The impact of diet on heart health is a well-established fact backed by extensive scientific research.
The foods we consume play a crucial role in shaping our cardiovascular well-being, influencing key factors such as cholesterol levels, blood pressure, inflammation, and overall cardiac function.
This article provides a comprehensive overview of following a diet for heart health, including a sample 7-day plan featuring daily meals and a corresponding shopping list.
Heart-Healthy Foods to Eat
In general, the sorts of foods you’ll want to eat regularly include:
- Fruits: Fruits provide significant benefits for heart health through their rich content of fiber, which aids in managing cholesterol levels and promoting healthy digestion. They are also high in antioxidants, which help reduce oxidative stress and inflammation, key factors in the development of heart disease.
- Vegetables: Vegetables are low in calories and high in fiber, promoting heart health by lowering blood pressure and reducing the risk of heart disease.
- Fatty Fish: Fatty fish like salmon, mackerel, trout, and sardines are excellent sources of omega-3 fatty acids. These healthy fats help reduce inflammation, lower triglyceride levels, and promote heart health.
- Legumes: Legumes: Beans, lentils, chickpeas, and other legumes are rich in fiber, protein, and nutrients. They can help lower cholesterol, reduce blood pressure, and maintain healthy blood sugar levels, supporting heart health.
- Whole Grains: Opt for whole grains like oats, brown rice, quinoa, and whole wheat bread. These grains are high in fiber, vitamins, and minerals, and can help lower cholesterol levels and maintain a healthy heart.
- Nuts and Seeds: Almonds, walnuts, flaxseeds, and chia seeds are excellent sources of heart-healthy fats, fiber, and antioxidants. They can help reduce bad cholesterol levels and lower the risk of heart disease when consumed in moderation.
- Olive Oil: Olive oil is a healthier alternative to other oils higher in saturated fats. It is rich in monounsaturated fats and antioxidants, which can help reduce inflammation and improve heart health.
Foods to Limit
By all means, treat yourself occasionally – but don’t make a habit of eating these foods regularly:
- Junk foods: fast food and potato chips
- Refined carbohydrates: white bread, pasta, crackers, flour tortillas, biscuits
- Fried foods: french fries, donuts, fried meats
- Sugar-sweetened beverages: soda, tea with added sugar, sports drinks
- Processed meats: bacon, canned meat, salami, sausages
- Trans fats: vegetable oil and margarine
Heart Healthy Diet Tips
In general, here are some of the basic tips you’ll want to follow to ensure you’re eating as healthy as possible:
Reduce Your Saturated Fats
Eating more saturated fat can increase “bad” LDL cholesterol levels in your body. High levels of LDL cholesterol have been associated with an increased risk of heart disease and cardiovascular disease.
Some simple ways to reduce the saturated fat in your diet include:
- Choosing leaner meat cuts like chicken and reduced-fat mince
- Choose reduced-fat dairy products like semi-skimmed milk
- Swap out butter for healthier alternatives such as extra virgin olive oil.
Replace Refined Grains with Whole Grains
Whole grains are made up of the germ, endosperm and bran. The germ and bran contain important vitamins and minerals as well as fiber. Refining grains removes these nutritious parts, leaving a rapidly digested starch.
Refined grains have been shown to contribute to major swings in blood sugar levels and overeating (1). By comparison, eating whole grains can lead to a 20% lower risk of heart disease and stroke (2).
Some simple ways to reduce the saturated fat in your diet include:
- Barley
- Brown rice
- Bulgur wheat
- Oatmeal
- Whole-wheat bread
- Whole-wheat pasta
Eat Fiber-Rich Foods
Fiber-rich foods can help increase feelings of fullness, helping you control your portion sizes. Fiber may also promote the release of satiety hormones (3, 4).
Both of these factors ultimately mean that you eat less naturally, without having to think about it.
Foods high in fiber include:
- Fruits and vegetables
- Legumes
- Oats
- Nuts
- Whole grains
Use Less Sodium or Salt
Eating too much salt can lead to high blood pressure, a leading cause of cardiovascular disease.
Using herbs and spices instead of salt can replace the flavor that is lost from salt. Different herbs and spices also contain various antioxidants which may provide health benefits. For example:
- Cinnamon has been shown to lower blood sugar levels in diabetics (5, 6, 7)
- Cayenne pepper contains capsaicin, a component that may help reduce appetite (8, 9, 10)
- Ginger has been shown to have strong anti-inflammatory properties (11)
Although these benefits are likely to be small, they make for a healthier overall diet when combined less salt being used.
Eat Less Sugar
Diets high in sugar have been shown to increase various diseases. The risk of heart disease is particularly common and is the number one cause of death globally (12).
High-sugar diets can cause obesity, inflammation, high triglycerides and blood sugar levels, just to name a few (13).
Obesity is also the strongest risk factor for diabetes (14).
Some easy ways to reduce the amount of sugar in your diet include:
- Drink less sugary beverages like soda and juice. Drink more water instead.
- Snack on fruit, nuts and seeds. Keep the sugary treats for special occasions, or eat them in smaller sizes.
- Check food labels for hidden sugar. Although low-fat products are good for reducing saturated fat intake, they may replace the fat with sugar.
What’s the Best Heart-Healthy Diet?
The Mediterranean diet is considered one of the best diets to follow for heart health. It was ranked the number 1 diet according to the U.S. News & World Report.
In particular, it is rated amongst the best because of how healthy it is as well as how easy it is to follow. This makes it a perfect diet to follow if you want to find a sustainable way of eating healthy long-term.
It is high in the foods that help fight inflammatory markers such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, whole grains, fish, and healthy oils.
Many credible organizations suggest following a Mediterranean diet for health reasons. These include:
Heart-Healthy Diet Meal Plan
Sample Menu
In the meal plan are recipes for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
| Breakfast | Lunch | Dinner | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon | Blueberry Blues Porridge | Greek Salad | Haddock Risotto |
| Tues | Basil & Spinach Scramble | Falafel Wraps | Eggplant & Lentil Bake |
| Wed | Tomato & Watermelon Salad | Carrot, Orange & Avocado Salad | Mediterranean Chicken, Quinoa & Greek Salad |
| Thurs | Blueberry Blues Porridge | Mixed Bean Salad | Grilled Vegetables with Bean Mash |
| Fri | Basil & Spinach Scramble | Panzanella Salad | Salmon & Chickpea Salad |
| Sat | Tomato & Watermelon Salad | Spiced Carrot & Lentil Soup | Chicken Gyros |
| Sun | Blueberry Blues Porridge | Moroccan Chickpea Soup | Spicy Mediterranean Beet Salad |
Snacks are recommended between meal times. Some good snacks include:
- A handful of nuts or seeds
- A piece of fruit
- Carrots or baby carrots
- Berries or grapes