Latest news with #USadults
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
This Popular 'Healthy' Snack May Be Worsening Your Hypertension, Cardiologists Warn
This Popular 'Healthy' Snack May Be Worsening Your Hypertension, Cardiologists Warn originally appeared on Parade. High blood pressure is incredibly common, affecting nearly half of U.S. adults. Certain medications—thankfully—can help people manage hypertension, lowering their odds of further heart health issues. However, cardiologists emphasize that lifestyle tweaks, particularly dietary changes, are crucial to maintaining blood pressure levels within a normal range."Diet plays a key role because what we eat directly affects blood pressure through mechanisms like sodium (salt) balance, blood vessel health and body weight," explains , the clinical chief of cardiology for Sentara Health. "By making healthy food choices, people can lower their blood pressure naturally, sometimes even reducing the need for medication."Unfortunately, sometimes people think they are making a healthy choice by reaching for certain snacks that can actually make hypertension worse. Cardiologists warn that this one snack has a better reputation for heart health than it should. 🩺 💊 This 'Healthy' Snack Can Worsen Hypertension, Cardiologists Say Cardiologists warn that people often overlook the high salt content in pretzels, which check other "heart-healthy" boxes. However, they don't recommend consuming tons of pretzels regularly if you have high blood pressure (or want to avoid it). "Pretzels have a misleading image of being healthy because they are low-fat—they contain less than 2 grams of fat per serving," shares , the chair of cardiology at JFK University Medical Center. "Unlike potato chips, pretzels are baked, which consumers view as a healthier preparation method."Specifically, Dr. Talreja warns that brands that make pretzels typically stamp phrases like "0 grams of saturated fat" on the front of the bag. While the American Heart Association and cardiologists agree that it's important to check the nutrition label for saturated fat, it's not the be-all, end-all clue that a snack is heart-friendly. "Low-fat foods have been historically touted as 'healthy,'" explains, a board-certified cardiologist at MemorialCare Heart and Vascular Institute at Orange Coast Medical Center. "While there is some truth to this, as saturated fats can be strongly associated with LDL-C levels and fats are calorie-dense and can lead to weight gain, the sodium content, the most important dietary parameter for modulation of blood pressure, may be overlooked. For those who are sensitive to dietary sodium intake, pretzels may not be a healthy choice." Related: The Problem With Pretzels and Hypertension The biggest issue with pretzels is that they contain high amounts of sodium, which can worsen high blood pressure. "The biggest consideration of pretzels when it comes to hypertension is the sodium content," Dr. Berg warns. "A single serving of store-bought pretzels can have more than 300 mg of sodium, which is substantial if patients are attempting to minimize their sodium intake and maintain a goal of less than 1,500-2,300 mg daily."Indeed, the American Heart Association recommends limiting sodium intake to 2,300 mg per day, but advises people with high blood pressure to reduce their intake even further—aiming for a maximum of 1,500 mg per day. "That's less than two-thirds of a teaspoon of table salt total—including everything in packaged, canned, and restaurant foods," Dr. Talreja says. "Sodium can cause your body to retain water, increase blood volume and raise your blood pressure. For people with or at risk for hypertension, high-salt snacks like pretzels can undermine their blood pressure control efforts."To put pretzels in perspective, Drs. Talreja and Feingold both stress that this snack contains around 20% of your daily sodium allotment per serving. Let's double-tap on that for a second. "As often happens with snacks, people easily can consume two to three servings without realizing it," Dr. Feingold points isn't the only hidden heart health risk with pretzels. "Pretzels also are made from white flour, which causes rapid sugar spikes, which can lead to higher blood pressure and vascular inflammation," he reveals. Related: A Simple Tip for Salt Intake The "benefits" listed on the front of food bags can trick us into thinking a snack like pretzels is heart-healthy, when in fact it can worsen blood pressure. Dr. Talreja emphasizes that it's crucial to flip the bag over and has a simple mental math tip to help you determine whether or not to add the snack to your car."A simple guideline is for us to look at the label and calorie information on the back of the box," he says. "If there are more milligrams of salt than calories per serving of a packaged food, it should be considered a high salt product." Related: The Cardiologist-Recommended Diet for High Blood Pressure Cardiologists recommend that people sprint to learn more about the DASH diet for blood pressure control."DASH—Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension—is an evidence-based diet designed to combat high blood pressure through comprehensive nutritional strategies," Dr. Feingold The DASH diet isn't about depriving yourself of meals and snacks. Instead, it's all about loading up on delicious foods that support your efforts to control your blood pressure. Dr. Berg mentions that DASH-friendly foods include: Cruciferous vegetables (Kale, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage) Spinach Skinless poultry Salmon Low-fat/fat-free yogurt (especially Greek yogurt for added protein content) Oatmeal Brown rice Lentils Bananas Bell peppers Beans Berries Related: 3 More Tips for Managing Hypertension Diet is one pillar of managing hypertension. However, cardiologists agree that a holistic approach, including exercise, stress relief and monitoring, is crucial. Scroll on for three more practical tips for keeping blood pressure levels in a healthy range. 1. Make exercise a habit You often hear diet and exercise mentioned in the same breath as two keys to a healthy lifestyle and managing chronic conditions. Hypertension is no different."The American Heart Association recommends 150 minutes per week of moderate to vigorous physical activity," Dr. Berg Berg says that low-intensity exercise, like brisk walking, counts. You'll simply want to ensure that you're walking "briskly" enough to get your heart rate up and breathing heavier. However, you'll still be able to talk. 2. Reduce your stress through breathing exercises Yes, stress can raise blood pressure. "Chronic stress elevates cortisol and activates the sympathetic nervous system, both of which increase blood pressure," Dr. Feingold explains. "Deep breathing activates the parasympathetic nervous system, triggering the relaxation response and immediately lowering blood pressure."He recommends five to 10 minutes of deep, diaphragmatic breathing daily, preferably at the same time to establish a 2020 meta-analysis in Hypertension found that mindfulness-based stress reduction techniques lowered stress and high blood pressure. 3. Monitor your blood pressure at home Knowledge is power, and Dr. Talreja says that monitoring blood pressure at home can help you flag issues."Home tracking helps catch changes early and shows whether lifestyle or medications are working," he shares. "The best solution is to start a home log and paper, which you can take with you to the doctor's record your heart rate and any unusual events that day, for example, stresses or changes in diet." Up Next:Sources: High Blood Pressure Facts. CDC. Dr. Deepak Talreja, MD, the clinical chief of cardiology for Sentara Health Dr. Aaron Feingold, MD, the chair of cardiology at JFK University Medical Center Saturated Fat. American Heart Association. Dr. Christopher Berg, MD, a board-certified cardiologist at MemorialCare Heart and Vascular Institute at Orange Coast Medical Center Shaking the Salt Habit to Lower High Blood Pressure. American Heart Association. DASH Diet: A Review of Its Scientifically Proven Hypertension Reduction and Health Benefits. Cureus. American Heart Association Recommendations for Physical Activity in Adults and Kids. American Heart Association. Effect and Acceptability of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program on Patients With Elevated Blood Pressure or Hypertension: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Hypertension. This Popular 'Healthy' Snack May Be Worsening Your Hypertension, Cardiologists Warn first appeared on Parade on Jul 17, 2025 This story was originally reported by Parade on Jul 17, 2025, where it first appeared.
Forbes
15-07-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Are You Rewarding The Right Customers? Here's How To Close The Loyalty Gap
Derek White, CEO of Galileo, is a fintech pioneer with over 20 years of experience modernizing financial services globally. Consumer needs have outpaced the financial solutions built to serve them. Most Americans use debit as a primary payment method—more than 90% of U.S. adults have a debit card—but they're not getting rewarded for their spend or brand loyalty. Traditional loyalty programs were built around credit cards. Points, perks and upgrades are doled out to those who spend the most—on credit. However, this system ignores a huge segment of the population who chooses debit as their go-to payment method. Many younger, more budget-conscious consumers are overlooked in traditional loyalty strategies. That's a missed opportunity hiding in plain sight. Over the years, I've helped build financial technology across banks, startups and platform companies—each offering a different lens on how people interact with money. What's become clear to me is that we've been measuring the wrong thing. Loyalty isn't about how much credit someone uses. It's about how often they engage with your brand—and how you respond. The Case For Debit Rewards Most Americans have a debit card. That's not new. But what's shifted is intent. Younger demographics—especially Gen-Z—are opting into debit by choice. Many are debt-averse, others are part of the 46 million Americans considered 'credit invisible'—meaning they don't have a sufficient credit history to generate a credit score. Either way, they represent a growing population of consumers who show loyalty to brands through their spending behavior but are consistently excluded from loyalty ecosystems. This disconnect reveals something fundamental: Most loyalty programs weren't built for how many people actually pay today. They were built for a narrower view of value, one that's overdue for rethinking. A Lesson From The Past Early attempts at debit rewards fizzled—not just because of clunky tech, but because the economics were broken. Regulatory changes reshaped interchange fees and made traditional models hard to sustain. Brands couldn't justify the cost, and the infrastructure couldn't deliver the experience. But what didn't stick a decade ago is finally gaining traction—not because the idea changed, but because everything else did. Consumer preferences have transformed, and technology has evolved. The appetite for embedded finance has grown. And brands are far more invested in owning the full customer experience—not just the moment of purchase. We're finally seeing the conditions that make debit rewards viable: real-time processing, scalable APIs and platforms that bridge the gap between brands, banks and consumers. The tools exist to deliver value instantly and in context. That shift is what's unlocking debit's loyalty potential. The New Opportunity For Brands Brands aren't trying to be banks. But they do want to be closer to their customers. Financial tools—especially those built into everyday experiences—offer an ideal way to do that. It's not about creating gimmicky perks. It's about recognizing where consumer behavior already is and showing up there in relevant ways. If your best customers are paying with debit, rewarding them shouldn't feel like an edge case—it should be the default. The companies leaning into this space are responding to data. They see how often their customers use debit and realize that loyalty isn't tied to a payment method. It's tied to repeat purchase behavior. A New Kind Of Loyalty Model Here's the bigger picture: what's changing isn't customer loyalty, but the way brands recognize and reward it—moving from credit‑card spend to acknowledging repeat engagement, regardless of payment method. In the old model, the highest-value customers were those who charged the most to a branded credit card. In the new model, brands are recognizing customer loyalty through interactions and behaviors, not payment methods. That opens the door for financial tools that fit into a person's daily life—not just their occasional splurges. Debit rewards make this possible in a way that's sustainable. They allow brands to engage a broader customer base without pushing credit, and they provide a more inclusive on-ramp for customers who want to participate in loyalty programs without taking on new debt. This isn't about replacing what works. It's about expanding access to those who haven't had it. What To Watch For Next If the last era of loyalty was defined by credit-card points and airline miles, the next will be shaped by flexibility and showing up in the moments that customers care about most. Brands will build rewards systems that fit multiple payment types. Customers expect personalization across every brand interaction. And debit—often the most overlooked payment choice—will play a leading role in that transformation. This shift won't happen overnight. But for companies willing to meet their customers where they are—and reward them for how they actually behave—the upside is significant. There's a lesson here for anyone building loyalty strategies: Look past assumptions. Behavior changes fast. Expectations change faster. And the most valuable customers aren't always the ones your models were built to serve. Forbes Technology Council is an invitation-only community for world-class CIOs, CTOs and technology executives. Do I qualify?
