Healthy Eating For Healthy Blood Pressure

Main Category: Nutrition / Diet
Also Included In: Hypertension
Article Date: 16 May 2008 - 3:00 PDT

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Dietitians of Canada is one of 12 organizations joining forces on World Hypertension Day (WHD), May 17, 2008 to shine the spotlight on the importance of a healthy blood pressure. High blood pressure is the number one risk factor for stroke and heart disease, but because there are no obvious symptoms, it is often called the "silent killer." This year's WHD Theme - Measure Your Blood Pressure at Home - is one of several positive actions Canadians can take to protect their health.

"There are many positive lifestyle steps that Canadians can take to help keep their blood pressure within a healthy range, including making healthy food choices, being active, limiting alcohol and maintaining a healthy weight," says Debra Reid, PhD and registered dietitian. Some healthy eating actions include:

1. Plan a healthy eating pattern using Eating Well with Canada's Food Guide with emphasis on fruits, vegetables, lower fat milk products and fibre-rich foods.

2. Use the following strategies to reduce sodium intake to 2300 mg (100 mmol) or less per day [a teaspoon of salt contains approximately 2300 mg of sodium]:

- Buy fresh, unprocessed foods
- Read the Nutrition Facts panel on food labels for sodium content; choose those with the lowest % Daily Value (% DV)
- Eat fewer restaurant and fast food meals
- Limit use of condiments and salted, pickled, cured and "instant" foods
- Enjoy more home-cooked meals using menu plans and quick recipes.

3. Achieve and maintain a healthy weight

- A healthy body mass index (BMI) is 18-25. A BMI greater than or equal to 25 and/or waist circumference greater than or equal to 102 cm for men and 88 cm for women is considered high risk

4. Limit alcohol intake

- Maximum of 2 servings per day with a weekly limit of 9 servings for women and 14 servings for men.

Take advantage of the many tools and resources developed by registered dietitians to help you achieve and maintain a healthy blood pressure.

- Healthy Eating is in Store for You is a one-stop website to learn how to read food labels, including fact sheets, FAQs and a virtual grocery store.

- EATracker provides personalized feedback to balance your intake of energy and essential nutrients with physical activity

- Simply Great Food - contains over 250 tasty, quick and easy recipes each with a nutrition profile, including sodium content.

- Dial-a-Dietitian website - provides many tips for reducing sodium at home and away

- Eat Right Ontario website - for guidance on low sodium eating.

- Lower Salt to Slow Rise in Blood Pressure - a document for dietitians and health professionals that discusses the prevalence of hypertension and the relationship of sodium intake and blood pressure. It also provides a call to action for dietitians to help consumers 'halt the salt' and provides nutrition-related practice points for the management of blood pressure including several new teaching tools.

Dietitians of Canada represents almost 6,000 dietitians across Canada and is committed to promoting the health and well-being of consumers through food and nutrition. For trusted information on nutrition and healthy eating, to register to receive DC's regular nutrition updates, or to find a dietitian near you for individual counseling, visit Dietitians of Canada award-winning website at http://www.dietitians.ca.

Dietitians of Canada