A Heart Healthy Diet Makeover
Meri Raffetto RD

Heart Disease remains the number one cause of death in the U.S. among both men and women. Part of the problem is it is truly a silent killer. There are few warning signs of a heart attack and the signs that are there dont necessarily make us feel bad. The good news is there are many lifestyle changes you can make to significantly decrease your risk of heart disease. Here are 9 simple steps to make over your diet for heart health.

1.Use the right fats: The good fats are found to preserve HDL (protective cholesterol) and lower LDL (Bad Cholesterol) levels. The good fats are found in foods such as olive, canola, and peanut oils as well as nuts, avocados and olives.

2.Decrease the Saturated Fats: These fats tend to increase the cholesterol made by your body. They can increase your total and LDL (Bad) cholesterol levels. Saturated fats are found in animal products such as dairy, poultry (especially the skin), meats, butter and cream based sauces and dressings. It is not necessary to omit these foods, just choose leaner options and have the higher fat foods once in awhile.

3.Remove all Trans Fats from your pantry! : Trans Fats are oils that have been hardened by the hydrogenation process, such as stick margarine and shortening used to make commercial baked goods, chips, and fast foods. Like saturated fats, these fats increase total blood cholesterol and LDL (Bad) cholesterol levels and may even lower HDL (Good) cholesterol levels. Food labels will be required to list the amount of Trans fats in a food product by 2006. Until then, if the ingredient list on the food label includes the term hydrogenated, or partially hydrogenated, it contains Trans Fats. Avoid these products!

4.Increase Your Fiber! : Soluble fiber helps lower cholesterol levels in the blood by binding to cholesterol in the intestine so it cannot be absorbed by the body. Good food sources of soluble fiber include beans and legumes, oranges, apples, prunes, broccoli, carrots, oat bran, oatmeal, and some cereals. Use whole grain products in place of their white counterparts. Eat at least 20-40 grams of fiber a day. (Most Americans only eat around 12 grams of fiber a day.)

5.Omega-3 Fatty Acids every day: Omega-3 Fatty Acids are essential fatty acids meaning we have to get them from our diet. These fatty acids may reduce the risk of blood clotting, decrease inflammation, lower triglyceride levels, normalize heart rhythms and improve the immune system. Consumption of Omega-3 fatty acids daily may reduce the incidence of sudden cardiac death by 50-70%. Omega-3 fatty acids are found in: fatty fish such as salmon, mackerel, lake trout, halibut, and sardines. Other sources include ground flax seeds, soybeans, canola oil, and walnuts.

6.Five To Eight Fruits and Vegetables a day: Eating fruits and vegetables can help to decrease your risk of heart disease, cancer, cataracts, and can help to lower blood pressure. Fruits and Vegetables are loaded in vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals. The more fruits and veggies you eat, the more antioxidant activity in your body.
How do antioxidants work? Every day we are exposed to free radicals from our diets, sun, chemical exposure, pollution, etc. These free radicals promote the plaque build up in our arteries leading us to increased risk of heart disease. Antioxidants work by neutralizing these free radicals before they can cause damage to our bodies.

7.Folic Acid: High levels of an amino acid called homocysteine in the blood have been associated with damage to the blood-vessel walls, increased blood clotting, and overall increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Folate is a B vitamin which has been shown to decrease these homocysteine levels in the blood. Good food sources of Folate include green leafy vegetables such as kale, spinach, beet greens, and chard as well as legumes, asparagus, broccoli, oranges, orange juice, whole and fortified grains, walnuts and peanuts.

8.Add some almonds! Studies show that eating an ounce of almonds a day can help to lower your cholesterol. A matter of fact, a recent study published in Journal of the American Medical Association found that eating a diet that included plant sterol margarine (such as Benecol or ProActiv), soy products, almonds and increase fiber was able to lower cholesterol levels as much as the statin drugs and in just 2 weeks time! Have an ounce of almonds as a snack, or sprinkle them in your cereal or salad.

9.Have a little soy: Soy has also been shown to lower cholesterol levels.
Using soy on a weekly basis is a great step towards protecting your heart. If you are not a tofu fan, try soy milk or yogurt, garden burgers, edamme (soy beans), or soy sausage patties. There are all kinds of ways to include soy in your diet!

Sample Heart Healthy Meal Makeover:

Sample day
Before:
Breakfast:
– glass of orange juice
– 2 fried eggs
– 3 slices of bacon
– 2 slices white bread with 3 tsp butter
Lunch:
– roast beef sandwich on white bread
– potato chips
Snack:
– 1 cup Cheez It crackers
Dinner:
– fried fish strips
– 1 cup mashed potatoes cooked w/whole milk and butter
– cup corn

Diet make over:
Breakfast:
-glass of calcium fortified orange juice
– scrambled egg beaters
– 1-2 slices of whole grain bread with 1-2 tsp Benocol or ProActive spread
– 1-2 slices soy bacon or sausage links
Lunch:
– turkey, lettuce, tomato, and avocado sandwich
– 1 cup vegetable soup
– 8 oz vanilla non-fat yogurt with 1/3 cup of berries added
Snack:
1 ounce almonds
Dinner:
-3 ounces baked or broiled salmon
– cup broiled red potatoes with olive oil
– cup broccoli
– 1-2 cups of salad with cut up pears and toasted walnuts
with 1TB olive oil vinaigrette salad dressing

Results:
Day 1 = 2300 calories and 114 grams fat; 98 grams sat fat; 45% calories from fat
Day 2 = 1800 calories and 58 grams fat; 14 grams sat fat; 29% calories from fat.

Making small changes can go a long way to improve your heart health! What changes can you start making?

Meri Raffetto, 2005

About the Author

Owner of Real Living Nutrition Services, Meri Raffetto is a Registered Dietitian and a recognized professional in the area of nutrition and wellness. She has developed two online weight management programs, The Mini Diet Makeover and The Ultimate Diet Makeover, which focus on a healthy, non-diet approach to weight loss. For more information or to sign up for our free newsletter, visit www.reallivingnutrition.com.

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With cardiovascular diseases and pudginess rates soaring in the US and the industrialized world, man teenagers and adults are slowly turning to vegetarian diets as a major step towards achieving a healthy lifestyle. Diverse most of us who regularly munch on meat and dairy products, vegetarians dont have to worry about high cholesterol levels or tans – fat filled food items. Vegetarians however, need to ensure that they get the right amount of nutrition from their vegan diets, to maintain spanking health. With worldly-wise planning and consideration, a vegetarian diet can certainly be tasty and satisfying.

With No Established Vegetarian Diets, The Choice Is Outright Up To You

Most nutrition experts agree that with thereupon many vegetarian diets, there is actually no established vegan diet, and so the choice bequeath be all up to you. The problem with some vegetarians is that the more restricting their veggie diet becomes, the harder it entrust be for them to meet their bodys daily nutritional requirements. According to nutrition experts, the most commonly deficient nutrients among vegetarians include protein, iron, vitamin B12, vitamin D, calcium and zinc.

Soy protein can be a great protein source for vegetarians. To combine more soy to your daily diet, you may prepare soy chicken patties, soy hamburgers or soy cold cuts. The richest sources of iron are animal product like eggs, liver and red meat. Vegetarians can actually get iron from dried beans, dark green vegetables akin spinach, kale and dried fruit.

Three Elder Vegetarian Diet Types

Vegetarian diets are generally divided into three major categories, and these are:

Vegan Diets: This diet does not receive fish, eggs, meat, poultry and dairy products.

Lacto – Vegetarian Diets: A lacto – vegetarian diet does not include meat, fish, poultry and eggs. However, it includes dairy products matching cheese, yogurt, butter and milk.

Lacto – Ovo Vegetarian Diet: This vegetarian diet does not include fish, poultry and support, but includes eggs and dairy products like milk, cheese, butter and others.

While a vegetarian diet may not have detail opposite attributes, a vegetarian advocate should ensure that he or she is able to cover all nutritional requirements. It is therefore crucial for vegetarians to take vitamin and mineral supplements, which contain 100 percent of the recommended daily allowance, to complement the vegetarian meal plan. True – blooded vegetarians should focus their sights on getting adequate proteins and essential minerals double vitamin B12, calcium and iron.

Regardless of whether you proceed from a vegetarian diet for ethical, cultural or religious reasons, or you simply want to live a healthy and well – rounded life, the key to having a successful vegetarian diet lies in how aware are you of your nutritional needs. Therefore, you need to plan a diet that meets them. For creating the well-timed vegetarian diet, talk to your registered dietitian or doctor.

24 Hour Fitness
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