Should I see a nutritionist?

Can you open your diary to see what you are eating, this way we can find out what foods could be causing this and could give you tips on what to eat to lower sodium and sugar.

I will also add that processed food tend to be high in sodium. Confectioneries will also contain a lot of sugar, along with fruit, but fruit contains a lot of healthy vitamins and minerals, so don't eliminate fruit.

seeing a nutritionist will help.

My husband had high bloodpressure - in order to avoid the sodium in the average american diet we had to stop buying prepared foods and make pretty much everything from scratch using whole foods and adding no salt (of course) and when we do buy anything prepared we read the labels to find the low-sodium alternative. If you eat whole foods you won't have issues going over your sodium.

it would be good to see your diary and see what your are eating to make your sodium and sugar intakes so high! I didn't see a nutrionist as I got advice and looked into what I was eating and stopped eating it or reduced my intake a bit. If you have health insurance it should just be your copay i pay $10 for each appt even if its a specialist.

Although I haven't been to a nutritionist for that same reason, I think that it helped a lot. Very informative and this way you can find out straight the answer instead of reading about myths and rumors, etc. I don't know how much it costs I was covered under insurance . I can't see your diary, but like another poster said, you're probably eating too much processed foods. Try eating fresh foods. Remember: food that can go bad is good for you, food that can't go bad, isn't. I would recommend seeing a nutritionist regardless, though.

Hey Kate! You live in the same town as my daughter!

You will do very well to buy your foods raw and cook them yourself. Don't buy frozen meals, prepared meals, or fast food. There is a whole recipe forum here that gives some marvelous, fast, easy recipes to follow to help you eat healthy without taking in all that sodium.

Seeing a nutritionist is NEVER a bad thing - unless the nutritionist is a fake or has something to sell.

Have fun! :flowerforyou:

don't waste your money on a nutritionist,


There is a thing about nutritionists. Its like claiming to be a 'scientician'. A person who is a professional expert in human diet is called a dietician, and it is illegal to call yourself one unless you have a recognised qualification and actually know what you are doing. However 'nutritionist' doesnt mean anything, so anyone can say they are one. If ever you meet a nutritionist, ask why they arent a dietician.

I am going to call myself a nutritionist and you can send me money to tell you to eat more fibre, more veg and drink more water, cut down on bad fats, sat and sugar...

that will be a large amount of money please.....

Why not? No matter the cost, think of it as an investment in your health and future. Also, find out what you should be doing for activity as exercise can be beneficial too. As others have already said, you need to change up your eating habits in irder to avoid the sodium and you need to start spending more time shopping to find the lowest sodium option for those foods that are hard to avoid having processed like bread. There is hope...my gym buddy has recently been approved to lower her bp med dose due to eating better and being consistently active! Good luck to you!

I am 23 years old and I was just told that even though I eat a mostly healthy diet and I work out every day I still have high blood pressure. It runs in both sides of my family. Both my parents have it. I don't really know what to change in my diet to lessen my salt intake with out reducing calories. I already have trouble reaching the 1200 calories I am supposed to eat a day. I always seem to go over my daily limits for sodium and sugar even though I try not to. Has anyone seen a nutritionist? Do they really help? Anyone have any idea how much it would cost to see one? Any suggestions or ideas will help. Thank you!

I would do some research. Most nutritionist are stuck in the dark ages in regards to nutrition. One big red flag is if they say you must eat six meals a day...

Good luck!

Cheese, soup, deli meat, and anything like dressing or sauce that comes from a can or jar will have a lot of sodium. Feel free to stalk my diary I tend to not each much sodium. It would be a wonderful experiment for you to see if reducing these items in your diet will help you. I agree that making your own from scratch will help a lot. It's easy to make your own salad dressing for example. Also just grill or cook a bunch of chicken or turkey at the beginning of the week and season as you like. I guarantee it will have a lot less sodium even if you add some salt yourself-even just a tiny but if salt can impart a lot of flavor. Right now your taste buds are used to a lot of salt but that will change. Meanwhile herbs and spices are great for flavor and most contain no sodium.

GOOD LUCK!

One of your recurring culprits is deli meat. Instead of buying a package of sliced meat, buy meat and cook it. I buy thin sliced chicken and separate it into 3 ounce portions. I freeze some and put some in the fridge. I can then make different types of chicken depending on what I'm eating (different spice mixtures). It cooks up in 5 minutes on the stove and tastes far better than the packaged deli meats.

I noticed that the cheese you eat is double the sodium mine has look into the kind that have less sodium in it mine has 70cals a slice and 90 sodium. yours is 240 in sodium 90cals. I would cook my own chicken breasts too thats what I do and I cook them pretty healthy try pepper, and italian seasoning with a bit of garlic salt and grill them! eating the canned chicken and tuna is high in sodium! the Great Value - Original Diced Tomatoes With Green Chilies had 380mg of sodium can you just dice up your own tomatos it will be fresh and lessss sodium. try to eat more healthy fresh stuff than processed foods. for dinner i will have chicken breast and carrots and broccoli. or chicken breast with chopped up bell peppers so i try to keep it as fresh as i can. i would change your deli meat or eat less of that kind because its pretty high up there too. what i do with my sandwiches is i have done away with the mayo and just use mustard that will help you too cutting out that mayo sodium.

you also eat this bread Sara Lee - 100% Whole Wheat Soft & Smooth No High Fructose Corn Syrup, 2 slice its 140 cals and 210 sodium. my bread is Safeway Kitchens - 100% Whole Wheat Bread 100 calories for two slices and 160 sodium.

snacks try eating more fruits or veggies or nuts. Emerald - Natural Almonds (100 Calorie Pack), they have 0 sodium and are super healthy besides it has 4grams of carbs. I noticed that you eat Nutragrain - Strawberry Cereal Bar, 1 bar 120 cals 24 grams of carbs 125 in sodium.

so big tip would be when you go grocery shopping get your bread and compare them. get your deli meats and compare them and i have since developed a system and i know what option is more healthier.

The problem with salt is that its in almost everything. Any type of natural fruit or vegetable which is not canned or frozen will have almost 0 salt, additionally some lean meats have almost no salt but many can have alot you need to look at the package. To be honest I don't feel a nutritionist would be beneficial in your case because it is pretty much common sense as to what has salt or not you just have to be aggressive about how you go about it. Just remember two things: first don't buy anything that is prepackaged and second it is impossible to eliminate salt with an American diet but you can drastically reduce it. Most likely you will still have high blood pressure but everyone has some type of health issue. just keep doing what your doing.