High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is a health condition that affects many people around the world.
It increases the risk of serious problems like heart disease and stroke.
One of the most important ways to manage blood pressure is through your diet, and the types of fat you eat play a big role.
Some fats can make high blood pressure worse. One of the worst types is trans fats. These are man-made fats that are added to processed foods like baked goods, chips, and some types of margarine to make them last longer and taste better.
But trans fats are very unhealthy. They raise your bad cholesterol (LDL) and lower your good cholesterol (HDL). This can clog your arteries and raise your blood pressure.
A major study in the New England Journal of Medicine showed that cutting trans fats from your diet can lower your blood pressure and reduce your risk of heart disease. To avoid trans fats, check food labels and avoid products with “partially hydrogenated oils”—that’s another name for trans fats.
Saturated fats are another type of fat to limit. These are found in fatty meats, butter, cheese, cream, and some oils like coconut and palm oil. Eating too much saturated fat can raise your bad cholesterol and lead to higher blood pressure.
The American Heart Association says that people with high blood pressure should keep saturated fat to less than 6% of their daily calories. For someone eating 2,000 calories a day, that’s about 13 grams or less of saturated fat.
Research in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology supports this advice. It shows that eating less saturated fat can help lower blood pressure. So it’s a good idea to swap out butter and fatty meats for healthier options.
Instead of eating harmful fats, focus on healthy fats. These are called unsaturated fats, and they are found in foods like olive oil, nuts, seeds, avocados, and fatty fish such as salmon and sardines. These fats can lower your bad cholesterol and help your heart.
A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that replacing saturated fats with unsaturated fats helped people lower their blood pressure.
There’s another type of fat to think about—omega-6 fatty acids. These fats are needed in small amounts, but many people eat too much of them. Omega-6 fats are found in oils like corn, soybean, and sunflower oil, which are common in processed and fried foods.
If you eat too much omega-6 and not enough omega-3 (found in fish, flaxseeds, and walnuts), it can cause inflammation and may raise blood pressure. Research in the Journal of Hypertension suggests that keeping a healthy balance between omega-6 and omega-3 fats can help manage blood pressure.
To protect your heart and lower your blood pressure, it’s best to follow a healthy eating plan like the DASH diet. DASH stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. This diet includes plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean meats, and low-fat dairy. It also limits salt, sugar, and unhealthy fats.
A study in the New England Journal of Medicine found that people who followed the DASH diet saw big improvements in both their top and bottom blood pressure numbers.
In short, to manage high blood pressure, avoid trans fats and eat less saturated fat. Choose healthy unsaturated fats instead. Keep a good balance between omega-6 and omega-3 fats. And follow a heart-friendly eating plan like the DASH diet. These steps can help you take control of your blood pressure and improve your overall health.
If you care about blood pressure, please read studies that timing matters when taking high blood pressure pills and 1 in 5 people with high blood pressure taking a drug worsen the disease.
For more about blood pressure, please read studies that new research challenges conventional blood pressure guidelines and scientists make a big breakthrough in high blood pressure treatment.
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