Good Lifestyle

How often do we think of ourheart health? We constantly say to listen to what our heart tells us, whether it is a new job, a new relationship, or any other major change of life - our hearts are there to guide us. But do we take good care of the organ that does so much for our body, especially when it comes to making sure we have healthy cardiac diet? A variety of lifestyle factors contribute to your cardiovascular well-being, regularly exercise, handle stress, to have a lot of sleep. But perhaps the biggest impact you have about your health is with the foods you eat.

"Food has a considerable impact on cardiac health," said Kate Patton, a dietician with theCleveland Clinic's Heart & Vascular Institute. "Have a healthy heart means that you should handle all your controllableRisk factors for heart disease, including the use of smoking, high LDL cholesterol, low HDL cholesterol, high triglycerides, uncontrolled hypertension, uncontrolled diabetes, level of physical activity, obesity, circumference. and uncontrolled stress. Your diet has an impact on the majority of these factors. "

This means that the key to your cardiovascular well-being could simply be found in your kitchen. If you do not know how to take care of your ticker, read it for the best cardiac health schemes, according to three RDS. Now, the next time you cute your grocery shopping, you can store a lot ofFood for the perfect healthy cardiac diet for you.

The 5 best cardiac health schemes

Dash is an acronym for "dietary approaches to stop hypertension", which means high blood pressure. Arterial hypertension is aMajor risk factor For a heart attack and a stroke, so the management of your risk can reduce your risk of cardiovascular problems.

The Dash diet focuses on limiting your salt and saturated fats and eating healthy healthy foods, such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts, legumes and low fat dairies . Together, these foods provide a number of nutrients linked to the drop in blood pressure, namely potassium, magnesium and calcium.

"Potassium plays a key role in helping your heart Beat rhythm and adequate levels can help lower blood pressure," says Toby Smithson, MS, RDN, LD, CDE, founder ofDiabetes every dayand author ofPlanning meals of diabetes and nutrition for dummies. "Magnesium helps the regulation of blood pressure and calcium also plays a role in reducing blood pressure. Therefore, including foods rich in potassium, magnesium and calcium can help reduce or maintain the arterial pressure."

And as the stem regime closely resembles general recommendations for healthy diet, this type of power plan is also recommended by RDS to maintain overall health, in addition to helping youReduce your blood pressure with good foods.

Research found that chronic inflammationcan increase the risk to develop cardiovascular problems. This is because inflammation contributes to plaque accumulation in body arteries and plate is a risk factor for heart attacks and brain stroke.

The idea ofanti-inflammatory regime It is quite simple: kissing foods that have been demonstrated to reduce inflammation and avoid food that can cause inflammation in the body.

The key is "including phytonutrient and antioxidant sources," says Maxine Yeung, MS, R & CPT, CWC, an authorized dietician, a personal trainer and founder ofThe whip of well-being. This means charges of fresh produce (vegetables and fruits), as well as healthy greases and complex carbohydrates. This also means reduce or avoid animal protein, simple carbohydrates and processed foods.

As a bonus, limiting inflammation throughout your bodycan also reduce your riskOther chronic conditions, such as cancer, arthritis, depression and Alzheimer's disease. And there is a lot ofinflammatory foods that cause weight gainYou should stay away too.

TheMediterranean diet Has been popular among the eaters conscious of the heart for a while, and there is a proof that it succeeds. For example,A recent study Directed by a team of researchers in Boston noted that those who followed the Mediterranean regime reduce the beginning of heart disease by a reduction of 25%.

"This diet focuses primarily eating whole foods based on plants; many fibers of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts and legumes; choose healthy greases on saturated fats; limited red meat and Salt, "says Yeung, who is a promoter of the drug regime. "The Mediterranean diet is also very durable because it does not limit too much food."

As with the dash regime, the Mediterranean diet is a healthy diet plan for anyone. Among other advantages, it has beenproven Reduce inflammation and reduce the risk of chronic diseases, including those affecting the brain.

Vegetarian And those who rarely eat meat can have a leg on eager carnivores when it comes to cardiac health. "Reducing meat consumption can help reduce cholesterol and reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease," says Smithson.

And because a vegetarian plan isplantsBy nature, it includes many anti-inflammatory foods and beneficial nutrients for your overall heart and health. In addition to charging fruits and vegetables, Smithson says that vegetarians can enjoy many sources of protein in the form of beans, tofu, tempeh and nuts or nut butters.

If you simply can not go from cold turkey to Turkey (and other meats), consider adopting a "flexitarian" power plan, as Smithson calls. It is above all a vegetarian diet, but it allows occasional consumption of meat meats.

"From my experience, the fiber is one of the most missing components of the diet of people, and yet there are so many health benefits [to eat fibers]," said Yeung.

The fiber helps lower LDL cholesterol (ie a bad cholesterol), maintain more stable blood sugar levels and handle weight - all that improves cardiac health. In fact, aHigh fiber diethas beenlinked to A reduced risk of dying of cardiovascular disease and cancer.

Unfortunately, according to Yeung, "The average American is eating less than half of the US food recommendations, which are in fact less than the World Health Organization's recommendations." For those who are wondering,Your total consumption of food fiber Should be 25 to 30 grams a day of food.

The 5 worst peasters for cardiac health

It's probably not a new one to consume youtoo much sugar has beenlinked to the coronary disease and increased inflammation.

The bad news is: "The average American eats about 17 teaspoons added sugar per day, which exceeds the higher amount recommended twice," says Yeung.

High sugar consumption can also result in weight gain, which also has consequences for cardiovascular health. As Patton explains, "the excess simple sugar tends to be stored as a belly fat. Wear excess weight in your abdominal area ... [Increases the risk of heart disease."

This is not a formal regime, of course, that is what the average of the United States looks like. The "standard American diet", as yeung calls, is responsible for sugar and is poorly low in fiber. "The average American eats ... about 15 grams of fiber a day, which corresponds to about half of the recommended amount," she says.

Not surprisingly, Yeung says to eat tons of sugar and not enough fiber contribute to mediocre cardiac health. Since the fiber is essential to remain ill (ie cholesterol cholesterol, maintain stable blood sugar levels and weight management, a diet with inadequate fiber consumption can contribute At high levels of LDL cholesterol, weight gain and erratic blood glucose. And all this can increase your risk of cardiovascular problems. In addition, keep the bad cholesterol at the bay whileIncrease the right (ie HDL) cholesterol type is possible.

The ketogenic regime - orKeto diet, as it is known to the symposium - took the stage of health by the storm. It is mainly intended for weight loss and advocates a moderate low carbohydrate protein, and a high fat approach to eat.

But as the keto regime is relatively new in the world of nutrition, its impact on cardiac health are not definitive. "Some studies show improvements in cardiac health risk factors, such as cholesterol, and others testify to negative impacts," said Yeung. This can be in part because on the regime of keto, it is possible tomistakenly consume inflammatory foods And miss on important nutrients.

Because many questions about the relationship between keto and cardiac health still have to be answered, Yeung warns against the use of this food style in the name of your heart. "We do not know the long-term effects," she says. "For now, I would not recommend this regime for cardiac health."

Many people adopt a diet rich in protein because it helps them feel more satiated after meals, which can reduce nibbling and facilitate weight loss. Other people can consume large amounts of protein as part of a force drive routine.

But with regard to the health of the heart, consuming too many proteins is not ideal, especially if this protein comes from red meats or other food sources that are rich in saturated fats. "Protein-rich diets can cause cholesterol to increase due to higher concentration of saturated fats and cholesterol," says Smithson.

A high protein diet can also limit carbohydrate consumption to the point it reducesFiber intake at problematic levels. And, as you now know, few fibers could mean problems for your heart health.

In the end, one of the worst regimes for heart health is the one you can not stay.

"Eat a specific way then stop can undo all the good you have done during a diet," says Patton. "That's why I encourage you more than one Mediterranean style or Dash style feeding model, because they are lasting for life. »

SUPPORT YEUNG, adding that if you are only able to maintain a certain plan for a short period of time, it will not have a positive long-term impact on your heart. "It's better to find a diet that includes healthy foods for the heart and works well for your lifestyle," she says.