Heart-healthy diet
What you eat can reduce your risks of more than heart problems. A heart-healthy diet can help reduce your:
- Cholesterol
- Blood pressure
- Risk of stroke
- Risk of diabetes
- Risk of osteoporosis
The basics of a heart-healthy diet
You can begin to eat healthier right now.
- Eat 5 or more servings of vegetables and fruits each day
- Eat 6 or more servings of grain products each day
- Choose fat-free and low-fat foods such as milk products (fat-free or 1/2% fat), fish, beans, poultry with the skin removed and lean meats
- Use fats and oils with 2 grams or less saturated fat per tablespoon. These include canola oil, olive oil or tub margarines that include oil that is not hydrogenated as the first ingredient.
- If you are overweight, reduce the number of calories you eat each day. You would be surprised how many calories come from snacks, so choose lower-fat snacks.
- Walk or do other activities for at least 30 minutes on most days. To lose weight, do enough activity to use up more calories than you eat every day.
- Limit your intake of foods high in calories or low in nutrition, including foods like soft drinks and candy that have a lot of sugars.
- Reduce the amount of salt you eat each day. Avoid adding salt to foods and choose low-salt options whenever possible. Add herbs and salt-free seasonings instead of salt.
- Limit yourself to one alcoholic drink per day if you're a woman or two drinks per day if you're a man. One drink would include one 12 oz. beer, 4 oz. of wine, or one mixed drink with 1-1/2 oz. of 80-proof liquor.
Adapt the foods you love
It's not easy to change your diet. Usually, people prefer to eat foods that they have eaten their whole lives. To make lasting changes, you'll need to adapt the foods you enjoy. With some exceptions, you can change your diet in healthy ways without buying any special foods. There are many cookbooks that can help you alter the recipes you use to lower the fat, salt and sugar in them.
Talk to a dietitian
A dietitian can help you adapt the foods you normally eat to be more "heart smart." This is important because you will be much more likely to stick with a diet if you enjoy it.
