Around one in three adults in the UK, or 16 million, are feared to be living with the “silent killer” high blood pressure. Around a third of those are undiagnosed and unaware they are serious risk of problems like heart attacks and strokes. And one of the most influential factors for high blood pressure is diet.
Eating too much salt, saturated fat, added sugars and heavily processed foods can all contribute to an elevated risk of potentially deadly conditions. Sharing her latest tip with the Express, Dr Pauline Swift, chair of Blood Pressure UK, has highlighted a simple cooking swap that can help keep your blood pressure within the healthy range. She said: “You do not need to change everything at once. Just switching from butter to a small amount of plant oil such as olive oil in everyday cooking can be a helpful step for heart health.”
Butter is an animal fat, meaning it is rich in saturated fat and dietary cholesterol. Saturated fats trigger the liver to produce more “bad” LDL cholesterol.
Dr Swift added: “Choosing a healthier alternative to butter can be good for your heart as too much of it often means too much saturated fat, which can push up cholesterol and increase the risk of heart disease and stroke. What’s more, salted butter, can also contribute to excess salt intake, which matters because salt raises blood pressure.”
Olive oil is a well-known part of the Mediterranean diet, which has been linked to reduced risk of heart or circulatory disease. Studies have shown that people who consume the most olive oil are less likely to die prematurely from conditions including heart disease, stroke and cancer.
Recent analysis by the British Heart Foundation found that millions of people were consuming too much sodium. It estimated that working age adults in England typically ate 8.4g of salt per day — 40% more than the recommended maximum of 6g.
A high salt intake causes the body to hold onto water, putting extra pressure on blood vessel walls.
Many people do not realise how much salt they are eating in common foods such as butter. Reducing salt intake can be one of the quickest ways to see improvements in high blood pressure.
Dr Swift added: “Whilst butter is not the main cause of high blood pressure in most diets, salt is, and salted butter can add to that overall intake.”
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
