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’ »

Back in 2004, researchers conducting an animal study linked glucoraphanin, a compound present in broccoli sprouts, to reduced blood pressure risk, cardiovascular disease, and stroke. The broccoli sprouts were found to increase tissue antioxidant defense mechanisms, lower inflammatory response, and improve cardiovascular health.

This was especially interesting since most research on broccoli has been in connection with anti-cancer properties, which is actually what I want to share today.

More potent broccoli

Continue reading ‘Lower Blood Pressure and Fight Cancer with Broccoli’ »

Quinoa (pronounced KEEN – wah) has become a hot commodity the past few months according to a National Restaurant Association survey.

What is quinoa?

Quinoa is not technically a grain, but the seed of a large plant called Chenoposium quinoa or Goosefoot plant. Quinoa is available in many colors (ivory, pink, red, white, brown, black) and forms (grains, flakes, cereals, pastas).

Nutrient Analysis

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The effectiveness of potassium to lower blood pressure is directly related to sodium. Potassium works to balance out the sodium in your diet. An adequate potassium intake can lower systolic pressure ~4.4 mm Hg and diastolic pressure ~2.5 mm Hg.

If you want to prevent or lower blood pressure it’s very important you balance your intake of sodium and potassium. The more potassium in your diet and the lower the sodium, the better your blood pressure will be.

Sodium Recommendations

The typical American diet contains 3.6 grams of sodium daily. It’s recommended that sodium intake be limited to 2.3 grams or less daily (~1 teaspoon). If you already have high blood pressure you’ll want to restrict your sodium intake even further – less than 1500 mg/day.

How Much Potassium?

Continue reading ‘Lower Blood Pressure with Potassium’ »

Thanksgiving is practically here. Are you thankful for your health this year?

I know when it comes to your health you may be frustrated with problems you’ve faced this past year. It is often easy to dwell on the negatives:

1. A lack of insurance coverage
2. Not able to diagnosis what’s going on
3. Difficulty contacting your physician
4. Not getting answers to your questions
5. Unpleasant medication side effects

Thanksgiving provides a great opportunity to step back and look at the positives. Some of these may apply to you:

1. You’ve had another year with your family.
2. You’ve begun treatment to control your health issues.
3. Surgery was a success.
4. You’ve been able to wean off medication.
5. You’re more active now than you were last year.
6. You’ve lowered your blood pressure.
7. Your cholesterol is within normal.

If in your case the positives don’t outweigh the negatives what can you do in the year ahead to change that around?

Continue reading ‘Are you thankful for your health?’ »

According to a recent telephone survey we are eating even fewer fruits and vegetables than we were 10 years ago.

Why worry so much about fruit/vegetable intake?

Continue reading ‘Are you eating your fruits and vegetables?’ »

Flexibility refers to the ability of your joints to move through a full range of motion. How flexible you are in a particular joint is connected to the muscle length that attaches to that joint and how far that muscle will stretch. Having flexibility in your muscles allows for greater movement around joints. The shorter and less flexible the muscle, the tighter the joint.

What Does Flexibility Have to Do with High Blood Pressure?

Continue reading ‘High Blood Pressure and Flexibility – What do they have to do with each other?’ »

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