A big thank you to those of you who responded to the last newsletter. I love to hear your comments, cries for help or generally just a question which is bothering you. Please keep them coming. I have responded to each one personally. The reason why my newsletters have been a bit erratic is because I have been working on a very exciting project which I was asked to join in on as a nutritional consultant but I can only divulge what it is in the coming months. It is going to take a while to set up and is a huge amount of work! We are waiting on a lot of other factors to all fall into place first. Thank you for being so patient.

Recently I gave a couple of lectures to various groups and the one which I want to share with you today is on HYPERTENSION. This is a major factor in today’s lifestyle and is the bodies warning system to do something about your lifestyle & diet before a heart attack or other serious conditions occurs. Most cases of HYPERTENSION world wide are caused by bad eating habits as researched by THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANISATION. Heart disease kills around 35 million people per year and it is not just attacking the elderly. People of all ages are suffering with high blood pressure and a large percentage of them are children.

HYPERTENSION (High Blood Pressure)

Causes for Nutritional Deficiencies in Hypertension
• General poor diet
• Not enough Omega 3 foods, fruit & vegetables in our diets
• Poor weight management
• Not enough exercise
• Too many processed foods
• Too much alcohol


Other factors to be taken into account are:
• Additives, colourants, preservatives & some sweeteners
• Bacteria, hormones, drugs & metals in our water systems
• Exhaustion. This causes the sympathetic nervous system to work overtime which increases the heart rate and raises
Blood Pressure (BP)
• Unbalanced potassium : sodium ratio i.e. too much salt in the diet
• Bad timing & skipping of meals
• Mental, emotional & physical stress

What can we do about this situation? PREVENTION IS THE KEY WORD HERE. DO something about it!

Reverse the first 6 problems above by seeking nutritional help from a Nutritional Therapist to suggest an individualised programme. Food plays a huge role here and some people can lessen their prescription drugs by just changing the diet and targeting certain foods. Those of you who are not taking drugs YET have to change your diets & lifestyle as this is the prevention we are talking about.

DIETRY CHANGES (suitable for all members of the family. (Basically good eating habits.)
• 1.5l water per day
• 3 fruit servings a day
• 5-7 vegetable servings a day 3 of these green leafy vegetables, raw before the meal
• 4-6 servings of unprocessed whole grains to be eaten daily, millet, quinoa, brown rice, oats & wholewheat if not gluten
intolerant.
• 3-4 servings of legumes (beans lentils etc) per week. Use as a protein. Not to be eaten with animal products
• Nuts & seeds daily
• Meat 3 times a week
• Dairy/Eggs 2x per week. Look at alternate milks.

Target foods for correct potassium : sodium ratios

Vegetables
Fresh asparagus ½ c; Avocado ½ c excellent; 1 Raw carrot; Corn ½ c
Lima beans ½ c excellent; 2 Baby Potatoes;
Spinach ½ c; 1 Small Raw Tomato

Fruit
Apple Banana Melon Dried apricots Orange
Peach Plums Strawberries

Meat/dairy
75g light meat chicken; Salmon; Tuna

LIFESTYLE CHANGES
• Eat 3 main meals and 2 snacks per day
• Control weight. Go on a weight reduction program. (Look at my products page) Don’t go it alone!
• Get regular sleep
• Take time out everyday to : meditate, pray, quiet hobbies before bed, NOT TV
• Exercise 3 times a week eg walking, swimming, aqua aerobics, pilates, yoga. Be careful of aerobic exercise if
hypertensive.

SMOOTHIE RECIPES
BANANA NECTAR • 2 BANANAS • 4 APRICOTS • 150ML APPLEJUICE	PINK LADY • 2 BANANAS • 2 HANDFULS • CRANBERRY JUICE
BANANA SHARP • 2 BANANAS • 1 PINK GRAPEFRUIT • 120ML ORANGE JUICE • JUICE OF 1 LIME	PURE PASSION • 3 BANANAS • 4 PASSION FRUIT • 150ML GUAVA JUICE
FRESH JUICE RECIPES
TAKE HEART • 4 STICKS CELERY • 1 APPLE • 1 HANDFUL BLACKCURRENTS • 1CM GINGER • 15ML FLAXSEED OIL	BLOOD CLEANSER • 3 STICKS CELERY • 1 BEETROOT • 1TSP SPIRULINA