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5 Healthy Eating Tips For A Strong And Healthy Heart

Maintaining a healthy heart is paramount to overall well-being. By adopting a balanced and nutritious diet, you can significantly reduce the risk of heart disease, control blood pressure, and manage cholesterol levels. In this article, we will explore five essential eating tips to support heart health.

 

Photo by Brooke Lark on Unsplash

 

  1. Embrace a Plant-Based Diet

Including a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, and nuts in your daily meals forms the foundation of a heart-healthy diet. These plant-based foods are rich in vitamins, minerals, fiber, and antioxidants, which help reduce the risk of heart disease. Aim for at least five servings of fruits and vegetables each day, and choose whole grains like brown rice, quinoa, and whole wheat bread over refined grains.

  1. Limit Unhealthy Fats

Saturated and trans fats are known to raise cholesterol levels and increase the risk of heart disease. Limit your consumption of red meat, processed meats, full-fat dairy products, and deep-fried foods, as these are high in saturated fats. Instead, opt for lean proteins like skinless poultry, fish, legumes, and tofu. Replace unhealthy fats with healthier alternatives such as olive oil, avocado, and nuts, which provide essential fatty acids that promote heart health.

  1. Reduce Sodium Intake

A high-sodium diet can lead to elevated blood pressure, increasing the strain on your heart. To keep your blood pressure in check, limit your intake of processed and packaged foods, as they often contain excessive amounts of sodium. Instead, flavour your meals with herbs, spices, and other salt-free seasonings. Be mindful of restaurant meals and processed snacks, which can be hidden sources of sodium. Opt for fresh, home-cooked meals whenever possible.

  1. Choose Heart-Healthy Proteins

Protein is an essential nutrient, but not all sources are equally beneficial for heart health. Fatty cuts of meat and full-fat dairy products can contribute to high cholesterol levels. Opt for lean protein sources such as fish, skinless poultry, beans, lentils, and low-fat dairy products. Fish, especially those rich in omega-3 fatty acids like salmon, tuna, and sardine, provide additional heart-protective benefits.

  1. Watch Your Portion Sizes and Added Sugars

Controlling portion sizes is vital for maintaining a healthy weight and managing heart health. Be mindful of your calorie intake and avoid overeating. Additionally, limit your consumption of sugary foods and beverages, as excessive sugar intake has been linked to increased risk of heart disease. Choose natural sugars found in fruits and minimize the consumption of sugary snacks, sodas, and desserts.

 

In conclusion, adopting a heart-healthy diet is a crucial step towards maintaining a strong and healthy heart. By incorporating these five eating tips into your lifestyle, you can significantly reduce the risk of heart disease, keep blood pressure in check, and manage cholesterol levels. Remember, small changes in your eating habits can have a big impact on your heart health. Consult with your healthcare provider or a registered dietitian for personalized advice and guidance on creating a heart-healthy eating plan that suits your specific needs. Start prioritizing your heart health today for a healthier tomorrow.

 

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5 Essential Nutrients For Plant-based Diets

By Sally Shi-po POON (Registered Dietitian)

 

 

If you are a vegetarian or want to cut back on meats, make sure you get all the nutrients you need through a balanced diet. If a plant-based diet is well planned and nutritionally adequate, it may provide health benefits and lowering the risk of heart disease, colorectal cancer and type 2 diabetes. However, if the diet is not planned appropriately, you can fall short on the following nutrients easily:

 

  1. Protein

It is important to get enough dietary protein to keep our muscle, hair, skin and nails healthy. Main plant-based sources of protein include lentils, legumes, seeds, nuts, nut butter, soy milk, firm tofu, and meat substitutes. Eggs, milk, cheese, and yogurt are also good sources of protein if you eat these. Grains such as quinoa, millet, oats, wheat, and rice also contain some protein. It is important to eat different kinds of protein food every day to get all the amino acids required.

 

  1. Iron

Iron is essential for making red blood cells and insufficient iron intake can result in iron deficiency anaemia. Signs and symptoms include fatigue, weakness, pale skin, headache, dizziness, cold hands and feet, and brittle nails.

Plant sources of iron include white beans, kidney beans, chickpeas, lentils, fortified breakfast cereals, dark chocolate, firm tofu, raisins, spinach, and cashew nuts. Your body absorbs plant-based iron better when you eat it with foods that contain vitamin C, such as oranges, kiwi fruits, guavas, strawberries, sweet peppers, tomatoes, and broccoli.

 

  1. Omega-3 fatty acids

Omega-3 fatty acids are important for brain, eye, and heart health. The three main omega-3 fatty acids are alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). ALA is found mainly in plant oils such as chia seed, flaxseed, soybean, walnuts, canola oil, and soybean oil. DHA and EPA are found in fish and other seafood.

Your body can only convert very small amounts of ALA into EPA and then to DHA. If you do not eat fish and seafood, you should get EPA and DHA from fortified foods such as eggs, yogurt, juices, milk, and soymilk. If you think you have trouble getting enough omega-3s from food, consult with a doctor, dietitian, or pharmacist regarding dietary supplements.

 

  1. Calcium

 99% of the body’s calcium supply is stored in the bones and teeth where it supports their structure and function. Dairy foods are rich in calcium but if you are not eating these make sure you obtain calcium from other sources like fortified foods (e.g. breakfast cereals, fruit juices, tofu, soymilk, almond milk), dark green vegetables (e.g. Chinese cabbage, broccoli, kale, broccoli), almonds, and sesame seeds.

In addition to following a calcium-rich diet, you also need to get some vitamin D from the sun and fortified foods to enhance calcium absorption. And don’t forget about weight-bearing exercise which is the best type of exercise for your bones. Examples include weight training, walking, hiking, jogging, climbing stairs, tennis, and dancing.

 

  1. Vitamin B12

Vitamin B12 helps keep the nerve and blood cells healthy in the body. It also helps make the genetic material in cells called DNA. Inadequacy can lead to megaloblastic anaemia that makes people feel tired and weak, as well as nerve damage.

Vegetarians can get vitamin B12 from eggs and dairy foods. If you are a vegan, you can get vitamin B12 from a variety of fortified foods such as breakfast cereals, nutritional yeasts, soy yogurt, and beverages. If you think you have trouble getting enough vitamin B12 from food, consult with a doctor, dietitian, or pharmacist regarding dietary supplements.

 

Does “vegetarian” necessarily mean healthy?

Food products labelled with “vegetarian” or “vegan” do not necessarily mean healthy. Cookies, chips, sweetened cereals, vegetarian burgers and sausages might be vegetarian foods, but they are likely high in fats, added sugar and sodium. Therefore, eat smart by checking the food labels and look for products that carry less saturated fat, trans fat, added sugar and sodium. In addition, fortified foods vary in the formulation, so it is important to check product labels to determine which added nutrients they contain.

 

Sally’s Nutrition Blog @ Hong Kong Tatler: https://hk.asiatatler.com/life/essential-nutrients-plant-based-diet

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