Welcome to the positive corner of the internet. Every weekday, we make sense of the confusing world of wellness by analyzing the headlines, simplifying the latest research, and offering quick tips designed to make you healthier in less than 5 minutes. If you were forwarded this message, you can get the free daily email here.
Today’s Health Upgrade
Eat your way to lower blood pressure
The fight against forever chemicals
Something good on social
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Health
How To Dramatically Lower Your Blood Pressure
If you suffer from high blood pressure, lowering your sodium can make a big difference. But if you want even more heart protection, two diets offer extra benefits that pay off over time.
New research found that eating less sodium and following the Mediterranean Diet or DASH diet was more effective at lowering blood pressure and improving cardiometabolic health.
Scientists randomly assigned participants to one of four dietary approaches: low salt, low salt + the DASH diet, low salt + the Mediterranean diet, or general nutritional advice for lowering blood pressure.
After just three months, the Mediterranean Diet and lower sodium approach led to the most significant changes. More importantly, following a heart-healthy plan could be a life-saving decision.
The risk of metabolic syndrome — a group of conditions that increase the risk of developing heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes — decreased in the Mediterranean diet group (by 85 percent) and DASH diet (by 71 percent). In contrast, the likelihood did not change in the lower salt group.
As outlined in this detailed breakdown of the study,
“The Mediterranean diet emphasizes the consumption of fruits, vegetables, pulses, nuts and seeds, whole grains, fish, and extra-virgin olive oil; includes moderate amounts of wine, dairy products, poultry, and eggs; and contains minimal amounts of red meat, desserts and sugary beverages, and saturated fat and trans fat.
“The DASH diet is very similar, in the sense that it’s a plant-based diet that is rich in fruits and vegetables and contains a minimal amount of ultra-processed foods. It differs from the Mediterranean diet in that it emphasizes the consumption of low-fat dairy products and does not emphasize the consumption of olive oil or red wine. It’s also lower in total fat.”
If you’re looking for a simple place to start without overhauling your diet, focus on eating less salt, reducing saturated fat, and adding more potassium and fiber.
On Our Radar
The Fight Against Forever Chemicals
Many studies suggest that exposure to chemicals in plastics could pose a significant threat to your health. Some substances — known as forever chemicals — could disrupt your endocrine system and might be linked to diseases and disorders ranging from cancer to diabetes and reproductive problems.
However, a new solution might help filter contaminants significantly and offer more protection.
MIT scientists developed a new filter made from natural ingredients silk and cellulose, which could remove forever chemicals and heavy metals from water.
Research from the CDC suggests that 98 percent of people have forever chemicals in their system. But that’s not a reason to panic. These chemicals do not stay in your body forever (despite the name of the chemicals). So, if you can reduce your exposure, you can quickly reduce or eliminate the threat.
But if you have too much exposure for too long, it could be a risk. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has estimated that remediating forever chemicals will cost $1.5 billion per year to meet new regulations that limit the compound to less than 7 parts per trillion in drinking water.
That’s what makes the latest breakthrough so exciting. More research is needed to prove it works and to see if the materials could be scaled to meet all of the water supply or if other materials have a similar result but at a more affordable cost.
Until the filters are ready for the big stage, there are other steps you can take today to reduce your risk. If you want to limit your exposure, try any (or all) of the following:
Store more food in glass, steel, or ceramic containers.
If you need to keep things in plastic, stop microwaving or warming your food in plastic containers. The plastics can leach onto your food. Instead, simply plate your food first before warming it.
Recyclable items have numbers associated with them. Check the number and try to avoid or limit #3 (phthalates), #6 (styrene), and #7 (bisphenols).
Look for products with labeling that call out “phthalate-free,” “paraben-free,” or “BPA-free.”
When possible, cut down on ultra-processed foods. We know this isn’t always possible, and not all these foods are bad. But the less packaging is involved, the more you might reduce your exposure and risk.
Nutrition
Something Good On Social
The internet is filled with generalized statements that often do more harm than good.
For example, many corners of the health industry will insist, “If there’s an ingredient you can’t pronounce or don’t recognize, you shouldn’t eat it.” But this isn’t just misleading; it could cause you to avoid many perfectly healthy options.
This wonderful post from Dr. Danielle Belardo illustrates why labeling foods that way can be problematic. Look at the food label below.
So, what’s this label? It’s a list of the “ingredients” in blueberries.
As Dr. Belardo shared,
The more I’m involved in scientific communication with the public, the more I am realizing that people are being taken advantage of by the wellness industry. It’s actually really sad. I can only imagine how confusing it must be for consumers of social media - who are often taken advantage of while looking for health solutions.
Food is complicated. And the food industry can undeniably do a much better job promoting healthy foods.
At the same time, some healthy foods require processing to extend their shelf life or make them more available for as many people as possible. That means some foods could have ingredients you might not recognize, but that doesn’t automatically make them bad. Similarly, labeling all “processed foods” as dangerous would cut out many great options. Case in point: olive oil is a processed food, and so are canned beans. But both are healthy options.
That’s why black-and-white statements are dangerous. Because they might cause you to throw out the baby with the bathwater, miss out on healthy foods, or make your life unnecessarily stressful.
If you struggle to make sense of all the information, just remember: those who use fear as their primary way to communicate — or are always selling something to you — might not be the best source of information. It might be time to question what they’re trying to accomplish.
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Publisher: Arnold Schwarzenegger
Editors-in-chief: Adam Bornstein and Daniel Ketchell
