Yoghurt, oats, nuts – do you find it hard to eat these super-health foods? Tired of porridge for breakfast? Husband hates yoghurt? Here’s one solution – Swiss muesli. It tastes delicious and is so easy to make. The amounts are just a guideline. You can use more or less of each ingredient to get the taste and texture you like best.

2 cups rolled oats

1 cup apple juice

1 cup water

1 apple, chopped (leave skin on)

1/2 cup almonds, chopped

Here’s some more food ideas to keep your blood pressure under control (continued from part 1)…

4. Lots of fruit and vegetables

For healthy blood pressure we need less sodium and more potassium, magnesium and calcium. Potassium blunts the effect of sodium on blood pressure. The best way to get more potassium into your diet is to eat more fruit and vegetables. Aim for at least 2-3 serves of fruit and 4-5 serves (about 2-3 cups) of vegetables every day. Bananas, grapefruit, oranges, dried fruit, green vegetables, mushrooms, avocado and tomatoes are all high in potassium. And magnesium usually tags along in the same foods.

A word of warning about grapefruit: it can affect some blood pressure medications. If you are taking medication for high blood pressure, check with your doctor before splurging on grapefruit.

If you hope to by-pass the fruit and vegetables by taking a potassium supplement, think again. Too much potassium can be dangerous for your heart, and you will miss out on all the other health benefits of fruit and vegetables.

5. Low fat milk and yoghurt

Low fat dairy foods are important for strong bones and teeth and also for healthy blood pressure. If you don’t like dairy foods, eat sardines and salmon. The bones provide lots of calcium. There is no strong evidence that taking a calcium supplement will help lower blood pressure. It’s better to stick to real food. So whip up a banana smoothie, dollop some yoghurt on muesli or have sardines and sliced tomato on grainy toast for lunch.

6. Legumes, nuts and wholegrains

Dried beans, split peas, lentils, nuts and wholegrains are all rich in magnesium. Eat porridge or muesli for breakfast, snack on a small handful of nuts most days, and make a legume meal a couple of times a week – toss a few red lentils into stews and soups to thicken them, add a can of beans to mince or simply enjoy baked beans on grainy toast.

7. Omega-3 fats

Omega-3 fats found in oily fish, walnuts, flaxseed and canola oil help reduce high blood pressure. These fats help relax the blood vessel walls so they can expand as blood rushes through. One study of 46,500 people aged over 40, some with normal, some with high blood pressure, found that those who ate more omega-3 rich foods had lower blood pressure.  The NZ National Heart Foundation recommends that people get their omega-3’s from food. But if you don’t eat oily fish and are at risk for heart disease or stroke (this includes having high blood pressure) the New Zealand Cardiovascular Guidelines recommend taking an EPA/DHA supplement of 1 milligram per day. Be sure to let your doctor know if you take omega-3 supplements as the blood thinning effects are quite potent.

Part 3 here …

1. Yoghurt – ideally plain, reduced fat and as fresh as possible

‘Friendly’ bugs to help digestion, and calcium to keep bones strong and blood pressure down.

2. Fish, especially salmon and tuna

Vitamin B12 and Omega-3 fats for healthy blood, joints and eyes. People who eat fish at least once a week have a much lower risk of age-related macular degeneration. Omega-3 fats from canola oil, flaxseed and walnuts, as well as monounsaturated fats from avocado and olive oil also seem to reduce the risk (Arch Opthalmol, 2006).

3. Nuts

Fibre, unsaturated fat and vitamin E for a healthy heart, digestive system and eyes (walnuts)

4. Avocado

Monounsaturated fat, vitamin E, folate and vitamin B6 for a healthy heart, brain, immune system and eyes

5. Rolled oats

Soluble fibre & resistant starch for a healthy bowel and to reduce cholesterol, plus zinc, iron, potassium, vitamin E

6. Green tea

Less caffeine and lots of antioxidants

7. Legumes – dried beans, baked beans, split peas, lentils

Soluble fibre and resistant starch for a healthy bowel, lower cholesterol and weight control

8. The ‘Greens’ – spinach, silverbeet, Asian greens, broccoli

Vitamin A, C, K, folate and antioxidants

9. Berries

Vitamin C and antioxidants

10. Oranges, lemons and grapefruit (marmalade doesn’t count!)

Vitamin C and antioxidants

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People who eat a Mediterranean-style diet with lots of vegetables, legumes, fruit, fish, wholegrains and monounsaturated fat (mostly olive oil) with some yoghurt, cheese and wine seem to live longer (BMJ, 2005)

Let’s start where we finished off yesterday – with a glass of wine! As we age our sense of taste and smell isn’t so great and a glass of wine with dinner may be just what we need to enjoy our meal. It also encourages us to sit down to a ‘proper’ meal – wine just doesn’t go well with tea and toast! We lose tastebuds as we age and food just doesn’t taste the same. To add some flavour, it’s tempting to add extra sugar or salt. Some people get into the habit of shaking the salt shaker for a certain time without even tasting the food. One nursing home was having trouble with the amount of salt their residents were lavishing on their food. So they covered some of the salt shaker holes with tape. For the same amount of shaking they got less salt! Too much salt speeds up calcium loss from the bones, sends up blood pressure and makes us more prone to dehydration. Try using more herbs and spices for both flavour and a few extra antioxidants.

Some medications, pain, depression, mild zinc deficiency, poor oral hygiene, gum disease and poorly fitting dentures can all make eating more of a chore than a pleasure. Try these ideas to help. Go for a pre-meal walk to stimulate appetite. Set the table attractively. Eat small, frequent meals. On your plate use lots of colour (from vegetables, not artificial colours) and try different textures – crispy roast veges and salad with a casserole rather than sloppy mashed potato. Stimulate your tastebuds by eating individual foods rather than piling them all on your fork in one uniform taste. Chew food well – just like your mother told you! It extracts more flavour.

Digestion

About one-third of people over 65 suffer deterioration of their stomach lining which means it doesn’t make so much hydrochloric acid, pepsin (a digestive enzyme) and intrinsic factor. This reduces how much vitamin B12, folate, iron and calcium they can absorb. Vitamin B12 deficiency seriously affects the nervous system and can lead to dementia. B12 comes mostly from animal foods. To get the recommended 2-3mcg a day include some lean meat, salmon, tuna, oysters or liver.

Constipation is common in older people, especially those who are inactive. Some try to solve the problem with laxatives (not a good idea long term) and others by taking copious amounts of unprocessed bran. The odd bran muffin makes a yummy morning tea but too many will bind up vitally important minerals such as calcium, iron and zinc. One study found that eating two tablespoons of wheat bran three times a day halved the amount of calcium absorbed.

Our gut contains many ‘friendly’ bacteria that enhance the immune system and make us more resistant to food poisoning and tummy bugs. But as we head into our 70’s there are less of these ‘friendly’ bacteria around. Eating yoghurt or fermented dairy drinks will add a few ‘friendly’ bacteria back into your gut. Check the use-by date to buy the freshest yoghurt as the bugs die off over time. To help these bacteria survive the perilous journey through your stomach, eat foods with resistant starch such as rolled oats, nuts, seeds, lentils, baked beans or cold rice or pasta. You may find yourself sitting on the toilet a bit more often but straining will be a thing of the past!

These foods are great for keeping your gut in top working order:

• Banana or berry yoghurt smoothie
• Porridge or muesli topped with yoghurt
• Baked beans on grainy toast
• Pasta or rice salad
• Stir-fry beef with lots of vegetables on rice
• Fruit salad with yoghurt
• Sushi
• Lean mince cooked with red lentils, vegetables and a jar of pasta sauce.

Remember to add in a little exercise, plenty of water and lots of smiles! … more tommorrow (part 4)…