The most common cause of all the health problems is our negligence towards our diet. An improper diet triggers the health problems. A diet plan plays an important role in keeping you healthy. When it comes to blood pressure, an appropriate diet plan can surely help you bring it to a normal level. Here is a blood pressure diet plan charted out for you, so that you can benefit from it.

Nutrients that help in Reducing High Blood Pressure

Omega-3 Fats

· The alpha-linolenic acid present in Omega-3 fats helps in promoting a healthy blood circulation. Omega-3 fatty acids do not allow the blood platelets to form any sort of clumps in the blood that causes heart attack. Foods rich in Omega-3 fats:-

· Salmon

· Trout

· Tuna fish and Salmon

Garlic

Garlic is an amazing medicine for those suffering from hypertension as it significantly reduces the blood pressure. It has blood purifying and blood thinning properties that make garlic on of the most important diet for everyone who wants to reduce their blood pressure.

Soluble Fiber

One of the key ingredients of a blood pressure diet plan is soluble fibers. This should be included in your diet if you are planning to reduce your blood pressure. Soluble fiber has the ability to lower the blood cholesterol and blood pressure. Foods containing soluble fiber are:

● Oats

● Barley and Rice bran

● Beans and peas

● Citrus fruits

Potassium

Potassium is one of the most important ingredients for your blood pressure diet plan. Consumption of potassium significantly reduces the level of blood pressure. If you really wish to lower your blood pressure increase the consumption of potassium rich foods that includes.

● Avocados

● Pomegranates

● Beets

● Potatoes and Tomatoes

● Quinoa

Magnesium

Magnesium helps in lowering and controlling the blood pressure by broadening the blood vessels, that allows the blood to run faster and freely. The best sources of magnesium are:

● Spinach

● Chocolate

● Avocados

● Pumpkin seeds

● Seeds of sunflowers

● Oysters

● Brazil nuts

● Amaranth

● Barley

● Almonds

● Quinoa

Vitamin C

Vitamin C also helps in widening the blood vessels thereby making it more flexible. Vitamin C also boosts the immune system and nurtures the skin too. Therefore it needs to be included in your diet plan. Rich sources of Vitamin C are as follows:-

● Cabbage

● Tangerines

● Red peppers

● Oranges

● Strawberries

● Kiwi fruits

● Potatoes

Your diet and problem of hypertension will greatly benefit, if you include all the above mentioned nutrients in your daily intake of foods.

There are many people who just love cheese and I am one of them, but did you know it’s probably one of the foods that do more harm than good.

Cheese is made from milk that’s high in saturated fat. So if you’re a cheese lover what could you do to avoid this high intake of saturated fats? The good news is not all cheeses are bad. Here’s how to decide to choose the right cheese by the density and hardness. You can still have your cheese and eat it to.

The harder the cheese, the less in saturated fat. Grated cheese used for sauce for pasta dishes is low in saturated fats.

The fat content of cheeses varies widely, mainly because of the type of milk (e.g., whole, reduced fat, nonfat) and milk product (e.g., cream) used to make cheese. Nonfat cottage cheese contains less than 0.5 g per 4-ounce serving, whereas a serving of Cheddar cheese (1.5 oz.) contains 14 g of fat. A high-fat cheese, such as cream cheese, is always enriched with cream and as such contains a greater proportion of fat than protein. Cheeses such as Cheddar, Brie, Blue, Limburger, Muenster, Gouda, and Swiss are generally made from whole milk and have about the same amount of fat and protein. A low fat cheese has a higher protein-to-fat ratio.

Here’s a list of medium to hard cheeses that are 50% or less in fat naturally

Cheshire
Edam
Pecorino Romano
Munster
Muenster
Gouda

Not many here to list. I would skip buying low fat cheese as they tend to have less taste and a softer texture.

Eating healthy is a change I’m trying to make to my life, not to this season. With that comes a great challenge in what to eat, especially when going out. I cook about 90% of our meals from scratch, no boxed anything. I know what is in our food, I even bake our bread, but there comes a time when I am sick of cooking and I need to go out to eat. There’s something to be said for someone else cooking food for me and serving me! That being said, what do you order and where do you go?

There’s a book out there called “Eat This, Not That”. My mom gave me her copy to look at when I told her that I couldn’t meet her for lunch because I was trying to eat healthier. This book goes over tons of restaurants, giving recommendations on what not to eat and what to eat. An example would be what was touted the “Worst Food in America”. It’s the Outback Steakhouse Aussie Cheese Fries with Ranch Dressing. This tasty morsel has – hold onto your seats - 2,900 calories, 182 g fat and 240 g carbs. OMG, that’s just an appetizer, what is that all about!

The point is that this book also had some good ratings on other restaurants. I chose to go to Chick-fil-a, as they were one of the few restaurants rated an A+. Not one of their sandwiches was over 500 calories. Their best, and what I got, was the Chargrilled Chicken Sandwich. It has 270 calories, 3.5 fat grams, 28 grams of protein, and 33 carbs. Fairly good for a fast food joint. Paired with their substitutable fruit side and a diet coke, it was quite a happy day for all.

Most restaurants have nutritional facts on their websites, so you can do some detective work before you go out. While I don’t go out too often and definitely don’t recommend doing so, it’s good to know that there are choices out there and you can make healthier decisions when out and about!

Many of us always seem to remember to pack clothing, but not healthy food before traveling. You can still eat healthy by making sound choices in your selection. An example of poor eating habits while traveling is eating fast food because it’s available and cheap. You need to know that most fast foods are very high in saturated fats. These fats are hard to digest and will be stored in your body for long periods of time. Stop feeding your fat cells with saturated fat by preparing early.

When you’re on the run and or traveling we all make a conscious effort to pack the things we need for our trip. Have you thought about the fuels you need? I am not talking about your car, but your body. You can easily pack some fruit or veggies to snack on.

What to do to over come the challenge of proper food selection.

1. Prepare food for the next day (Turkey or Tuna sandwiches, fruit, veggies)
2. Select foods that are low in calories
3. Eat at least 5 small meals per day
4. Drink lots of water “Hydration is key to burning calories”

In order for a person to adapt to proper habits based on nutrition you have to make it easy.

The theme here is to prepare at least your first day of travel by preparing a small carry on or travel bag with nutritious foods that are low in saturated fats and carbohydrates.

Carrots are good for you, but are high in carbohydrates go figure. You will have great vision, but your body will need to be more active in order to burn those carbs you just consumed. Try eating celery, broccoli, apples, oranges or bananas. The average fruit listed contains approximately 18 carbs.

Fish in your diet can lead you towards a healthy life. Fishes are low in fat and in calories and at the same time, they are rich is Omega 3, the cholesterol reducing fatty acids. The American Heart Association has recommended at least 2 servings of Fish, every week for a healthy heart.

The question that comes to mind is that, are all fish equally good for you? The answer is no. Large fishes that are predatory in nature can be damaging to the human body as they have high levels of methylmercury. So fishes that are lower in the food chain are better for health.

Salmon is the most cherished of all the fish varieties, delicious to have and easy to cook, its strong flavor has made it a preferred choice of all fishatarians. The Salmon has the highest quantity of Omega 3 fats than any other fish. If you have doubts about eating the farmed salmon fishes you can try canned salmon fishes, the canned fishes are usually wild salmon.

Tuna is a staple at most dinner tables. Its easy availability as canned or fresh meat increased its popularity. Though some varieties of Tune fishes have suspicious mercury levels, one serving a week can be easily consumed without fear. Sardines are also a favorite fish; they are not only high in omega 3 they also have substantial amounts of calcium in them. People are skeptical of the sardines’ canned-in-water, but they are so healthy that give more nutrition than the same amount of canned tuna.

The Tilapia is another favorite of the fishatarians, this fish has a very mild flavor and is very low in fat, but it is full of good protein. Shellfishes like Lobsters, Shrimps, Oysters and Crabs make an interesting addition of the variety of healthy fishes. Lobsters, Shrimps Oysters and Crabs have always been associated with fine food; they are low calorie and low fat and thus are the perfect food to eat to lose weight. They should be eaten without any condiments to get the pleasure of their delicate flavors.

One of the best ways to get a good dose of Omega 3 is Japanese cuisine. The Sushi and Sashimi dishes are the most inspired means to have fish. Sushi is rice, flavored with vinegar served with cooked or raw fish. Sashimi on the other hand is a dish full of uncooked fishes slicked and served with condiments. Some unusual but healthy fishes are used in Sashimi, like the octopus, eel, roe, squid, scallop etc. usually you may not know how to eat them but you have ample choice in Japanese cuisine.

Fishes are a boon to the humankind, at the time when unhealthy food items have taken over the market, a fish based diet has the power to steer you towards a healthy life.