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How do I lower blood pressure and cholesterol?
Many of us face this issue daily. High blood pressure and cholesterol are too common and sometimes not taken as serious as they should be. You may have high blood pressure and cholesterol and not even know it!
Uncontrolled high blood pressure can lead to stroke, heart attack or even kidney failure — and too much cholesterol in your blood is a risk for coronary heart disease (leading to that heart attack) and for stroke.
We all can’t necessarily stop having high blood pressure or cholesterol (sometimes, it’s genetic), but there are plenty of things to control or improve your blood levels that can lead to a longer and healthy life.
Tips on Lowering Blood Pressure:
– Reduce the fat in your diet (saturated fats, specifically).
– Limit sodium intake (recommend 2300 mg per day).
– Increase physical activity.
– Quit smoking.
– Follow up with your physician as recommended.
Tips on Lowering Cholesterol:
– Reduce foods high in saturated fat, trans fat and cholesterol.
– Include the following foods into your diet: fruits and vegetables, fiber-rich foods, nonfat or low-fat dairy, omega-3 fatty acids (salmon), legumes, nuts and seeds (remember serving sizes), and unsaturated vegetable oils (canola, olive, sunflower, safflower oils) in limited amounts.
– Limit these foods: whole dairy, butter, egg yolks, saturated oils, fried foods, fatty meats, baked goods (made with saturated fats and egg yolks), high-processed meats (hot dogs, salami).
– Bake, broil or grill. Avoid frying.
– Increase physical activity.
– Follow up with your physician as recommended.
As you can see, many of the recommendations work for both conditions. Putting it bluntly, most of us would benefit by following these recommendations. They are basic, good health tips that lead us to eating more whole, nutrient-dense foods and getting us to move!
Have a diet question for Pam? Email askpam@ediets.com and check back to see if your question is picked! And if you missed a previous column, click here to see the archive.
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