High blood pressure warning: The popular condiment to ‘be careful of’ – ‘cut down’

Dr Chris Steele shares diet tips on reducing blood pressure

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High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, can trigger health problems ranging from heart attacks to strokes. Your diet plays a part in keeping your levels in check. While some foods can bring down your blood pressure, others can send your reading straight to the red zone; this includes a popular condiment. 

It’s normal for your blood pressure to rise and drop throughout the day.

However, hypertension describes the long-term force of blood against your artery walls that is high enough to trigger health issues, according to the Mayo Clinic.

This condition targets around one third of Britons, with many not even knowing about it, the NHS explains.

Fortunately, being able to spot the foods that can hike your reading could help you to keep blood pressure levels in check. 

Condiments are popular options considering they can offer that extra kick of flavour.

Whether you use them as a dip to enhance the taste of your meal, or not, condiments could be boosting your blood pressure, especially, ketchup.

Blood Pressure UK lists this sauce as one food to “be careful of” when it comes to your reading.

Characterised by a sweet but, at the same time, savoury flavour, the condiment gives something extra to otherwise bland foods; but it also adds a punch of salt and sodium. 

When it comes to high blood pressure, salt is a non-negotiable risk as this seasoning is the number one thing to cut down on.

Contained by a plastic bottle, store-bought ketchup can contain around 1.8 grams of salt per 100 grams, which brings the serving of 15 grams to 0.3 grams of salt.

This salt content puts it on a list of high-salt foods you should “cut down on”, according to the charity. 

The tricky part about the seasoning is that it can quickly add up and exceed your recommended daily amount.

The NHS stresses that adults shouldn’t have more than six grams of salt a day, which is the equivalent of 2.4 grams of sodium.

This isn’t that much as the health service translates it to one teaspoon daily.

Why does salt raise blood pressure?

Blood Pressure UK explains that salt makes you hold onto water, which puts extra pressure on your blood vessels.

And by the definition, this consequently raises your blood pressure reading.

What’s worse, salt can even further boost your blood pressure when you already suffer from hypertension.

Plus, it might have an effect on the efficacy of your blood pressure medicine.

The charity shares: “Cutting down on salt is one of the simplest ways to lower your blood pressure, and will start to make a difference very quickly, even within weeks.”

And cutting down on ketchup can help do just that by lowering your overall salt intake.

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