The three troublemakers with three highs! Lycopene Antioxidant Helps Anti-Aging

Hypertension, high blood lipids and diabetes (collectively known as the three highs) are the "three troublemakers" that destroy your health. Not only do complications easily increase the speed of aging, they can even increase the risk of death. Doctors suggest that to stay away from the nightmare of "three highs", one should start with controlling weight, combined with regular exercise and balanced nutrition, and the intake of supplementary antioxidant foods, especially red foods, which is the fundamental solution to curb the disease.

Zhou Shuoqu, attending physician of the Family Medicine Department of Shuang He Hospital under the Ministry of Health and Welfare, pointed out that the population suffering from "three highs" in the country is tending to be younger, among which more than half of adults over 40 years old suffer from "three highs"; and obesity not only increases the risk of suffering from "three highs", but also significantly increases the probability of death from cardiovascular disease.

Control your weight and stay away from the three highs

Maintaining a healthy weight is very important for the prevention and control of chronic diseases. Reasonable weight loss aims to reduce body weight by 5% to 15%. Many studies have confirmed that for obese patients, if they moderately reduce their original body weight by 5% to 10%, most of them can improve hypertension, diabetes and dyslipidemia, and avoid the occurrence of cardiovascular disease and cancer.

The key to weight control is energy balance, that is, reducing energy intake and increasing energy consumption. Eating less and exercising more is still the only way to lose weight. Generally speaking, for patients with long-term hypertension, if they lose 1 kg, their systolic blood pressure can be reduced by about 1 to 1.7 mmHg. For patients with type 2 diabetes, if they lose 5% of their body weight, their glycated hemoglobin can be reduced by about 1% after one year.

Dr. Zhou Shuoqu (left) emphasized that maintaining a healthy weight is very important for the prevention and control of chronic diseases. (Photo/Reporter Zhang Shijie)

People with "three highs" should follow the "357 dietary principles" in dietary care.

Eat three, five, seven and exercise regularly

Regarding dietary care for people with three highs, Dr. Zhou Shuoqu suggested that they should follow the "357 dietary principles". That is, the "three highs": high protein, high freshness, and high fiber; the "five lows": low cholesterol, low fat, low salt, low sugar, and low alcohol; and the "seven points": only eat until you are seven-tenths full.

In addition, developing a regular exercise habit not only helps control weight, but also lowers blood lipids and blood pressure, helps regulate blood sugar and increases cardiopulmonary function. It is recommended to do at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise every day, with the goal of burning 200 calories, such as brisk walking, jogging, swimming, etc.

Controlling weight and exercising regularly are basic ways to fight aging and the three highs.

People with "three highs" should eat light food and eat less fried food

Dr. Zhou Shuoqu emphasized that people with three highs should reduce their intake of total fat and saturated fatty acids in their diet, and gradually eliminate trans fatty acids from their diet. They should adopt low-oil cooking methods such as steaming, braising, blanching, cold dressing, roasting, grilling, and stewing. Eat less fried, deep-fried, crispy foods, as well as fatty meat, pork skin, chicken skin, etc.

Be careful to use less foods high in saturated fatty acids, such as lard, butter, coconut oil, whole milk, etc. Fats rich in trans fatty acids, such as hydrogenated vegetable butter (margarine), shortening, and their products (cakes, pastries, etc.), should be consumed as little as possible.

Rainbow Fruits and Vegetables Protect the Heart and Antioxidants

In view of the high risk of cardiovascular disease caused by the three high groups, doctors recommend that the diet should be light and natural, and choose more fiber-rich foods such as vegetables, fruits, unprocessed beans and whole grains; avoid eating processed canned and pickled foods, and reduce the use of high-sodium condiments such as MSG, bean paste, shacha sauce, etc.

It is also recommended to increase antioxidant foods and choose "rainbow fruits and vegetables"; for example, red refers to tomatoes and strawberries, green refers to dark green vegetables, and other fruits and vegetables like green and red peppers, carrots, grapes, berries, cranberries, etc. are rich in anthocyanins and polyphenols, which can not only maintain health and anti-aging, but also make the skin tender and smooth.

Lycopene can reduce the incidence of heart disease and has antioxidant function.

Taking lycopene as an antioxidant protects the heart

Doctor Zhou Shuoqu emphasized that lycopene is a type of carotenoid with antioxidant function. It can remove free radicals in the body, inhibit platelet activity, reduce thrombosis, and reduce the incidence of stroke. In addition, lycopene has the effect of improving vascular endothelial cells, increasing arterial elasticity, and thus preventing arteriosclerosis.

In particular, lycopene can reduce the incidence of heart disease, prevent ultraviolet damage to the skin, inhibit the occurrence of cancer, and improve male fertility. It is generally found in red vegetables. In addition to tomatoes and tomato products, natural ingredients such as watermelon, guava, papaya, eggplant, cherry, and red pepper also contain lycopene.