diet, I've heard that this can lower blood pressure. so fruits and vegetables are wonderful sources of potassium.
if you're not exercising already, start! that lowers your bp too.
Sodium is very important in our diet for water balance among other very important electro-chemical functions. Like everything else sodium should be used in moderation. Low sodium diet do carries its share of health problems.
If you are suspecting having high blood pressure, you should get your pressure checked. This is because an escalating unchecked blood pressure is fatal. On the other hand, it is possible that what you do have is low blood pressure. Most if not all the symptoms are alike. While high blood pressure in most cases requires use of both diet and prescribed medication to regulate it, low blood pressure is corrected with the use of just diet.
You do not necessarily need to eliminate anything from your diet. You just need to eat mainly natural foods - mostly raw foods - and eat them in proper balance. The recommended food ratio for good health is 60% vegetables, of which 50% is eaten raw. 20% fresh raw fruits. 10% starchy carbohydrate and 10% proteins. It is important that you eat a very wide variety of foods and vary your diet (i.e. do not repeat the same kind of foods every day). Use mainly allium foods for the flavoring of meats etc. They are excellent for regulating your blood pressure, especially if it is high.
For more detailed information, pay special attention to the links attached to the best answer of that below and their attached links. They will highlight the benefit of moderate use of sodium and elaborate more on the food ratio as well as highlight the allium foods.
3 years ago, I was diagnosed - hypertension with a reading of 160/100. I used to feel dizzy a lot, my legs had awful cramps, and levels were very low in my potassium, causing my fingers and toes to always cramp together. One day I started to feel really faint while I was driving with my daughter in the back seat and I passed out, hitting 3 cars and ending up in a ditch. That moment,I knew I had to do something because my meds weren't working. I heard about this diet from a friend and thought I'd give it a shot. The results have been remarkable. In just 21 days, I honestly can't remember feeling this good, my blood pressure went from 175/110 to 125/70.