It’s well known high blood pressure increases your risk for stroke. A stroke occurs when blood flow to an area of the brain is blocked and brain cells become deprived of oxygen and die. Individuals with high blood pressure are 4-6 times more likely to have a stroke. An individual’s risk of having a stroke is directly related to how elevated their blood pressure is.

Now there is evidence linking high blood pressure with dementia and the risk is also directly related to how high your blood pressure is.

Continue reading ‘High Blood Pressure Linked to Dementia’ »

A few steps you can take right now to promote a lower blood pressure include:

1. Quit smoking
2. Lose and/or maintain a healthy weight
3. Decrease salt intake to less than 2400 mg sodium per day
4. Restrict alcohol to less than 1 drink/day for women and 2 drinks or less per day for men
5. Exercise 30 or more minutes daily
6. Following a heart healthy diet, such as the DASH diet to lower blood pressure

Be sure to sign up for the free e-course 7 Natural Ways to Lower Blood Pressure and http://www.lowerbloodpressurewithlisa.com.

All the best,
Lisa Nelson RD
http://www.lisanelsonrd.com

The second Nurses Health Study has identified six dietary habits that reduce high blood pressure in women by almost 80%.

The Nurses Health Study includes 83,882 adult women between the ages of 27 to 44 years-old. Researchers analyzed data to determine if there was a connection between a healthy lifestyle and high blood pressure prevention.

Here are the six diet and lifestyle factors researchers identified to decrease high blood pressure risk in women.

Continue reading ‘6 Habits to Lower High Blood Pressure’ »

Here’s a few details on how the Health Care Reform Bill impacts the Healthy Aging Program and funds the Child Obesity Demonstration Project.

Healthy Aging: Preventive Services for Adults 55-64

A grant program for state and local health departments and Indian tribes will be established. The grant will be used to provide public health interventions, preventive screenings, and referral/treatment for chronic diseases for individuals 55-64 years-old. Some of the intervention activities include improved nutrition and increased physical activity levels.

Child Obesity Demonstration Project

The Child Obesity Demonstration Project will be fully funded with $25 million. The goal of the project will be to reduce childhood obesity in community-based settings, including schools. The project will provide education, counseling and training activities.

All the best,
Lisa Nelson RD
Heart Healthy Tips
http://www.hearthealthmadeeasy.com

Here are two foods containing nutrients that will promote a lower blood pressure:

1. Garlic

Garlic is a source of allicin, which has been shown to lower blood pressure. Around 10,000 mg of allicin (~4 garlic cloves) is needed daily for a blood pressure lowering effect. Studies show the average reduction in systolic blood pressure to be 5-8 mm Hg. Important to note – not all forms of garlic are equal! Cultivated garlic, aged garlic, wild cultivated garlic, fresh garlic, and long-acting garlic preparations have variable effects.

Continue reading ‘2 Foods to Lower High Blood Pressure’ »

The 4th of July is just around the corner, which for many of us means BBQ time!

Here are some healthy barbeque ideas so you avoid sabotaging your heart healthy diet:

1. Talk more than you chew.

You don’t have to have a loaded plate to enjoy yourself. Take the time to catch up with a friend. Enjoy watching the kids play. When it’s meal time let others serve themselves first. Select a smaller plate and fill it with the healthiest options limiting foods slathered in mayo, fried, and breaded. Sit down to enjoy the food versus mindlessly eating while standing around the buffet table.

2. Sip smart.

Continue reading ‘How to Have a Heart Healthy 4th of July’ »

Here are 5 foods containing nutrients that promote a lower blood pressure:

1. Sweet potatoes

Sweet potatoes are a rick source of potassium. Adequate potassium intake is essential to balance sodium and promote a lower blood pressure. The recommended ratio of potassium to sodium is 5:1. Increasing potassium intake can result in a blood pressure reduction of ~5 mm Hg systolic and ~2.5 mm Hg diastolic.

Continue reading ‘3 Foods to Lower Blood Pressure’ »

High blood pressure is a serious condition that requires treatment. Here are answers to four frequently asked questions you need to know.

What is high blood pressure?

Blood pressure equals the force pushing against your artery walls when your heart beats and when it rests. The systolic pressure is the force against artery walls when your heart beats (contracts), while the diastolic pressure is the pressure against your artery walls when the heart relaxes (between beats).

High blood pressure is a reading equal to or greater than 140/90 mm Hg. A reading between 120-139/80-89 mm Hg falls within the pre-hypertension category. A blood pressure below 120/80 mm Hg is considered normal. High blood pressure is typically diagnosed after more than one elevated blood pressure reading.

Why is high blood pressure dangerous?

Continue reading ‘High Blood Pressure – 4 Frequently Asked Questions’ »

Health care reform has a direct impact on nutrition information available at restaurant chains.

Nutrition Labeling of Menu Items at Restaurants

This provision requires restaurant chains (those with 20 or more outlets) to include calories on menus, menu boards (such as drive through menus), and food display tags. Additional nutrition information will have to be available and provided upon customer request, such as fat, saturated fat, carbohydrates, sodium, protein, and fiber. The intent is for the information to be uniform and consistent within a restaurant chain and between different restaurants to reduce confusion and make the information consistent. It doesn’t look like this will go into affect until 1 year after bill passed into law.

All the best,
Lisa Nelson RD
Heart Healthy Tips
http://www.hearthealthmadeeasy.com

All right, this is the final series of questions and answers from my interview with Dr. Mark Houston in February 2010.

Lisa Nelson RD: Does grape seed really help lower blood pressure?

Dr. Houston: Yes, systolic blood pressure is reduced about 8 mm Hg and diastolic blood pressure 5 mm Hg. It is in the formulas mentioned above.

Lisa Nelson RD: What causes of an enlarged heart and are there ways to reverse an enlarged heart?

Continue reading ‘Dr. Houston Answers Your Top Heart Health Questions – Part 4’ »