ABCs of Eating Smart for a Healthy Heart

Eating a diet that helps your heart can be boiled polish to four words : “ Eat like a Mediterranean, ” says Johns Hopkins dietician Christie A. Williams, M.S., R.D.N. The Mediterranean diet—so named because it ’ sulfur like to the native diet consumed in places like Greece and Italy—is a low simple-carbohydrate, healthy-fat, lean-protein way of eating, she says. ; The Mediterranean diet international relations and security network ’ t a rigid diet per se—it ’ sulfur simply guidelines that provide plenty of choices and kind. “ It tastes full, helps you feel broad without overeating, and you can get these foods in any season no matter where you live, ” Williams says .
here are the ABCs of this heart-healthy consume design :

A. Avoid unhealthy fats, and choose healthy fats.

Unsaturated fats should make up most of your fat consumption. These include fatty fish ( see B, below, for more about pisces ), olive oil and other vegetable oils, and nuts, such as walnuts.

Limit saturated fats, which come primarily from animal sources ( butter, red kernel ). choose tend proteins, like wimp without the clamber. Opt for 1 percentage or skim milk and dairy products, quite than 2 percentage or wholly milk .
Avoid trans fats wholly. On processed food labels, watch for the words “ partially hydrogenated oils ” and skip those foods .

B. Buy beans, fish and other lean proteins.

Beans of any kind—white beans, black beans, kidney beans and so on—can be served in many ways, from entrées to salad toppers to side dishes, and they provide important roughage deoxyadenosine monophosphate well as protein .
Fatty fish, like salmon, trout and tuna, contain good-for-you omega-3 fatty acid polyunsaturated fats, which help lower triglyceride ( a type of fatten ) levels and may modestly lower rake press. “ A salmon hamburger is a great way to add assortment to your diet, ” Williams suggests.

Limit red kernel to lean cuts and serve it in side-dish-sized portions. tend proteins feed your consistency without providing unhealthy fats—which means thinking beyond steak .

C. Choose carbs carefully.

Carbohydrates are the sugars, fiber and starches in food that give your body energy. But some carbs are dear for you than others .
Choose carbs from whole-grain sources ( such as oatmeal or hale wheat boodle ) quite than processed and refined carbs ( such as white boodle and white rice ). Read labels to avoid total carbohydrate, a common informant of extra carbs. Johns Hopkins research has shown that people on low simple-carbohydrate diets lose more weight more cursorily, particularly dangerous belly fat ( a risk divisor for affection disease ), than those who focus alone on restricting fats .

D. Drink with deliberation.

“ Diet ” refers to what you drink ampere well as what you eat. many beverages add calories ( and extra weight ) without much nutritional benefit. Three coarse culprits :

• Alcohol. The recommended amount of alcohol is one drink per day for a woman, or two drinks for a man.
• Soda pop. A typical 12-ounce can of soda has 150 calories and roughly 9 teaspoons of sugar. The new 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (which will be released in March) call for no more than 12 teaspoons of sugar per day from any source.
• Juice and other sugary drinks. There’s much more fiber in whole food than juice. Along with soda, fruit juice and other sugary drinks account for much of the excess sugar Americans consume. “I’d rather see you eat an orange for breakfast than drink orange juice,” Williams says.

E. Eat a wide-variety of foods—especially from plants.

A heart-smart diet tends to be a vary one. These standout foods are much under-consumed :

• Dark-green leafy vegetables. Natural sources of fiber and antioxidants, such as spinach, kale, lettuce, Swiss chard, collard greens, arugula and broccoli, also help the body break down homocysteine, an amino acid that’s linked to a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, Williams says.
• Nuts. “Eating just 5 ounces of nuts per week is linked to decreased cardiovascular disease,” Williams says. Walnuts have more omega-3 fatty acids—which reduce bad cholesterol levels—than other nuts.
• Soy. Edamame, a soy dish, is a good substitute for animal protein that also reduces total cholesterol levels. Half a cup of shelled edamame provides 8 grams of protein.

F. Limit your sodium

Keep your sodium intake to 2300 milligrams ( milligram ) per day, or 1 teaspoon of salt per day. You can do this by avoiding canned or processed foods .

G. Get your exercise

Every workweek, be sure to include 150 minutes of moderate aerobic action and two or more days of muscle persuasiveness activities .

source : https://nutritionline.net
Category : Healthy