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Mr. Patel (50-years-old) works in a private company in Ahmedabad. He is a foodie and is fond of licking his fingers after finishing his food. Mr. Patel was diagnosed with hypertension over the past few months. His blood pressure was on the higher side when he consulted a doctor. The doctor prescribed him some medications and also advised him to follow a special diet chart for hypertension.
If your blood pressure is above 140/90, then it is considered hypertension and it is considered severe if the pressure is above 180/120. Sometimes people with high blood pressure have no symptoms. If your blood pressure readings are showing 140/90 or higher constantly over several weeks, then you are certainly hypertensive.
If you are suffering from blood pressure, this high pressure puts an excess strain on your heart and blood vessels. As a result, you will become more susceptible to a heart attack or stroke. Too much high blood pressure may damage your heart and kidney and is also linked to some forms of dementia. People may get blood pressure without any particular reason.
How to Control High Blood Pressure?
Though medications are effective in controlling your blood pressure, your doctor will prescribe a blood pressure diet chart to minimize your pressure. Your doctor will recommend starting the DASH (dietary approaches to stop hypertension) to improve your condition. The diet is simple and you can easily follow it.
- Consume more fruits, vegetables, and low-fat dairy foods
- Discard those food items that are high in saturated, cholesterol, and trans fats
- Consume whole-grain foods, fish, poultry, and nuts
- Restrict sodium, sweets, sugary drinks, and red meat consumption
Several medical studies have proved that people, who followed the DASH diet, reduced their blood pressure within 2 weeks.
Initiate the Dash Diet
To follow a DASH diet, you need to eat a certain number of servings daily from multifarious food groups. Based on how many calories you need per day, the number of servings may vary. Start with a base diet and then, you can change it gradually.
First, you can restrict yourself to 2,400 milligrams of sodium per day (about 1 teaspoon). Once you have adjusted to this amount, then you can cut down to 1,500 milligrams of sodium per day (about 2/3 teaspoon). These amounts include all sodium you consume in a day including sodium in foods and what you are adding while cooking.
8 Tips for Dash Diet
- Consume more green and leafy vegetables at lunch and dinner.
- Consume a bowl of fruit in your meals or you can add a serving of fruit as a snack. Canned and dried fruits are convenient and healthy, but check carefully that they don’t come up with added sugar
- Use only half a serving of butter, margarine, or salad dressing. Always prefer low-fat or fat-free condiments.
- Drink low-fat or skim dairy products any time instead of using full-fat or cream.
- Restrict meat to 6 ounces a day. Prepare some vegetarian meals.
- Incorporate more vegetables and dry beans into your diet.
- Don’t eat chips or sweets, rather you can take unsalted pretzels or nuts, raisins, low-fat and fat-free yogurt, frozen yogurt, unsalted plain popcorn with no butter, and raw vegetables.
- Check food products before consuming them and choose those items that are lower in sodium.
Diet Chart for High Blood Pressure Patients
| Meal | Duration | Types of Food |
| 1 | Early Morning | Take Coriander/Jeera Water with Soaked and Peeled Almonds in the early morning |
| 2 | Breakfast | Wheat (50%) + Wheat Bran stuffed roti with seasonal veg + curd without salt (can also add roasted jeera or dried mint leaves) or Mint Chutney |
| 3 | Mid Morning Snack | Youn can drink Coconut Water |
| 4 | Lunch | Brown bread vegetable sandwich/wheat (50%) + wheat bran (50%) roti with seasonal veg + curd (optional) |
| 5 | Evening Drink | You can take Kacchi lassi (80% water and 20% milk)/Peppermint Tea/Milk tea without Sugar/Hibiscus tea or any other flower tea in evening drink to control high blood pressure |
| 6 | Evening Snack | You can take any Any fruit or salad (no salt, can add lemon) |
| 7 | Dinner | You can take Bran flakes chaat/Cooked vegetables bowl/Mix veg raita/Wheat bran flakes in milk or curd in the dinner |
| 8 | Late Evening Snack | You can take Chamomile Tea or Hot Water or Hot Lemon Water in the late evening sanck as per your choice |
Dash Diet for High Blood Pressure Patients
The DASH diet suggests getting:
- Grains: 7-8 daily servings
- Vegetables: 4-5 daily servings
- Fruits: 4-5 daily servings
- Low-fat or fat-free dairy products: 2-3 daily servings
- Meat, poultry, and fish: 2 or fewer daily servings
- Nuts, seeds, and dry beans: 4-5 servings per week
- Fats and oils: 2-3 daily servings
- Sweets: restrict less than 5 servings per week
8 Best Foods That Help Lower Blood Pressure
- Banana: These easy-available fruits aren’t only sweet, but they are low in sodium. These fruits are also rich in potassium which minimizes blood pressure.
- Spinach: This green leafy vegetable is low in calories, high in fiber, and flooded with essential nutrients like potassium, folate, magnesium, etc. that minimize the blood pressure levels.
- Celery:Â Celery stalks reduce high blood pressure. This possesses phytochemicals known as phthalides that diminish the muscle tissue in the artery walls. This improves blood flow and minimizes blood pressure.
- Oatmeal: Oatmeal is very rich in fiber and thus, it helps your body to maintain wholesome blood pressure. Oatmeal minimizes both your systolic and diastolic pressure.
- Avocado:Â Avocado contains oleic acid that reduces high blood pressure and cholesterol levels.
- Watermelon: This possesses an amino acid called L-citrulline that is capable of reducing your blood pressure.
- Beetroot: This crimson root vegetable contains nitrates that relax your blood vessels and increase blood flow.
- Oranges: This is a powerhouse fruit for vitamin C. This fruit minimizes your blood pressure.
3 Foods to Avoid in High Blood Pressure (Hypertension)
You need to restrict your salt intake if you have high blood pressure. Let’s take a look at what other ingredients you should restrict if you have high BP are given below:-
- Sugar: Sugar has no nutritional value yet it adds calories to your daily food intake. If you have blood pressure, you should be very careful regarding your sugar consumption. The American Heart Association recommends adult women not to intake sugar above 6 teaspoons (20 grams) a day and adult men 9 teaspoons, or 36 grams.
- Nitrates: Sodium nitrate is primarily used as preservatives in salty, processed meats like bacon and others. All these ingredients will enhance your risk of heart disease and cancer. So, consume lean, fresh meats and seafood over-processed items.
- Trans Fat: Trans fats are very dangerous for you if you have high blood pressure. Processed food items like crackers, chips, and cookies should be discarded as much as possible.
The Bottom Line
Though blood pressure or hypertension is very common among people (irrespective of their gender), it can be dangerous for your health if you don’t pay attention to it. Along with medications, you need to follow a high blood pressure food chart to manage your condition. Talk to a dietician who will help you with what you should consume when you have higher blood pressure.
