Heart-healthy foods - foods that protect your heart
Heart disease is a major health problem not only in the United States but all over the world as well. Aside from exercising, the foods you eat have an impact on the health of your heart. Whether you're preparing home-cooked meals or eating out, choosing heart-healthy foods can help you manage your cholesterol levels. Best of all, a heart-healthy diet can be tasty and varied.
Here's how you can make heart-healthy food choices:
1. Know your fat. Not all fats are evil. Your body needs fat to absorb some essential vitamins and to function normally. However, you should limit your fat intake to less than 25-35 percent of your total calories consumed. The main source of fat should come from monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats found in nuts, seeds, avocados, vegetable oils, and fish.
2. Eat fish at least twice a week. Oily fish like salmon, herring, and trout contain omega-3 fatty acids that help protect against coronary artery disease. Prepare fish by baking, grilling, or grilling instead of frying.
3. Choose lean, skinless meat and poultry. Sirloin cuts, round and specialty beef steaks have less fat than "premium" beef. Choose white meat, and remove all visible fat from cuts of meat. Grill, boil, or bake meat and poultry instead of frying. Avoid heavily processed meat.
4. Use fat-free or low-fat dairy products. Reduce your intake of butter and whole milk. Look for low-fat or skimmed cheese, mozzarella, ricotta, and other low-fat cheeses.
5. Avoid foods that are high in cholesterol such as whole eggs, oysters, and liver. Egg whites are rich in protein and contain no cholesterol. You can replace two egg whites with one egg yolk in many recipes.
6. Cut back on foods with added sugar. Most foods and soft drinks are high in sugar. They are often low in vitamins and minerals. Foods that contain "empty" calories make you eat and drink more, thus easily gaining weight. Avoiding these foods will help you control your weight.
7. Choose foods with little or no sodium. A diet rich in sodium can increase the risk of developing high blood pressure, which leads to the risk of stroke, heart attack, and heart disease. Reduce your salt use by using herbs, spices, lemon juice, or salt-free seasonings to add flavor to your food.
8. Include fiber and oat bran in your diet. The soluble fiber in oats helps lower cholesterol levels. You need at least 25 to 30 grams of dietary fiber per day. Eat more fresh fruits and raw vegetables. Include skins where applicable.
Oat bran, oatmeal, barley, peas, beans, citrus fruits, and berries are high in soluble fiber. Whole wheat bread, carrots, cabbage, beets, turnips, and other vegetables are rich in insoluble fiber. Aside from lowering cholesterol levels, dietary fiber reduces the risk of colon cancer, rectal cancer, and diabetes.
Protecting your heart is a simple matter of choosing heart-healthy foods. By making the right choices, a healthy heart is easily within your reach.