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Archive for the ‘Lower Blood Pressure’ Category.
Arteries are made of muscle and tissues that allow them to be elastic and stretch. As blood pressure rises arteries are required to expand further to accommodate blood flow. High blood pressure leads to many health complications, including damage to blood vessels, the heart, and kidneys. If not treated, high blood pressure may contribute to a heart attack and death.
According to several studies have found pet owners tend to have lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels than those who do not own a pet. Here are a few possible reasons owning a pet improves cholesterol and blood pressure:
1. Stress relief - Many people find petting and interacting with a pet to be soothing.
2. Increased reason for activity – If you own a pet that needs a walk, you have an increased reason to get exercise yourself.
3. Support – For many pet owners there pet is someone that is always there for them no matter what.
Owning a pet promotes an overall healthier lifestyle. You get out and exercise with your pet, whether it’s a walk, run, or playtime. You have a nonjudgmental party to share your struggles with. You get out and socialize more, whether you head to a local dog park or simply have pet ownership as an easy conversation topic. Plus, pets promote family time as everyone pitches in to care for a furred loved one.
Be sure to sign up for the free e-course “7 Natural Ways to Lower Blood Pressure” at http://lowerbloodpressurewithlisa.com.
All the best,
Lisa Nelson RD
http://lisanelsonrd.com
Exercise, especially aerobic exercise, is beneficial for your cardiovascular system.
Here are 5 reasons to add physical activity to your everyday routine:
1. Decrease risk for breast and colon cancer
A study has found a 35% reduced risk of getting breast cancer in women who are regularly active. Physical activity also increases survival rate in women diagnosed with breast cancer. The Harvard Nurses’ Health Study shows walking three to five hours each week to decrease risk of death 50 percent. Physical activity has also been linked to reduced risk for colon and rectal cancers.
2. Increase your life span
Blood pressure measures the force pushing against your artery walls when your heart beats and when it rests. The systolic pressure (top number) measures the pressure against your artery walls when your heart beats (contracts) and pushes blood throughout circulation. The diastolic pressure (bottom number) is the pressure against your artery walls when your heart relaxes (in between beats). High blood pressure is diagnosed when the pressure against artery walls is higher than normal. Another term for high blood pressure is hypertension.
4 Blood Pressure Categories
With high blood pressure it’s important you follow a diet low in sodium and low in fat (particularly saturated and trans fat).
Here are 7 foods to avoid:
1. Pickles
Pickles are low calorie, which is great. However, they are loaded with sodium. One medium pickle (~5 inches long) can have around 570 mg of sodium. That’s over 1/3 of your sodium limit (1500 mg) for the day.
2. Canned Chicken Noodle Soup
I know, the thought of chicken noodle soup sounds warm and comforting . . . but beware! A one cup serving can contain up to 880 mg.
3. Sauerkraut
It’s a low calorie and a great way to add vegetables to a bratwurst, right? Nope. A half cup may only have ~13 calories, but it also provides you over 460 mg of sodium.
4. Fast Food French Fries
Yes, many fast food chains are now frying their fries up in trans fat free oil (but not all!); French fries still provide a large dose of fat and sodium. A medium serving of fries provides ~19 grams of fat and 270 mg of sodium.
5. Bacon
I don’t really count this as a meat. It’s mostly fat with three slices carrying 4.5 grams of fat and ~270 mg of sodium. Opt for lower sodium varieties and try turkey bacon instead of pork. Even with these switches bacon should remain a “special treat” not an everyday indulgence.
6. Whole Milk
Dairy is a great source of calcium, but high fat dairy sources provide more fat than you need. A one cup serving of whole milk provides 8 grams of fat, 5 of which are saturated.
7. Frozen pot pies
A single pot pie equals a serving of ~1300-1400 mg of sodium PLUS ~35 g of fat. The fat includes trans fat which you want to eliminate from your diet completely and an unhealthy dose of saturated fat. Clear out your freezer.
Be sure to sign up for the free e-course 7 Natural Ways to Lower Blood Pressure at http://lowerbloodpressurewithlisa.com.
All the best,
Lisa Nelson RD
http://lisanelsonrd.com
Mushrooms are low in calories, low in fat, and rich in calcium and B vitamins.
Shiitake Mushrooms
A shiitake mushroom provides thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, 8 amino acids, and fiber. This mushroom also contains ergosterol, lentinan, lentinula edodesmycelium, and eritadenine, all of which are linked to potential health benefits.
Ergosterol is converted by sunlight to vitamin D.
Lentinan is a polysaccharide with an apparent link to block tumor growth, reduce cholesterol levels, and lower blood pressure.
Lentinula edodesmycelium has potential in the prevention and treatment of cancer, high blood pressure, hepatitis, and heart disease.
Eritadenine is believed to reduce cholesterol and fat levels by increasing their removal from the body.
Two new studies showing contradictory results when it comes to omega 3 fatty acids and cardiovascular disease risk.
Study #1
Researchers compared the heart health and exercise capacity of 98 patients randomly divided between a control group receiving a placebo supplement and the test group supplementing 850-882 milligrams of the omega 3 fatty acids DHA and EPA. All study participants were diagnosed with early stage heart failure.
Continue reading ‘Omega 3′s – Do Omega 3′s Really Help Lower Cholesterol and Blood Pressure?’ »
As you work to lower high blood pressure, it’s important to limit the sodium in your diet. Current recommendations are to limit your sodium intake to 2300 mg per day or less. The new 2010 Dietary Guidelines will be released this year and it looks like sodium recommendations are going to be reduced even further to 1500 mg per day for all Americans (not just those with high blood pressure!).
Many studies repeatedly find significant decreases in systolic and/or diastolic blood pressure with a reduction in sodium intake.
Surprising sodium sources
Continue reading ‘Lower High Blood Pressure – 5 Surprising Sodium Sources’ »
A study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research evaluated the impact of resistance training versus aerobic training on arterial blood flow.
Research to date has shown a significantly lower arterial distensibility (AD) after resistance training, but a higher AD after aerobic exercise. Arterial distensibility (AD) is a measure of blood vessel elasticity. For heart health it’s important that blood vessels are able to expand and contract to maintain a consistent healthy blood pressure.
The Study
Continue reading ‘Lower Blood Pressue by Combing Aerobic AND Resistance Training’ »
The typical American diet tends to be low in omega 3 fatty acids, approximately 120 mg DHA/day, which is an omega 3 supplement may be beneficial. Some benefits omega 3’s have been linked to improvement in arrhythmias, blood pressure, lipoprotein(a) levels, arterial inflammation, HDL cholesterol, and endothelial function.
Fish oil is a very common source individuals choose to supplement to boost their intake of omega 3 fatty acids. Tuna, salmon, sardines, herring, and anchovies are common fish used for the production of fish oil supplements. Fish oil tends to have equal levels of EPA and DHA or in some cases may be slightly higher in EPA content.
A New Option
A new option produced by Pharma Marine Group is Calamarine. Calamarine is obtained from calamari, or squid, and contains higher levels of DHA. The company is also able to market Calamarine as “eco-friendly” because squid have a brief life cycle, breed rapidly, and are not endangered. Especially important with concerns regarding over-harvesting of our marine life, which fish oil production may play a part.
Continue reading ‘Here’s another omega 3 option – Calamarine’ »
