Blood Pressure Challenge Day 11

Search Episodes

Previous Episode

Next Episode

Blood Pressure Challenge Day 11

Host:

Doctor Warrick

5 May 2025

Played 251 times

0 comments

14-Day Blood Pressure Challenge

Welcome to the Younger Longer 14-Day Blood Pressure Challenge. My name is Dr. Warrick Bishop. I'm a preventative cardiologist and I'm super excited that you're looking to look after your blood pressure. It is one of the most important and really one of the simplest things you can look after to look after your heart for the rest of your life.

During this 14-Day Challenge I'm going to share with you a whole lot of stuff. Every day, a video, some resources, a challenge or a task for you to complete and a fun fact. Stay tuned, your blood pressure is super important. Let me explain to you how, what you're going to do about it and how you're going to look after yourself for the years ahead

Why Listen?

Get practical tips and science-backed advice you can apply immediately.
Learn from real-world examples and medical expertise.
Gain daily challenges to help you stay engaged and track progress.
Take charge of your heart health in a simple, effective, and engaging way.

Transcript

Welcome, and here we are at Day 11. Well done for getting this far, and thanks for tuning in.

We're talking sugars and processed foods today—specifically, the traps that can catch us out in that regard, particularly when it comes to our blood pressure.

Often, we only think about salt when it comes to blood pressure. And while there's no question that salt is important—we’ve already covered it—sugars are equally important and often sneak into processed foods left, right, and center.

So many processed foods are double-loaded with sugar and salt, and that double hit is not good for your blood pressure. We’ve already touched on the salt component, but sugars play a significant role too. They can contribute to weight gain because they stimulate insulin. Over time, with repeated exposure, this can lead to insulin resistance. That’s when the body just doesn’t process sugar as efficiently.

The problem with that? It pushes up your blood pressure and alters your cholesterol profile. That’s not good in the long term.

And it’s not just the obviously sweet foods you have to be wary of. Added sugars are often hidden in things like sauces, breakfast cereals, flavored yoghurt, smoothies, energy bars, and salad dressings. Imagine trying to have a healthy salad, only to drizzle on a manufactured dressing filled with sugar!

So what’s the advice?

Be aware. Read the labels. It really is valuable and informative—you might be surprised.

Check the ingredients list and look out for terms like syrup, malt, cane juice, and anything ending in “-ose” (like dextrose, sucrose, glucose). These are all forms of sugar. You’ll also often see salt listed—so bring your attention to that as well.

Try to replace processed and manufactured foods with things you can make from your own cupboard or pantry. Making that switch can make a big difference over the long term.

Tomorrow, I’m going to be talking about weight—a consequence of too much sugar, too much fat, too much oil, and too many processed foods—and how weight interacts with blood pressure.

So I look forward to speaking with you then. Until then, I hope you live as well as possible, for as long as possible.

Take care, and bye for now.

Are You at Risk of a Sudden Heart Attack? How Healthy is Your Heart? Really?

Heart disease is the #1 killer in the Western World. In Australia, someone dies every 28 minutes from heart disease. That’s 51 people a day. In the US, someone has a heart attack every 40 SECONDS! Fortunately, many heart attacks are preventable. However, regular exercise and eating healthy are no guarantee you won’t succumb to this silent killer.

94% of Australians have at least One Risk Factor for heart disease.
59% of Australians have been Touched by heart disease.
Yet only 3% of Australians have had a Full Heart-Health Assessment in the past 12 months.

Do the free heart check today at www.virtualheartcheck.com.au

Join the Healthy Heart Network and become part of our growing community!

Do You Want to Improve Your Heart’s Health and Reduce Your Risk of Suffering a Heart Attack? Join The Healthy Heart Network For Only $5 Lifetime Access (Valued at over $55)!

The Healthy Heart Network is designed to help members:

understand the present state of their heart’s health
recognise their current level of risk of suffering a heart attack
Learn the positive steps they can take to improve their situation

Visit https://healthyheartnetwork.com/ and click on the JOIN THE FAMILY BUTTON

Transcript English

**Episode Title: Blood Pressure Challenge Day 11** **Host:** Welcome, and here we are at day 11. Well done for getting this far, and thanks for tuning in. We're talking sugars and processed foods, and the traps that will catch us out in that regard, particularly around our blood pressure. Often, we think about salt when it comes to blood pressure, and there's no question it's important; we've covered it already. But sugars as well are really important, and they get snuck into processed food left, right, and center. So many processed foods are double loaded with sugar and salt, and that double hit is not good for your blood pressure. We've touched on the salt bit, but the sugars can contribute to weight gain because they turn on insulin and can, through weight gain and repeated exposure, lead to insulin resistance. That's where the body just doesn't deal with sugar as well as it can. And the problem with that? Well, it pushes up your blood pressure and alters your cholesterol profile. So that's not good in the long term. It's just not obvious sweet foods that you have to watch out for. Added sugars get hidden in things like sauces, breakfast cereals, flavored yogurts, smoothies, energy bars, and salad dressings. So think of that: you're wanting to have a healthy salad, and you put a manufactured salad dressing on there, and they've stuck sugar in there. So what's the advice? Be aware. Read the labels. Do look on the packaging; it really is valuable and informative. You'll be surprised. Look at the ingredients list and check out for things like syrup, malt, cane juice, and anything that ends in "ose," like dextrose, sucrose, glucose—these are all sugars. It's important. You'll also notice if you do look at the ingredients listed that salt will be listed there as well. So bring a bit of attention to that. Bring awareness to it. See where you can replace those processed foods, those manufactured foods, with things that you can make out of your own cupboard, out of your own pantry. It'll make a big difference in the long term. Tomorrow, I'm going to be talking about weight, which is a consequence of too much sugar, too much fat, too much oil, and processed foods, and how weight interacts with blood pressure. So I look forward to speaking with you then. Until then, I hope you live as well as possible for as long as possible. Take care, and bye for now.

Please Note: Before embarking on the Younger Longer 14-Day Blood Pressure Challenge, it's essential to consult with your General Practitioner (GP) to ensure it's safe for you to participate, especially if you have existing health conditions or risk factors. Pre-exercise screening is recommended to identify any medical conditions that may increase the risk of adverse events during physical activity.