Turkey, Squash, and Pumpkin Pie... helping to reduce Blood Pressure, OH MY!
With Thanksgiving just around the corner, it is a time to consider many things we can be grateful for. One of which is having many recipes that can help us to strengthen our bodies and help to prevent heart disease, and ultimately, stroke. As heart health is a hot topic these days, here are a few tips for choosing wisely at the dinner table, keeping you on track during the big Thanksgiving Day Feast!
Keeping your blood pressure low is very important in stroke prevention. Normal levels are found at 120/80, where high blood pressure would read as 140/90 or above. Fortunately, there are nutritional ways to help you reduce your blood pressure which include limiting your sodium intake and also increasing a different element called potassium.
Besides using fresh vegetables rather than canned as a starting point for lowering sodium, let’s start with the main fare at most tables- the turkey. Turkey is a wonderful protein-rich food that can be enjoyed with less sodium, but still with great taste. While reducing saturated fat is also important, sodium is equally important to monitor; it is what makes SALT, and SALT is an ingredient in cooking that should be reduced to help keep your blood pressure down.
First, try buying an all natural turkey that says on its label that it has not been injected with extra solution which makes the bird look bigger.This is often a solution that includes excess sodium. Do you make your gravy from scratch? If so, when you use a sodium-free vegetable stock for brining, plus the natural low sodium turkey, this will result in a lower sodium gravy. Instead of adding SALT, try experimenting with herbs such as rosemary, thyme, and sage. There are so many flavors from herbs that you may find you don’t need to add any extra table SALT in the end.
How can you increase potassium at Thanksgiving? Well, that butternut squash is one of your best bets, along with those sweet potatoes fresh out of the oven. Though portion control is important here for maintaining a balanced weight, and a balanced weight also contributes to lower blood pressure, that pumpkin pie gets the potassium approval!
With other factors such as limiting overall fat and cholesterol intake, the name of the game is really about substituting ingredients like herbs for SALT and adding healthy potassium rich foods into to your diet.
Have a wonderful meal this Thanksgiving!!
Kristen DeLisio
Nutrition ConsultantMyomo, Inc.National Stroke Foundationhttp://www.stroke.org/site/PageServer?pagename=sem_stayinformed&s_subsrc=SEM_google_grant_Stroke%20Types_Stroke%20Exp_national%20stroke%20association_e_17770550150&utm_source=google&utm_medium=grant&utm_campaign=Stroke%20TypesUSDA (http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Frame/FrameRedirect.asp?main=http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OPPDE/rdad/FRPubs/2010-0012.htm