Foods To Avoid With High Blood Pressure
Introduction
High blood pressure (HBP) is a major health concern. It’s estimated that over 1 billion people worldwide have high blood pressure, and a third of people with HBP don’t even know they have it because there are no obvious symptoms. There are many factors that increase your risk for developing high blood pressure, including genetics and lifestyle choices such as diet and exercise. But there are also certain foods you should avoid if you have HBP or pre-hypertension (high blood pressure before its symptoms develop).
Fried Chicken
One of the worst foods you can eat if you have high blood pressure is fried chicken. This dish is high in saturated fats and trans fats, which are known to contribute to high blood pressure. Fried chicken also contains a lot of sodium, which can raise your blood pressure further by increasing fluid retention. In addition, fried chicken has a high calorie count and cholesterol content that will increase your overall caloric intake, which can lead to weight gain.
French Fries
French fries are high in sodium, saturated fats and trans fats. They also contain a lot of calories.
Sodium causes your body to retain water, which can lead to high blood pressure or other health issues. Trans fat has been linked to heart disease and other health problems like diabetes and cancer.
Refined Grains
Refined grains, such as white bread and white rice, are not the same as whole grains. They have been stripped of their bran and germ, which are the most nutritious parts of the grain. As a result, refined grains tend to be higher in calories than whole grains and lower in fiber content. They may also be made with white flour instead of whole wheat flour or brown rice instead of black rice (more on that below).
High blood pressure can cause damage to blood vessels and increase your risk for stroke or heart attack—it’s something most people want to avoid! So what foods should you eat if you’re trying to keep your blood pressure at healthy levels? Here are some examples:
Vegetable Oil
Vegetable oil is a major contributor to heart disease and high blood pressure. These oils are high in saturated fats, trans fats, salt, sodium, and sugar. Oils such as corn oil or soybean oil are not healthy substitutes for olive oil because they have similar amounts of saturated fat. Vegetable oils should be avoided at all costs since they contain undesirable ingredients that can lead to increased chances of developing cardiovascular disease or even cancer if consumed regularly.
Fruit Juices
Avoid fruit juices as they are high in sugar, calories and sodium. If you want to drink a glass of orange juice or grapefruit juice, dilute it with water.
In addition to the above tips, make sure to eat a healthy diet and stay active if you want to lower your blood pressure naturally without medication.
Red Meat
The foods you should avoid include red meat. Red meat is high in saturated fat, cholesterol, calories, sodium and protein. In addition to these health-related issues with red meat, they also contain high levels of iron and zinc. Iron can increase your blood pressure by making it harder for your blood to flow through your arteries while zinc keeps you from being able to break down excess cholesterol which leads to plaque buildup in the arteries.
Red meats include beef (both ground and steak cuts), pork (including ham), lamb and goat.
Soda
Soda is a high-sugar, high-calorie beverage that can cause weight gain, contribute to tooth decay and even increase your risk of developing diabetes. Because sodas are so full of sugar, they can also increase your blood pressure if you drink them too often.
The American Heart Association recommends no more than 100 calories per day from added sugars for women and 150 calories for men (this includes juice). If you think that one soda isn’t going to hurt your health or raise your blood pressure then think again! One 12 oz soda contains close to 40 grams of sugar which is 20% more than the recommended daily amount needed by an average adult! It may seem harmless but this habit could eventually lead to serious issues such as diabetes or osteoporosis due to its lack of nutrients compared with other beverages such as water or milk which contain vitamins A&D which help keep our bones strong enough so they can withstand normal everyday activities like walking around at work all day long without feeling any pain whatsoever.”
It’s best to avoid foods high in sodium, saturated fats and trans fats when you have high blood pressure.
The foods you eat every day can have an impact on your blood pressure. It’s important to know what foods are high in sodium and saturated fats, which can increase the risk of heart disease and raise your blood pressure.
Sodium is found in table salt and processed foods, such as breads, frozen dinners and canned soups. Some people don’t realize that most of their daily sodium intake comes from these items rather than from the salt shaker on their dinner table.
Trans fats are also known as partially hydrogenated oils or hydrogenated vegetable oils. They’re made by adding hydrogen molecules to liquid vegetable oils during processing to make them more solid at room temperature (such as margarine). Trans fats increase LDL (bad) cholesterol levels while lowering HDL (good) cholesterol levels—and they may contribute to hardening of the arteries or coronary heart disease over time. You’ll find them listed under “partially hydrogenated vegetable oil” or “vegetable shortening” on ingredient labels of many prepackaged foods—even if they claim to be trans fat-free!
Conclusion
We hope this article has given you some ideas on how to avoid foods high in sodium, saturated fats and trans fats. Try it out; it’s worth a shot!