Читать книгу PCOS Diet Book: How you can use the nutritional approach to deal with polycystic ovary syndrome - Theresa Cheung - Страница 55

To reduce your risk of high blood pressure you should ensure that you eat a healthy diet according to the guidelines given in this chapter. A healthy diet can provide your body with all that it needs to reduce your blood pressure. Especially watch your cholesterol level, eat lots of fruit and vegetables, sufficient essential fatty acids and foods high in calcium (such as low-fat yogurt or cheese). Calcium has been shown to be helpful in correcting high blood pressure, so you should try to include some low-fat dairy products in your diet. If you don’t like or have an allergy or intolerance to dairy products, other sources of calcium include white bread, spinach and sesame seeds.

Finally, limit your intake of salt. Watching the amount of salty foods you eat can reduce blood pressure. Salt (sodium chloride) is found naturally in small amounts in many foods, especially manufactured ones, both as a preservative and flavour-enhancer. You can’t avoid salt altogether but you can take steps to reduce your sodium intake.

Bear in mind that many food labels list salt as ‘sodium’ or ‘sodium chloride’. Some foods claim to be ‘reduced salt’ or ‘low salt’ and so on, but this can be confusing when the label talks in terms of sodium. The sodium content of food must be shown, but not all manufacturers and retailers add a salt equivalent. To find out how much salt is in the food, multiply the sodium content figure by 2.5. Aim for less than 5 g of salt a day.

Try to get out of the habit of adding unnecessary salt in cooking. Taste before you add any.

The following foods are very high in salt and should be avoided, if possible:

table/cooking salt

cured and smoked meats

smoked and pickled fish

canned meats

salted butter and margarine/spreads (unless low-salt)

savoury crackers and other snacks

salted nuts

some sweet cookies

baked beans and some canned vegetables (look for those with no added salt or sugar)

olives in brine

sauces, ketchup, brown sauce, soy sauce

stock cubes (look for salt-free or low-salt varieties in healthstores)

canned fish in brine