Can hypertensive patients eat vegetables? Dr. Zhang’s answer is: not only can they eat, but they should eat more. Because vegetables have many benefits for blood pressure control, today let’s talk about this issue.
Blood pressure is the pressure generated in the arteries when the heart contracts and relaxes. Usually, when measured, we get two values: the higher value is the pressure in the arteries when the heart contracts, and the lower value is the pressure in the arteries when the heart relaxes. Whether it’s systolic pressure or diastolic pressure, any value above the normal range is considered hypertension.
Hypertension has a high incidence rate of around 20% in our country, which greatly affects the health of our citizens. With age, the incidence of hypertension tends to increase gradually. What are the harms of hypertension to our bodies?
Adverse effects of hypertension on the heart: Prolonged high blood pressure requires the heart to increase heart rate and strengthen myocardial contraction to meet the body’s needs. Over time, this can lead to myocardial hypertrophy, requiring more nutrients. However, hypertension can also lead to coronary artery hardening, reducing blood supply to the heart. It’s like increasing the workload without increasing supply, but rather reducing it. Over time, this can lead to coronary heart disease, angina pectoris, heart failure, atrial fibrillation, and in severe cases, even heart attacks endangering life.
Adverse effects of hypertension on the kidneys: Prolonged high blood pressure causes degeneration of the renal glomeruli, reduced blood supply to the kidneys, secondary renal damage, decreased kidney function, leading to chronic kidney failure. Decreased kidney function further exacerbates hypertension, forming a vicious cycle.
Adverse effects of hypertension on the brain: Prolonged high blood pressure can cause hardening of the brain’s blood supply arteries, plaque formation, reduced blood supply, leading to stroke. Sudden high and low blood pressure can cause intracranial artery rupture, leading to brain hemorrhage, which can be life-threatening if the bleeding is severe.
Adverse effects of hypertension on the eyes: Continued high blood pressure can cause early spasms in the small arteries of the eyes, gradual hardening, and in severe spikes, even retinal hemorrhages. Adverse effects of hypertension on systemic arteries: Chronic hypertension leads to arteriosclerosis, gradually reducing blood supply to corresponding tissues and organs, leading to complications. In severe cases, aortic dissection can occur, posing a life-threatening risk if ruptured.
The harm of hypertension is enormous, and if not controlled, it can significantly impact our normal lives. The treatment of hypertension involves both lifestyle management and medication. Dietary management in lifestyle control is particularly important and requires attention to the following points.
Low-salt diet: Excessive salt intake is one of the causes of hypertension. Salt consumption in northern China is significantly higher than in the south, leading to a much higher incidence of hypertension in northern China. In daily life, salt intake must be strictly controlled. An average person shouldn’t exceed 6 grams per day, and hypertensive patients are advised to stay around 3 grams. To give an idea, 6 grams of salt is roughly equivalent to the amount that can fit in a bottle cap.
Low-sugar, low-fat diet: Due to evolutionary reasons, we naturally prefer foods rich in sugar and fats. Despite the appealing nature of these foods, excessive intake that the body can’t expend will convert into fat, leading to obesity, increased cardiac workload, and further elevation of blood pressure. Moreover, these types of foods can trigger basic diseases like diabetes, hyperlipidemia, which together with hypertension, accelerate atherosclerosis progression and the appearance of complications.
Increase intake of coarse grains: Coarse grains have low sugar content and are rich in dietary fiber, providing a sense of fullness, accelerating intestinal motility, promoting food discharge, and reducing calorie absorption. Moderate intake of meat and eggs: Hypertensive patients can consume lean meat moderately. The controversy over egg yolk being high in cholesterol doesn’t hold as one egg contains around 150mg cholesterol, well below the daily requirement limit, so it’s fine for hypertensive individuals to consume 1-2 eggs daily.
Increase intake of vegetables and fruits: Vegetables and fruits are rich in dietary fiber, vitamin C, potassium, magnesium, calcium, and other trace elements. Vitamin C benefits heart metabolism, promotes cholesterol excretion, improves blood circulation; magnesium ions dilate blood vessels, reducing blood pressure; calcium ions increase blood vessel elasticity and toughness; potassium ions facilitate cholesterol excretion, increase blood vessel elasticity, improve myocardial contraction, and have a diuretic effect. These actions collectively help alleviate hypertension symptoms.
From this perspective, hypertensive individuals should not only maintain but also increase their vegetable intake, aiming for around 500 grams daily. Variety in vegetable selection is crucial to maintain nutritional balance. Daily choices should include 1-2 types of deep green vegetables for higher micronutrient content and nutritional value.
For cooking, steaming, boiling, and stewing should be the primary methods, while frying and sautéing should be minimized. Use plant oils mainly as they are rich in unsaturated fatty acids, offering numerous benefits to the body. Avoid animal fats, which are high in saturated fats, leading to elevated cholesterol and triglycerides. Additionally, control trans-fat intake; foods rich in trans fats include instant noodles, potato chips, fries, ice cream, bubble tea, coffee, etc.
Hypertensive individuals shouldn’t rely solely on dietary adjustments but also need to address various aspects of life, including weight loss, quitting smoking, alcohol, avoiding staying up late, engaging in regular exercise, managing stress and anxiety, and taking antihypertensive drugs if needed. Most patients require lifelong medication.
Use of antihypertensive drugs should be guided by a professional doctor, taken regularly. Even if blood pressure normalizes, medication adjustment or discontinuation should only be done under medical supervision. Self-adjusting medications is not recommended to prevent blood pressure fluctuations and complications.
For hypertensive people, increasing vegetable intake is not just about quantity but also about increasing dietary fiber, vitamin C, and various minerals. This is essential for better hypertension control. Hypertension is a complex condition that requires attention to many details in life; negligence can lead to complications.
This discussion on whether hypertensive individuals should eat more vegetables comes to an end. If you agree with my viewpoint, feel free to like, comment, and share. Creating content is not easy, and I appreciate your support. If you have other opinions or questions, please leave them in the comments; good questions are a source of inspiration for me. I am Dr. Zhang Wei, a supernatural doctor – until next time.
References
[1] WILLIAMS B, MANCIA G, SPIERING W, et al. 2018 ESC/ESH Guidelines for the management of arterial hypertension: The Task Force for the management of arterial hypertension of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) and the European Society of Hypertension (ESH)[J]. J Hypertens, 2018, 36(10): 1953-2041.
