Your heart is arguably the most important organ in your body. Essentially, the heart is single-handedly responsible for making sure vital oxygen and nutrients are circulated in your body via blood to keep you alive. It’s pretty important {and that’s putting it lightly}, so shouldn’t we eat like we value our hearts?
The truth is, many Canadians are endangering their hearts every day by consuming a “typical Western diet” – highly processed, high salt, high sugar, high fat diets that speed the build up of plaque in our arteries and sky rocket our blood pressure, putting unnecessary strain on our hard-working hearts. This week in the Eat For Your Health series, I want to talk about how you can make simple tweaks to make your daily food choices more heart friendly!
Cutting The Salt
According to the Heart & Stroke Foundation, high blood pressure is the number one risk factor for stroke, and definitely an important risk factor for heart disease. Your blood pressure can be influenced by a variety of factors, one of which is diet. High sodium levels in our diets play a role in raising our blood pressure, forcing our heart to work overtime.
The easiest way to lower your sodium intake? Limit processed foods. Many convenience foods and snack items contain high amounts of salt to add flavour and make them more shelf stable. By switching your focus to whole, minimally processed foods, you can help lower your sodium intake to a more moderate amount. Learn more about your daily sodium intake by clicking here.
Fat: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
Trans fats have been associated with an increased risk of coronary heart disease. Commonly found in processed foods {I’m talking cakes, cookies, pastries, potato chips, and crackers}, you want to keep your intake of this type of fat to a minimum for a healthy heart.
While the evidence for saturated fats seems to be an evolving field, with suggestions that this type of fat may not be as bad as we once thought, there is currently stronger scientific evidence to support limiting our saturated fat intake. A reduced intake of saturated fats has been shown to be beneficial for heart health, reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease events {such as heart attacks and stroke}. Foods high in saturated fat include fatty meats {beef, pork, chicken with the skin left on} and butter, along with many baked goods and fried foods. Keep your saturated fat intake in check by consuming more fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds, low fat dairy products, poultry, and fish.
When it comes to fat, keep the focus on healthy sources of fat, that is, mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids. This category of fat includes your omega 3 and 6 fatty acids, and works to reduce the levels of bad cholesterol {known as LDL cholesterol} in your body, lowering your risk of heart disease. These fats also contain nutrients that play a role in maintaining your body’s cells. Choose oils that contain these healthy fats such as olive oil, soybean oil, sesame oil, and canola oil. Not to mention fatty fish, just like I talked about in last week’s arthritis post.
Filling Up With Fibre
When eaten regularly as part of a diet low in saturated and trans fats, fibre has been associated with a decreased risk of cardiovascular disease. Fibre can be classified as either soluble or insoluble, both of which have benefits for your health. Soluble fibre sells up due to it’s ability to hold water, meaning it can help slow your digestion, keep your blood sugars even, fill you up, and help lower your LDL cholesterol levels {also known as bad cholesterol}.
Fun Fact: oats have the greatest proportion of soluble fibre when compared to any other grain – yet another reason to have oatmeal for breakfast!
Insoluble fibre also plays a role in helping you feel full, while also promoting digestive health.
Tie it Together: The Mediterranean Diet
Funny how we keep coming back to this way of eating! Are you starting to see how a plant-based, whole food diet can reduce your risk for chronic disease in general? Amazing, isn’t it?
Following a Mediterranean eating pattern will set you up for success, providing your body with the heart-healthy fats and nutrients it needs, while limiting the heart-hurting factors found in our food system {namely, high sodium and high trans- and saturated fats}.
Head over to Bourbon + Honey for this weeks meal plan, and show your heart a little more love!
Savour & Shine 