Good Lifestyle

As one of the most complex and vital organs in the human body, much focus is placed on keeping your heart healthy. Unfortunately, it's for a good reason: According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), someone in the U.S. suffers a heart attack every 40 seconds. Doctors typically recommend specific diet and exercise regimens to help maintain cardiovascular health, usually focusing on what to avoid at mealtime. But according to a new study, eating one food regularly could actually slash your risk of a heart attack. Read on to see what you may want to start working into your diet.

Kaugnay:Not Doing This Before Bed Could Be Hurting Your Heart, Experts Warn.

The latest heart health discovery comes from a study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association on March 30, which aimed to better understand the long-term impact avocados could have on cardiovascular disease. Researchers used data from 68,786 women aged 30 to 55 and 41,701 men aged 40 to 75 collected through dietary questionnaires every four years. At the beginning of the 30-year research period, all participants involved had reported no history of heart attack or stroke.

There were 9,185 coronary heart disease events and 5,290 strokes reported among participants throughout the study. After comparing health records and dietary data, results showed that participants who ate two servings of avocado per week—or the equivalent of one whole avocado—saw a 16 percent reduction in risk of cardiovascular disease and a 21 percent reduced risk of having a heart attack compared to participants who didn't eat avocados.

Besides noting the impact of including avocados in participants' diets, the researchers also used statistical modeling to find that replacing half a serving each day of butter, margarine, eggs, cheese, yogurt, or processed meats such as bacon also reduced the risk of heart disease by 16 to 22 percent. However, the same health benefits were not seen when avocado was swapped out for the equivalent serving size of nuts, olive oil, or other plant-based oils.

"Although no one food is the solution to routinely eating a healthy diet, this study is evidence that avocados have possible health benefits," Cheryl Anderson, PhD, chair of the American Heart Association's (AHA) Council on Epidemiology and Prevention who was not involved in the study, said in a statement. "This is promising because it is a food item that is popular, accessible, desirable, and easy to include in meals eaten by many Americans at home and in restaurants."

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Experts conclude that the findings support mounting evidence that certain eating styles can significantly impact heart health. "We desperately need strategies to improve intake of AHA-recommended healthy diets—such as the Mediterranean diet—that are rich in vegetables and fruits," Anderson told CNN.

Ayon kayLorena Pacheco, PhD, the study's lead author and a postdoctoral research fellow in the nutrition department at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston, it can be particularly easy to "replace certain spreads and saturated fat-containing foods, such as cheese and processed meats, with avocado." But even though just one-quarter of an avocado a day can reduce your risk of heart disease, she warns to be careful of negating the fruit's healthy offerings.ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb

"I have seen some avocado toast recipes made with mayonnaise which defeats the purpose," Pacheco told USA Today. "We should be using avocado in lieu of mayonnaise."

Other research has shown that avocados aren't alone in providing heart health benefits. A 2019 Italian study published in theJournal of the American College of Cardiology analyzed the impact of chili peppers sa panganib ng kamatayan mula sa atake sa puso. Ginamit ng mga mananaliksik ang data mula sa higit sa 22,800 kalahok na nakatala sa Moli-Sani Study, isang populasyon na pangkat na hinikayat na mga kalalakihan at kababaihan nang random sa pagitan ng Marso 2005 at Abril 2015. Para sa 2019 na pag-aaral, ang koponan ay sumunod sa katayuan ng kalusugan ng mga kalahok sa loob ng walong taon at kumpara sa data na iyon sa kanilang mga gawi sa pagkain. Natuklasan ng mga Italyano na mga mananaliksik na ang mga regular na natupok ng mga peppers ng chili ay hindi bababa sa apat na beses sa isang linggo o higit pa ay may 40 porsiyentong mas mababang panganib na mamatay mula sa atake sa puso kaysa sa mga bihirang kumain sa kanila.

Ngunit ang mga mananaliksik ay hindi tumigil sa pagtingin sa mga benepisyong pangkalusugan na may kaugnayan sa atake sa puso. Natagpuan din ng mga resulta na ang mga tao na kumain ng chili peppers apat na beses sa isang linggo o higit pa ay 60 porsiyento na mas malamang na mamatay mula sa cerebrovascular disease tulad ng stroke kumpara sa mga hindi regular na kumain ng mga peppers.

Kahit na hindi sinuri ng mga mananaliksik kung bakit ang mga chili peppers ay maaaring magkaroon ng positibong epekto sa kalusugan ng puso, ang ilang mga eksperto ay naniniwala na ang capsaicin, ang aktibong sahog na nagbibigay ng chilis sa kanilang maapoy na init, ay maaaring dahilan. "Ang ilang dataIpakita kung paano capsaicinoids. [Ang isang klase ng compounds na kinabibilangan ng capsaicin] ay maaaring magkaroon ng epekto sa function ng platelet [upang matulungan ang iyong katawan form clots upang ihinto ang dumudugo], ang mga cell na lining ang mga daluyan ng dugo, at pagbawas sa insulin paglaban, "Jeffrey Teuteberg, MD, isang cardiologist sa Stanford Health Care, na hindi kasangkot sa pag-aaral, sinabi araw-araw na kalusugan.

Kaugnay:Ang pagkakaroon ng maraming inumin sa isang linggo ay nagbabawas sa iyong panganib sa atake sa puso, hinahanap ng bagong pag-aaral.