Foods to eat and ways to keep BP down.

red_five
red_five Posts: 12
edited September 22 in Motivation and Support
I'm just wondering if anyone has any tips on the better kinds of foods to eat and ways to keep blood pressure down. I have PKD and my BP is only high when I'm stressed out, which is quite often. I just got another promotion at work and while I'm really excited about it, I know I'll be working twice as much and I'm already a "high strung" person. I just worry and stress a lot, I try to work on calming down and it helps a little bit. My doctor also put me on 100mg of Zoloft for anxiety to help me as well.

But I'm just wondering if there's anything else I can do. I don't want to aggravate my kidneys from high BP from stress. I'd appreciate any tips or advice...

Replies

  • spcr0428
    spcr0428 Posts: 51
    If you find any, please repost! I'm a teacher so mine goes nuts too!
  • sallyLunn
    sallyLunn Posts: 381
    Perhaps if we ate our young....
  • suzi67
    suzi67 Posts: 162 Member
    I don't have the issue, but just read yesterday that foods high in potassium help regulate BP. There are many sites you can google that show what foods those are, not just bananas! Hope this helps.
  • jdsouthernbelle
    jdsouthernbelle Posts: 274
    #1 = Less Salt!

    Foods that Lower Blood Pressure

    Skimmed Milk: Skimmed milk is one foodstuff that has to come in the low blood pressure diet menu. Skimmed milk contains vitamin D and calcium, both these minerals can help to reduce blood pressure. Now one may argue that the same minerals can be found in many other dairy products. No doubt you will find them in normal milk and other dairy products, but along with these minerals, you will also find a lot of cholesterol and fat! As you must be aware, fat and cholesterol are the enemies of low blood pressure, which is why one cannot include milk and sweets in the diet. But skimmed milk is very low in fat, which is why you can consume it without the fear of calories.

    Vitamin C: According to a research conducted by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, vitamin C can help to lower blood pressure naturally. So do remember to include a lot of fruits and veggies that are rich in calcium. Some of the topmost names are, grapefruit, oranges, raisins, bananas, blackberries, firm tofu, kale, collard greens, and these are some of the common foods to lower blood pressure You can consume big amounts of these fruits and vegetables as they do not have any side effects.

    Dark Chocolate: Now who will have a problem with adding this yummy treat that too for a cause! But wait, now that you know that dark chocolate can lower blood pressure, you shouldn't go on hogging it! Only half and ounce of dark chocolate should be consumed. More amounts of it can increase blood pressure instead of decreasing it. But eating only a piece that contains about 30 calories, will definitely help in lowering high blood pressure, this fact has been medically proved. Chocolate is said to relax the blood vessels thus allowing more blood to flow. Eating only a small amount of dark chocolate will also have no negative effects on your body.

    Chicken: Chicken legs, with skin removed are good for lowering blood pressure. Chicken contains protein and is also rich in collagen. Collagen helps to reduce the production of angiotensin II, which is a stimulant of blood pressure. However avoid eating fried or over-decorated chicken. Do not add extra salt, as far as possible, eat boiled or baked chicken. Turkey without skin can be also be eaten, but do not add excessive salt or oil to it.

    Other Foods: Other foods, fruits and vegetables that lower blood pressure are; oats, tofu, garlic, cucumbers, apples, almonds, avocados, figs, spinach, baked potatoes, plain rice, extra virgin olive oil, fresh fish, etc. Do include all these foods that lower blood pressure naturally to your daily diet, in fact you can make a menu plan with the help of these foods.

    These were some of the best foods that lower blood pressure naturally. Make a point to add all the above mentioned foods to your daily diet to lower high blood pressure. And all these foods that naturally lower blood pressure are tasty, so that shouldn't be a problem! Along with including these foods, also exclude the foods that increase blood pressure.

    By Girija Shinde
    Published: 8/9/2010

    http://www.buzzle.com/articles/foods-that-lower-blood-pressure-naturally.html
  • Carysta
    Carysta Posts: 152 Member
    Well, as someone who struggles with high blood pressure, there are a few things that I've done that helped me out. The first is to limit salt intake as much as you can; it helps with a lot of things including blood pressure. I've switched to unsalted butter and margarine, I use seasonings when I can that don't have salt in them, and I try to avoid pre-packaged foods because they are also loaded with salt. Luncheon meats especially because they contain both salts and preservatives that can increase blood pressure (although I do enjoy my bologna once in a while anyway!!).

    The other thing I do is to try and make time every day for something relaxing, like a short walk or some yoga or even just sitting and reading a good book. There is a lot of stress in everyday life, so finding something that can counter the stress is helpful. It's hard some days to find the time because I know my life is busy and I'm just in customer service, I can't imagine with a more stressful position, but it is worth it in the long run. Another thing that helps me - don't work through your lunch hour. Just don't - make yourself take that time to be away from the desk and the phone. Sometimes it's hard, sometimes I get into the 'just one more thing' mode - but, next thing you know, you haven't eaten lunch and you haven't had time to take a step back and relax. It acutally leaves you less productive in the long run, so being away from your desk for lunch is important. :)

    I hope that this helps out a little bit! Congrats on the promotion, and good luck!
  • JohnMaile
    JohnMaile Posts: 29
    BEETS!! Beet juice will lower your cholesterol...... and of course RAW EGGS, my favorite!! There are compounds in raw eggs and beet juice that lower your blood pressure!! The only way I think someone can actually get beet juice is from simply eating beets, drinking the juice in the can might not be a great idea, but I guess you could see from the can what you're actually drinking. If there's a bunch of salt in it, probably not the best idea! I guess its possible that a health food store might have 'Beet Juice' bottled, but I'm not sure. I suppose you could also buy a juicer and go about it that way. The raw eggs are easy, just crack 'em in a glass, make a weird disgusted face for a second, and drink up, HA! Of course you want to make sure that you're eating eggs that aren't going to make you sick. I've always gone by the saying, 'healthy eggs come from healthy chicken'. So you can go to the Cornucopia Institutes website and actually find a listing of all the eggs in the US, or atleast a lot of them, that are claimed to be healthy and organic. Hopefully, a company that is rated highly sells eggs near you!! Here's their website if you're thining about eating raw eggs.. or you just want some awesome eggs for cooking!!

    http://www.cornucopia.org/organic-egg-scorecard/

    GOOD LUCK!!
  • hkg29
    hkg29 Posts: 2 Member
    Hey, just thought I could help a little, I'm doing a Biomedical Physiology degree so know a bit. High blood pressure is really dangerous because it can lead to all sort of health problems. There are a few really helpful things you can do, not smoke, watch how much alcohol you drink, exercise and watch what you eat. For exercising, doing 30minutes about 5 times a week is recommended. Where your diet is concerned, one of the biggest dangers of high blood pressure is salt. This is because the more salt you eat, the more gets transported into your blood stream. Water travels in the body by following the salt and the increase in volume of blood this causes significantly increase the pressure. About 6g should be the maximum. Saturated fats are also a big one to watch as they are a major risk of atherosclerosis which is a build up of plaque in arteries causing a blockage so the heart has to work harder so the blood can pass by. Saturated fat is found in butter,lard, meat pies, fatty meat, sausages, cakes, biscuits and food containing coconut oil or palm oil. Obesity leaves you at huge risk of high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease and also type II diabetes, so if you are overweight you should aim to lose some. Your BMI should be between 20-25 and you can work it out doing the following calculation:

    (Weigh in kg) / (height in metres x height in metres) = BMI

    You should also make sure you are eating plenty of fruit and veg. Definately exercise does a huge amount for health in ways you wouldn't even think about, especially where the cardiovascular system is concerned.

    Hope this helps!
  • sallyLunn
    sallyLunn Posts: 381
    BEETS!! Beet juice will lower your cholesterol...... and of course RAW EGGS, my favorite!! There are compounds in raw eggs and beet juice that lower your blood pressure!! The only way I think someone can actually get beet juice is from simply eating beets, drinking the juice in the can might not be a great idea, but I guess you could see from the can what you're actually drinking. If there's a bunch of salt in it, probably not the best idea! I guess its possible that a health food store might have 'Beet Juice' bottled, but I'm not sure. I suppose you could also buy a juicer and go about it that way. The raw eggs are easy, just crack 'em in a glass, make a weird disgusted face for a second, and drink up, HA! Of course you want to make sure that you're eating eggs that aren't going to make you sick. I've always gone by the saying, 'healthy eggs come from healthy chicken'. So you can go to the Cornucopia Institutes website and actually find a listing of all the eggs in the US, or atleast a lot of them, that are claimed to be healthy and organic. Hopefully, a company that is rated highly sells eggs near you!! Here's their website if you're thining about eating raw eggs.. or you just want some awesome eggs for cooking!!

    http://www.cornucopia.org/organic-egg-scorecard/

    GOOD LUCK!!

    Gross.
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