As a brief follow-up to my previous post on biomarkers, it would appear that my blood pressure has actually dropped since my last visit to the doctor. Mind you, the first reading was at my gastroenterologist’s office, and was only about 10 points above normal for both systolic and diastolic, which is pretty low compared to how high things can go, but it was also mid-day and I had to endure a pretty stressful drive, because God forbid medical campuses actually have enough parking for their patients. A few weeks later, at my doctor’s office, the reading was a little bit lower, although my appointment was much earlier in the day and the drive was also much shorter. With my home device, which is the exact model used at my gastroenterologist’s office, the reading has often been squarely normal or just barely above normal. So, good news, no?
Now, to be clear up front, it’s possible that this elevated blood pressure has nothing to do with salt. I probably weigh about 10 pounds more than I did last year, and that’s probably a more important factor. However, there seems to be a lot of evidence that salt has an effect, and since salt intake is a lot easier to control than weight, I decided to see if I could make a difference by cutting back on my salt intake. It’s been interesting. I tried making a loaf of bread with no salt, just for the hell of it, but it definitely tastes weird. Moreover, it completely changed the consistency of the dough, which I never would have expected, so, lesson learned. I tried putting less salt in my beef and chicken, though, and I can barely taste the difference, so that might be something I keep doing.
But that being said, many of the sources of added salt in my diet are fairly negligible. A decently-sized bread slice from my homemade bread might equal 10% of daily recommended intake, and that’s really nothing compared to other sources. For example, one tablespoon of ketchup has about 7%, and there are some meals in which I easily consume 4 tablespoons (or more?), which is 28%, in addition to whatever else I’m eating, so yeah, it might be worth reconsidering how much ketchup I use.
Also, my favorite baked beans have 20% per half cup, which is insane. However much goodness is in those cans, it has always bothered me that they cost about $5 each, so perhaps there is some recipe I can find that would allow me to both save money and control the salt input, but it also wouldn’t kill me to eat plain beans, either. As always, it’s more about overall consumption, not one food specifically, but I can’t say I’ve ever felt inclined to eat nothing but baked beans for a meal, so it’s just something to keep an eye on.
It also sounds like salt has less of an impact on blood pressure the lower your blood pressure is. Mine hasn’t been high enough for doctors to care, apparently, but it still made me angry that it was reading higher than last year. After simply paying attention to salt and cutting back in little ways, it seems to have made a difference, but for all I know, those readings may only have been elevated because of the stress of driving (and driving does tend to stress me out). It could be a number of things. But I don’t think it’s a terrible idea to at least pay attention to how much salt you’re eating.
Bottom line is, the readings are lower, consistently, so I just want to keep that up until every reading – assuming the proper technique and conditions – is within the healthy range.
(As for lowering LDL, I don’t yet have a solid strategy. I have cut back on eggs, more out of laziness than anything, but it is kind of nice to switch things up, too. Otherwise, I’ve been cutting back on ice cream ever so slowly, but making good progress. Likely, I’d want to check my levels again in a few months, though insurance isn’t likely to want to pay for another lipids panel. I’d also like to lose about 10 pounds, but I’m having a hard time scaling back how much I eat, notwithstanding the endless debates about weight loss. It’s not even a satiety issue, really, it’s more just eating a little too much and then feeling really full later. I’m realizing my body is super slow to feel full, no matter what I eat, and that could honestly be something that’s been with me from the beginning. It would explain a lot.)