Well-being Guide
Blood Pressure
Diet, exercise and weight all play vital roles in blood pressure.
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Increase exercise levels
Decrease salt intake
Drink less alcohol
Add more fruit & vegetables into your diet
Lower saturated fat intake
Blood pressure and exercise guide 90/60 you may need to consult a nurse or doctor
before starting a new exercise program.
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90/60-140/90 It is safe to start exercising
140/90-179/99 Check with a doctor and get a program based around gently
introducing you to exercise to help lower blood pressure.
180/100-199/109 Go and speak with your doctor about your blood pressure
immediately
Safe exercises to start with are cycling, brisk walking, tennis, jogging, swimming,
pilates, yoga and dancing. Exercise to avoid for those with high blood pressure and
that are new to exercise are: weight lifting, spinning, squash, sprinting, scuba diving,
sky diving generally intense exercise.
Salt makes your body retain water and the extra water can raise your blood pressure,
adults should eat no more than 6g salt per day however one fried breakfast or one
ready meal can contain almost your daily allowance of salt. Eating too much salt can
also stop some medicines such as diuretics from working. Salt is often hidden within
processed foods such as breads, sauces and salad dressings try to look out for food
labels which will tell you whether salt levels are high, medium or low. Avoid adding
salt to foods, use herbs and spices to flavour foods instead. Try to avoid smoked
meats and fish these are high in salt, check sauces and ketchups which again are
high in salt.
Alcohol affects blood pressure over time and the empty calories add to weight gain,
try to stay within the safe weekly limits 21units for males and 14 units for females.
Aim to eat 7 portions of vegetables per day and 3 portions of fruit where possible,
aim for a rainbow diet by making homemade stir fry’s, soups, curries and chillies.
Salads can also be a good way to create a colourful meal. Fruit and vegetables help
lower blood pressure as they are packed full of vitamins and minerals.
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Eat fruit with breakfast
Snack on vegetable sticks, slices of melon, fruits
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Add as many vegetables to your meals as possible
Try to make smoothies using fruit and vegetables
Salad and cold vegetables make easy and accessible lunches
Dried fruit make great snacks
Make your own soup using fresh and frozen vegetables.
Keeping your saturated fat levels down will help control your weight and blood
pressure. Try to cook homemade foods rather than ready meals or processed foods
this will also keep salt intake down as well as lowering cholesterol. Aim to cut down
or eliminate red meat, butter, palm oil, baked goods, ghee and processed meats.
Polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats however help lower cholesterol and also
can help speed up metabolic rate such foods include olives, nuts, sunflower seeds,
salmon, tuna, sardines, flaxseed and avocados.
Finally staying within a healthy weight zone will help keep blood pressure down, use
BMI as a healthy indicator. Healthy BMI range is between 19-25 you can find this out
on the nhs website by entering your weight and age. Being a healthy weight puts
less strain on your heart and arteries and enables you to live healthier.