The pressure check of our blood is a serious
medical indication of your wellness and should therefore be a matter of concern
for everybody as it can be fatal. Our diet can play a major part in preventing
or managing hypertension. For a quick fact, maintaining your current sodium
intake while simultaneously increasing your potassium, calcium and magnesium
intake will help prevent or reduce your blood pressure. The cellular
interaction/balance between sodium and potassium is greatly responsible for you
blood pressure reading.
You can always read the concise and
shorter version
WHAT IS HYPERTENSION?
Definition
Hypertension
(HTN) or high blood pressure, sometimes called arterial hypertension, is a
chronic medical condition in which the blood pressure in the arteries is
elevated.
Wikipedia,
Accessed on 29th June, 2013
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A normal blood pressure at rest ranges within
100-140 mmHg systolic (top reading) and 60-90mmHg (bottom reading) with a persistent
check result of or above
140/90 mmHg diagnosed as the presence
High Blood pressure.
NOTE: reading of below
120mmHg systolic and below 80mmHg
Diastolic are the actual normal blood pressure readings.
PREHYPERTENSION
120-139
mmHg (Systolic) or 80-89 (Diastolic)
HYPERTENSION
1st
STAGE
140-159 mmHg (Systolic) or
90-99 mmHg (Diastolic)
2nd
STAGE
≥160 or ≥100
Hypertension can manifest at any age but the risk
increases as one grows older and has no obvious symptoms thus, is sometimes
referred to as “silent killer”.
Hypertension
is potentially fatal as it’s a major precursor for heart attack (myocardial
infarction), stroke, heart failure, aortic aneurysm, peripheral arterial
disease and chronic kidney disease. An association has been scientifically
proven to exist between shortened life expectancy and an even moderate increase
in arterial blood pressure.
There are two classes of Hypertension (HTN):
Primary (essential) HTN
- High blood
pressure (90 -95% of cases) with no known underlying medical cause and
usually associated the unhealthy diet/lifestyle choices as well as genetics.
Secondary HTN
- Diagnosed High
blood pressure (5-10% of cases) as result of an identified pre-existing
disease condition that affect the proper functioning of the kidneys, heart,
endocrine system, arteries)
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Remember it
is important to know which class (primary or secondary) of hypertension you
belong to aid your management.
Now let’s get talking about helpful diet changes
that can reduce your blood pressure.
ADOPTING THE “DASH DIET”
The DASH
(Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet is basically a diet pattern which
places emphasis on the eating of fruits, vegetables and low-fat dairy products with
inclusion of whole grains, poultry, fish and nuts in meals as well.
nwG-wOrks in-ADs//
Frequent eating of apples will help reduce
your risk of developing several cancers. Evidence reveals …..
This diet plan provides increased amounts of
potassium, calcium, fiber, magnesium and protein with accompanying reduced
amounts of total fat, saturated fats, tans-fats, and cholesterol.
The proven effect of this diet plan is due to a
combined effect of all the nutrients/foods and complete isolation should not be
made for one nutrient or food.
STATEMENT OF RESULTS STUDIES DONE
A series of 3 large, controlled feeding
studies tested the effects of dietary patterns on BP. The first trial was a
randomized feeding study that compared 3 dietary patterns. Of the 3 diets
studied, the most effective diet, now called the DASH diet,
It also was slightly increased in protein.
It is likely that several aspects of the diet, rather than just one nutrient
or food, reduced BP. Among all participants, the DASH diet significantly lowered mean systolic BP by 5.5 mm Hg and
mean diastolic BP by 3.0 mm Hg, each net of changes in the control diet.
A second diet, which emphasized just fruits and vegetables, also
significantly reduced BP but to a lesser extent, about half of the effect of
the DASH diet. The effects of the diets were rapid, occurring within only 2
weeks.
The DASH diet significantly lowered BP in
all major subgroups (men, women, blacks, non-blacks, hypertensive
individuals, and non-hypertensive individuals). However, the effects of the DASH diet in the black participants (systolic and
diastolic BP reductions of 6.9 and 3.7 mm Hg) were significantly greater than
corresponding effects in white participants (3.3 and 2.4 mm Hg). The
effects in hypertensive individuals (systolic and diastolic BP reductions of
11.6 and 5.3 mm Hg) were striking and were significantly greater than the
corresponding effects in non-hypertensive individuals (3.5 and 2.2 mm Hg). In
a subsequent trial that enrolled a similar population, the DASH diet
significantly lowered BP at each of 3 sodium levels; however, the extent of
BP reduction was less when the sodium level was low (1.5 g/d).
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REQULATING CALORIC INTAKE
Studies have established an association between
reduction in caloric intake and reduction in both systolic and diastolic
pressure. Increased blood glucose levels
leads to a consequential increase in arterial blood pressure. Reducing the
portion of servings of carbohydrate, saturated fat as well as trans-fats will
aid you manage your weight
and ultimately your blood pressure.
Dietary fat:
Eating meals filled with high
amounts of saturated-fat, trans-fat and cholesterol is un-healthy for your
arteries and subsequently your blood pressure. These will block your arteries leading
to a condition referred to as arteriosclerosis (pathological hardening or thickening of tissue).
You should therefore avoid eating oily/fried
foods as well as junk foods. Rather than specifically try to avoid fatty (high
caloric) foods, adopting a DASH diet
will be more helpful in healthy regulation of your calorie intake and
ultimately have a greater effect on your quest of reducing your blood pressure.
Omega-3-fatty acid found in fish is known to help
with general health and thus may have a positive effect on your blood pressure.
Avoid red fatty-meat if you wish to reduce your blood pressure and opt for fish
instead.
Weight loss: Reliable evidence exists through observational
and clinical trials that, reducing your weight (if you are overweight) will
definitively lead to a reduction in your blood pressure. This relationship is
underscored by a greater number of individuals suffering from hypertension being
usually overweight or obese.
This however, does not apply
for sufferers who have normal or are underweight.
REDUCED SALT/SODIUM INTAKE
Several different studies have emphatically
proven that reduction in the intake salt (sodium chloride) causes a healthy
reduction in both the systolic and diastolic blood pressure.
Reducing
intake of Sodium:
CAUTION:
Salt
is the number source of sodium and its intake is important to help us meet our
daily needs. 1500 milligrams of sodium
is the set recommended adequate intake amount.
Even though sodium intake below this set level
will lead to a reduction in blood pressure, there
currently is no known healthy diet source that will provide adequate (1500 milligrams)
amounts of the mineral.
nwG-wOrks inADs
A total of
over fifty (50) randomized studies (trials) on the relationship between sodium
levels and BP. The most recent established that a reduction in urinary sodium
levels (a way of measuring level of sodium intake) of ≈1.8 g/d (1800 milligrams)
caused a consequential reduction of 2.0 and 1.0 mmHg of systolic blood pressure and diastolic
blood pressure respectively in non-hypertensive individuals. A reduction of 5.0
and 2.7 mmHg for systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure respectively
was recorded for hypertensive individuals.
IMPORTANT INFORAMATION ON SODIUM INTAKE
Because the relationship
between sodium intake and BP is direct and progressive without an apparent
threshold, it is difficult to set an upper level of sodium intake, which also
could be 1.5g/d (65mmol/d). However, in view of the available food supply and
the currently high levels of sodium consumption, a reduction in sodium intake
to 1.5 g/d (65mmol/d) is not easily achievable at present. In the interim, a
reasonable recommendation is an upper limit of 2.3g/d (100mmol/d), which is
similar to earlier recommendations for the prevention and treatment of
hypertension.
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How to reduce sodium
●Limiting the amount of salt you add to your
dishes is the first step to reducing your sodium intake.
●Greater amounts of the sodium ingested by
individuals come from the eating of processed foods which are mostly loaded
with sodium. The next step is thus, making a habit of reading the nutritional labels/information
on Sodium of all processed/canned foods you buy. Go in for those that indicate
5% or less Daily Value (DV) of Sodium while avoiding those with 20% DV.
●Condiments, Fats, and Oils like ketchup,
pickles, mayonnaise, barbeque sauce, butter, and salad dressing as well as
desserts like pastries, cookies, muffins, pie, and cake are contain high
amounts of sodium.
nwG-wOrks inADs
●Avoid using foods as much as possible canned
and go a step further to substitute them for the fresher/natural forms of such
foods (e.g. replace tin fish with fresh
fish).
●You should avoid eating fast foods and limit the
use of salt-filled seasonings.
A long term (more than 4 weeks) low sodium diet
in Caucasians is effective in reducing blood pressure, both in people
with hypertension and in people with normal blood pressure.
Source:wikipedia.org
(Accessed on 26/6/2013)
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INCREASE POTASSIUM INTAKE
Several studies conducted supports the fact
that, increased intake of the intracellular mineral potassium leads to a
reduction in blood pressure.
Potassium is present in cells and thus, is
referred to as an intracellular cell with a daily recommended intake of about 4.7grams. Its balance
with the extracellular mineral sodium is significantly responsible for the
blood pressure level of an individual as they play-out their water-balance
function.
FACT: The effect
of increased potassium intake on blood pressure is greater with an accompanying higher salt/sodium intake
and vice-versa. This means, a healthy balance must exist between the two
minerals and thus, you should opt for
either reducing your salt (sodium) intake or increasing your potassium intake while maintaining your present salt intake. A
combined reduction in salt (sodium) intake and increased potassium intake would
have negligible effect in the reduction your blood pressure.
High
potassium intake can be achieved through diet rather than pills.
Also, the
diet sources of potassium come with other nutrients and thus it’s highly recommended
to opt for fruits and vegetables for your supply of potassium rather than
taking supplements/pills. A DASH diet
will surely provide you with healthy amounts of potassium. Eat dark-green leafy
vegetables, root vegetables (sweet potatoes and carrots) and fruits every day
as they are high in potassium and low in sodium.
An extreme
increase (4700 milligrams) in potassium intake is however, not recommended for
individuals with three (3) or four (4) chronic kidney disease.
OTHER MANAGEMENT MEASURES
Increase consumption of foods
high in calcium and magnesium: Though not
justifiably consistent, studies have linked this to have a slight effect on blood
pressure.
Stop/Moderate alcohol intake:
According to the American Heart
Foundation, “alcohol consumption should
be limited to ≤2 alcoholic drinks per day in most men and ≤1 alcoholic drink
per day in women and lighter-weight persons. A recent meta-analysis of 15
randomized controlled trials reported that decreased consumption of alcohol
(median reduction in self-reported alcohol consumption, 76%; range, 16% to
100%) reduced systolic and diastolic BPs by 3.3 and 2.0 mm Hg, respectively”.
Adopt a vegetarian diet: This
in essence is a diet plan that is high in potassium, calcium, magnesium and
fiber but low in sodium, saturated
fats, cholesterol and trans-fats.
CONCLUSION
Hypertension is a disorder that should not be
played with. It reduces your life expectancy and generally affects your
well-being. Speak to your physician/Doctor before getting on a drug therapy.
Have a talk with a Nutritionist/Dietician to help your adopt a healthy diet
plan.
FOR
CONSULTATION
Call Our Nutritionist- +233277279565
This article was reviewed on Monday, 16th December, 2013
By Nu. Sallah
Stanley Kwesi (Nutritionist at Nutritional Talk)
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