Blood Pressure Treatment
Have your B.P. checked regularly.
If you smoke, STOP.
Reduce alcohol and Coffee.
Lose weight if you need to.
Have your Homocysteine levels checked.
With your doctor’s permission, follow a good exercise programme for a half hour, at least four times weekly. Work up to this gradually
Be sure to get sufficient sleep.
If you are a loud snorer or suffer from sleep Apnoea have it checked in a sleep laboratory
If you are a mouth breather practice breathing in & out only through your nose until you breathe this way all the time except during very vigorous exercise. Gradually learn to breathe with your abdomen (diaphragm) as opposed to your chest muscles.
Use a method of deep relaxation constantly – Abdominal Breathing, Yoga, Tai Chi, Qi Gong etc.
Follow the diet guidelines – Salt must be kept to a minimum. Beware of “hidden salt” in processed foods, biscuits and bread. “Solo” salt is safe to use in small quantities and may even bring down B.P. slightly as it is low in sodium but high in potassium & magnesium.
Blood Pressure Diet.
Follow a strict salt-free diet. Avoid processed meats, cheeses, processed soups, frozen/chilled meals, canned vegetables etc. 80% of your salt consumption is “hidden” in food. If you need to use salt for a while, then use “Solo Salt” which contains more Potassium than Sodium as well as lots of Magnesium. Eventually eliminate all salt from your diet. Read labels carefully and avoid products that have “salt”, “soda”, “sodium” or the symbol “Na” on the label. Be careful with bread/biscuits which can have very high salt levels.
Avoid MSG(monosodium glutamate) – used in many prepared meals and Chinese meals/takeaways. Avoid baking soda; commercially prepared foods; over the counter medicines that contain Ibuprofen(such as Nurofen and Advil); soft drinks; diet soft drinks; foods with preservatives or artificial sweeteners/sugar substitutes; meat tenderisers; softened water and soy sauce. In short “Eat Fresh Food Only” as much as possible..
Eat a high-fibre, unrefined diet especially wholegrains such as oats, brown rice, buckwheat, millet, spelt, amaranth and quinoa. Use wheat products sparingly. Try to have porridge every morning – extremely important.
B-Vitamins and Folic Acid are very important found in whole grains, beans and pulses, citrus fruit and dark green leafy vegetables.
Eat a max of 3 portions of fruit daily and loads of steamed vegetables such as asparagus, aubergines, beans, Beetroot (very important but not pickled), broccoli, cabbage, kale, celery(4 sticks daily), cantaloupe, garlic, green leafy vegetables, lentils, peas, squash, sweet potatoes and berries of all types. Eat nuts and seeds, especially pumpkin seeds.
Include fresh vegetable(not fruit) juices in your diet, especially: beet, carrot, celery, parsley and spinach. It is especially helpful to add Cayenne pepper to the vegetable juices – start with a pinch of mild cayenne as it takes a little getting used to.
Avoid fried foods. Steam, grill or stir-fry using only a little olive oil with some water. For cooking use only ordinary olive oil – extra virgin should never be heated and is better used cold over salads etc.
Drink 1- 1.5 litres of non-chlorinated water daily.
Especially avoid aged cheeses, anchovies, fava beans, pickled herring, sherry, sour cream.