High Blood Pressure Diet: Foods to Limit & Avoid

Many things contribute to high blood pressure. Contributors to blood pressure include exercise, weight, heredity and diet. Diet can influence blood pressure in positive and negative ways.

Alcohol

• Avoid alcohol if you have high blood pressure. If you must drink alcohol, limit it to only one drink a day if you're a women and two drinks a day if you're a man.

High-Sodium Foods

• Remove high-sodium foods from your diet. People with high blood pressure should limit sodium intake to less than 1,500 mg a day. Eat less processed foods. Also, watch out for canned vegetables, sports drinks and salted snack foods.

Saturated Fats

• Avoid food high in saturated fat. Check out the food the food labels for saturated fat. The American Heart Association suggests limiting saturated fat to only 7 percent of daily calories.

Caffeine

• Although the link is debatable, avoid caffeinated foods and drinks. It can temporarily raise blood pressure. It might also have long-term effects in those sensitive to caffeine.

Nonfood Precautions

• Nicotine should also be avoided in those with high blood pressure. It can raise blood pressure for up to an hour.