BLOoD

Top tips for peas, chickpeas,

DO YOU
treating high
soya milk, textured
vegetable protein
KNOW YOUR

PREsSURE
blood pressure:
• Lose weight if •
and tofu;
Avoid meat and
NUMBERS?
necessary. A low-fat dairy – both
veggie diet is a contain
successful aid saturated
to weight loss. Try animal fat and
The V-Plan Diet – cholesterol;
order from • Eat ‘good’ fats –
www.vvf.org.uk/shop essential omega-3
or by calling 0117 970 5190; from flaxseed, hempseed and their
• Reduce salt in your diet. Adults should not oils, walnuts and dark green leafy
exceed 6g of salt per day. Use less in cooking, vegetables help protect your blood vessels;
avoid adding it at the table, avoid salty snacks, • Exercise regularly – set yourself a daily target of
10,000 steps. The VVF pedometer can help you
such as crisps, and canned foods with added
on your way to health and fitness. Order from What is blood pressure?
salt. Try using fresh herbs and spices to flavour Blood pressure describes the pressure in the
your food instead. It won’t be long before your www.vvf.org.uk/shop or call 0117 970 5190;
• Stop smoking – after just one year you’ll have main blood vessel in your arm, which stems from
taste buds adapt; the heart.
• Choose more vegetarian foods – they protect halved your risk of heart disease;
and strengthen your heart and blood vessels: • Reduce stress as much
• Fruits – fresh or frozen, eg bananas, as possible – practice How is it measured?
healthy coping It is measured both when the heart is actually
oranges, apples, pears, grapefruit, mango,
techniques, such as beating (systolic pressure – the first measurement)
strawberries and blueberries;
muscle relaxation and and between beats (the resting rate, or diastolic
• Vegetables – fresh or frozen, eg broccoli,
deep breathing. Getting pressure – the second measurement). It is given as
kale, spinach, carrots, potatoes, tomatoes,
plenty of sleep can two figures, eg 120/80.
squash and corn;
• Wholegrains – eg brown rice, wholewheat help, too;
A device called a
©SELF/Alamy

bread or pasta, unsweetened cereal, millet, • Reduce your alcohol

consumption to no more sphygmomanometer is
barley, buckwheat
than one or two drinks used. An inflatable cuff is
and quinoa;
per day. wrapped around your upper
• Pulses (peas, all
©Brand X Pictures/Alamy

arm. When inflated the cuff

types of beans and Vegetarian & Vegan Foundation, stops the blood flow in the
lentils) – eg no Top Suite, 8 York Court, main blood vessel in your
added salt kidney Wilder Street, Bristol BS2 8QH arm. The nurse then
beans, pinto beans, T 0117 970 5190 E info@vvf.org.uk watches a gauge in the
lentils, black-eyed W www.vvf.org.uk sphygmomanometer and listens through a
stethoscope as the air in the cuff is released. When per cent. There is an inescapable link with meat
Classification Systolic blood Diastolic blood
the first sound of the heartbeat is heard, the systolic and a Californian study as long ago as 1926
pressure pressure
pressure is recorded. When the sound disappears, showed this. The vegetarians’ blood pressure
the diastolic pressure is recorded. Sometimes a Normal Less than 120 and less than 80 was raised by 10 per cent simply by feeding
computerised blood pressure machine is used to Pre- 120-139 or 80-89 them meat – and it happened in only two weeks.
take the readings automatically. hypertension
Stage 1 140-159 or 90-99 Other studies have produced similar results and
Why is blood hypertension a whole range of studies have shown
Stage 2 More than 160 or more than 100 vegetarians to have considerably lower blood
pressure important? hypertension pressure than meat eaters. It is also the finding of
Blood pressure is an
the World Health Organisation and American
indicator of general health.
Dietetic Association.
A rise in blood pressure the risk. Around one in three men and women in the
means your heart is UK have high blood pressure.
Many studies have found that changing to a low-
overworking. This can put
fat vegetarian diet can significantly lower blood
a strain on your circulatory How can I lower my blood pressure? pressure. The switch can also reduce the
system. On the other hand a fall can affect your Blood pressure rises as we get older but some
distressing symptoms associated with
organs (eg kidneys). So it is important your blood people defy this seemingly inevitable development.
hypertension, according
pressure is kept within the normal limits. Regular exercise, maintaining a healthy weight, a
to a Swedish study.
low-fat (especially saturated animal fat) and low-salt
At the end of the
What is a healthy blood pressure? diet, quitting smoking and reducing the amount of
trial period most
A healthy blood pressure is in the range 90/50 to alcohol consumed will all have an effect.
patients had been
120/80. Blood pressure varies throughout the day, able to give up
and your levels of physical exertion and stress Even allowing for all that,
their medication,
cause it to change, too. So blood pressure should the blood pressure of
50 per cent felt
be checked under resting conditions. vegetarians doesn’t
‘much better’, 15
increase in the same way
per cent felt
Single measurements aren’t particularly meaningful. as meat eaters – in fact it
‘better’ and 30
A diagnosis of high blood pressure (hypertension) goes up little with age. It’s
per cent felt
isn’t normally made unless a high reading is not surprising, then, that a
‘completely
measured on three separate occasions – usually vegetarian diet can be
recovered’.
over three months. used to treat high blood
pressure. It is the totality of
What are the dangers of high the vegetarian diet that
works not any specific
blood pressure? ingredient.
High blood pressure increases your risk of
dangerous health problems, such as heart attacks Vegetarians’ lower risk of high blood pressure is
and strokes – the higher the pressure the greater considerable and can be anywhere between 33-50