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Using Nutrition to Lower
Blood Pressure...
People of wonder:
- "Is there a diet that helps lower hypertension"?
- "Is there food that helps lower blood pressure"?
- "Are there diets for high cholesterol and high blood pressure"?
And the answer is, yes; diet, nutrition and specific foods all
have been shown to have an effect on blood pressure. Improving
your diet and the foods you eat can help substantially in lowering
blood pressure. Let's look at a few foods that are known to
have an effect on hypertension and blood pressure.
- coffee
- green tea
- salt
- garlic
Can you guess the effect of each of these on hypertension and blood pressure?
Coffee has been shown to raise blood pressure an average of
10 points systolic while green tea is tricky, it is recommended
for it's anti-oxident properites it also contains caffeine so
use with caution. Salt intake is known to raise blood pressure
(through increased fluid retention) so adding salt to food should
be reduced and garlic has been reported to help lower blood
pressure.
Best Diets for Lowering Blood Pressure
The DASH Eating Plan has been developed specifically to help
lower blood pressure through dietary changes. The DASH Eating Plan recommends gradually increasing the amounts of fruits, vegetables, beens, seeds, nuts, low-fat dairy and whole grains to the diet. Several studies have demonstrated improved blood pressure through implementing the DASH recommendations. You can download a copy of the DASH Eating Plan free from the National Institutes of Health
Several other doctors specializing in nutrition have also demonstrated significant reductions
in blood pressure through dietary changes as well. The diets recommended
by these doctors (Joel
Furhman, Dean Ornish,
John McDougall)
are quite similar, differing in only small ways from each
other and also similar to the DASH Eating Plan.
These diets are predominently low in animal protein,
low in fat, low in refined sugars and high in fruits, vegetables,
legumes and grains. When Drs. Pritikin and McDougall first
started writing about the phenomenon of lowering blood pressure
through diet in the 1980's the chief benefit was thought to
be lower cholesterol for better cardiac health. Subsequent
research explained by Dr. Furhman seems to indicate that there
is also a significant benefit just from having a diet predominently
high in fruits and vegetables. A recent study has also shown reductions in blood pressure from cholocate, which is rich in flavanols, a micro-nutrient.
The excellent nutrition provided
by the wide variety of phytochemicals and micro-nutrients
contained in a diet consisting of predominently fruits and
vegetables (including a small amount of grains and beans)
helps recovery from many lifestyle diseases, including obesity
and hypertension.
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