Heart Healthy Diet
What is a Heart Healthy Diet?
A heart healthy diet is one that has the best interest of not only your heart in mind, but every other aspect of your body as well.
The functioning of your arteries and organs are also key to heart health, and when these are in good condition then you are less likely to suffer from any non-hereditary heart conditions.
a heart healty diet
As a rule, anything that contains high amounts of bad fats should be avoided. This means all fried and fast food, as well as most processed foods.
It goes without saying that these are not ideal items to have in your everyday diet, whether you are trying to lose weight or not. Excess cholesterol is a precursor to almost certain heart problems.
The type of fats you consume can be confusing as far as whether they are harmful or not. The American Heart Association offers information on the recommended intake of various types of fats.
They recommend that saturated fats should make up under 7% of your daily calorie intake, and trans fat should be under 1%.
There are some super foods which can contribute to the health of your heart and arteries. These include blueberries, soy protein, spinach, flax seed, salmon and oatmeal, just to name a few.
Omega 3 fatty acids are a vital nutrient required for the health of the arteries and heart. It can be consumed naturally either through oily fish, or flax seed products such as flax seed oil (an oil you can drizzle on food, but not cook with). Getting enough Omega-3 in your diet is the first step to a heart healthy diet.
A heart healthy diet is not difficult to implement and maintain. Including plenty of vegetables and whole grains in your diet, as well as a good quality source of omega-3 fatty acids will ensure you are doing everything you can to minimize your chance of suffering any serious heart conditions later in life.
