Elderly newbie

[Tunisia1]

Hello everyone, I am 73 yrs. old and have enjoyed good health until recently apart from reflux problems...now my blood pressure is high and so is my cholestrol...I have stopped eating sweets and cake which I did daily...I am now eating fish, roasted vegetables and have fruit every day...I keep away from fries and anything spicy...is there anything else I can eat that would help?

[Zest]

Hi Tunisia1 ,

Welcome to the Healthy eating forum.

These links might be of help, they are from NHS choices (which this forum is linked to) and you mentioned that your blood pressure is high and also your cholesterol, so I thought they might be helpful pages for you to look at as a potential starting point:

nhs.uk/livewell/blackhealth...

nhs.uk/Livewell/Healthyhear...

Zest

[Tunisia1 in reply to Zest]

Thanks so much.

[Penel]

Hi Tunisia

It’s good that you are avoiding sweets and cakes, but I’m not sure that you need to avoid spicy food (?)

Check that you aren’t eating any foods containing added sugar, like low fat yoghurts or breakfast cereal. Also a good idea to avoid white bread, pasta or rice and go for higher fibre foods. Make sure you get some regular exercise too.

[Tunisia1 in reply to Penel]

Thank you Penel...the reason I don`t eat anything spicy is if I do I am killed with heartburn and indigestion. I just have toast for breakfast...beans on toast for lunch...chicken or fish for tea with lots of roasted veg. between times I have fruit. I have only started this eating routine 2 weeks ago...so I hope it helps bring my blood pressure and Colestrol down.

[Penel in reply to Tunisia1]

Are you able to,eat any dairy, oats or eggs? There are some tasty recipes in the pinned posts.

[Tunisia1 in reply to Penel]

Yes I can eat those.

[Tunisia1]

Great that I don`t have to worry about my cholesterol...never had my Magnesium levels checked...I will ask the Dr. about that. I was very healthy until I started eating sweets and cake every day, I`m still struggling to stay of them even though it`s been 2 weeks.

[Activity2004 Administrator in reply to Tunisia1]

What had the doctor said about the cakes and sweets?

[Tunisia1 in reply to Activity2004]

He said ...give them up...which I have done which has been very hard. lol

[Activity2004 Administrator in reply to Tunisia1]

Did he say anything about counting carbs?

[Tunisia1 in reply to Activity2004]

No he didn`t.

[Activity2004 Administrator in reply to Tunisia1]

Would you like me to explain how to do this?

[Tunisia1 in reply to Activity2004]

I would really appreciate that...thank you.

[Activity2004 Administrator in reply to Tunisia1]

Okay!😀 I will send you a message with an example of what you can do.

[Activity2004 Administrator in reply to Tunisia1]

Please check your private messages. I have just finished the example for you.😀 Sorry for the delay.

[Tunisia1 in reply to Activity2004]

Thank you so much Activity....that was so helpful.

[Georgie_M]

For high blood pressure, try to reduce your salt intake. It's surprising how much salt there is in the food we buy!

[Tunisia1 in reply to Georgie_M]

I have stopped taking salt...I use lemon juice instead.

[Tunisia1]

Sometimes it`s hard to know what is good for you and what isn`t. I think I will try the Magnesium though.

[Penel in reply to Tunisia1]

You can get magnesium from the food you eat, especially leafy greens like kale and spinach. I’m not keen on taking supplements, your body absorbs things better from real food.

When it comes to what is good for you and what isn’t, I’ve gone back in some areas, to how we used to eat before there was all the ready-made food now on the market. We often have eggs for breakfast, sometimes with bacon. We also eat live culture plain yoghurt and add banana, some nuts and seeds, which are also a good source of magnesium.

[Tunisia1 in reply to Penel]

Are there any other leafy greens apart from cabbage, kale and spinach....I love spinach.

[Penel in reply to Tunisia1]

This is a useful article on magnesium in different foods.

healthline.com/nutrition/10...

[Tunisia1]

So he is saying to take salt...I`m so confused.

[Zest in reply to Tunisia1]

Hi Tunisia1 ,

I think this article is quite helpful regarding the issue of salt in the diet:

healthline.com/nutrition/sa...

I hope it's helpful to you.

Zest

[Tunisia1]

Thank you Dottie.

[Tunisia1]

Thank you Dottie....I will look out for Himalayan salt....I will try the health shop.

[Penel]

Buy organic veg?

[Pulmonaria68]

I should just eat a healthy diet with plenty of vegetables and try and cut out the bad stuff, is cakes and biscuits. Try to cook everything from scratch too. Its all very confusing I know.

[Tunisia1 in reply to Pulmonaria68]

I have stopped eating cake sweets and biscuits....also I am making my food from scratch and including lots of veg....my main meal is either chicken or fish (I just had mackeral) with cabbage sprouts turnip and spinach.....it was lovely.