2019-05-01_Healthy_Food_Guide_UK

type2 diabetes,obesityandhypertension.Sara

advisesaimingforbetweensevenand nine hours

a nightforgeneralgoodhealth.

Manystudieshavelinkedstresswithillhealth,

butthespecificlinkbetweenjob-relatedstress

andanincreasedriskofheartdiseaseandstrokeis

becomingmorewidelyrecognised.TheBNFreport

suggeststhatstressactivatesspecificregionsofthe

brainthatleadtoanincreaseinheartrateandblood

pressure,whichcanaffectbloodvesselwallsand

damagethefunctioningofthebloodvessellining.

Lookintorelaxationtechniquessuchasmeditation

orbreathing-focusedyogatohelpmanagestress.

Theimportanceofa healthcheck

If you’reaged 40 to75,askyourGPfora freeNHS

HealthChecktomeasureyourbloodpressure,

cholesterolandbloodglucoselevels– allfactors

that indicate your heart disease and stroke risk.

Health

MAY 2019HEALTHY FOOD GUIDE 21

CASESTUDY

❛I’meatingoatsandnutsto

bring my cholesterol down❜

StuartWhomsley,50,a clinical

psychologist,madechanges

aftera warningfromhisGP.

Myroutinecheck-uprevealedI

hadhighcholesterol,andmyGP

wassuggestingI goonstatins,

thecholesterol-loweringdrugs.AsI wasalready

onmedicationforhighbloodpressureI was

reluctanttotakemorepills,andheagreed I could

trymakingchangestomydietfirst.

IcutdownontheamountofsaturatedfatI was

eating– particularlyindairyproductssuchas

cheeseandcakes.Instead,I’llhaveporridgeoats

withoatmilk,whichI topwitha handfulofmixed

nuts,includingalmonds.I’vealsoswitchedtoa

cholesterol-lowering spread and make sure I get

my five-a-day.

Addingextraactivity

Ontopofthesedietarychanges,I’vemadethe

efforttotakemore exercise byrunningthree

timesa week.It’sworkingslowlybutsurely– I’ve

lost4infrommywaistanddroppeda coupleof

stone,whichshouldhopefullylowermyriskof

developingtype2 diabetes.Mycholesterolhas

comedownfrom 9.2to 8.3mmol/L andmy

triglyceridelevels havealsofallen. I’mstilla work

inprogressandhaveanother4sttolose,butI’m

headingintherightdirectionandamon target

to bring down my risk factors for a heart attack.

is thebiggestsourceofsaltinourUKdiet,hadfallen
byabout25%.It’sbeena successfulpolicyandmany
countrieshavecopiedit,butprogresshasslowedin
recentyears.Grahambelievesthetime has come for
thegovernmenttostepinagain.

Don’tforgetthemineralbenefits
Mineralssuchascalcium,magnesiumandpotassium
canhavepositiveeffectsonotherriskfactors.The
BNF’sSaraStannersays:‘Eatinga varieddietwill
helpensureyougettheessentialmineralsyouneed;
potassiumis foundinbananas,potatoesandfish,
magnesiumis inlentilsandwholegrains,and
calciumindairyfoodsandsomegreen leafy veg.’

Trimyourwaistline
TheBNF’sTaskForcealsohighlightsthatit’snotjust
excessweightthatincreasesyourriskofheart
diseaseandstroke,butwhereyoucarryit.Excessfat
cellsaroundthestomachsecretea numberof
substancesthatcancontributetoanincreasedrisk.
‘RegardlessofyourheightorBMI,yourshouldtryto
loseweightif yourwaistis morethan94cm(37in) for
menand80cm(31.5in)forwomen,’says Sara.

Thesleepandstresslink
Poor-qualityandinterruptedsleepmayalsobe
linked to an increased risk of heart disease, stroke,

7

out of

10

people

survive

a heart

attack

today,

whereas

7 outof 10

attacks

werefatal

inthe

1960s