Anne’s doctor referred her to me to help her eat a heart healthy diet. She had watched her total cholesterol, LDL, and Triglycerides go up for years, but now her doctor said that she had high calcium deposits in her coronary arteries. He said it was time to take action for her heart health.
Initially, medications lowered Anne’s elevated blood lipids, but eventually stopped being effective. Anne called me for help. We changed what she ate by implementing a heart healthy dietary pattern. She ate fewer foods that are high in saturated fat, more omega 3 fatty acids, and more soluble fiber. Today, Anne has the best heart blood lab values that she’s had in 20 years and lost 25lbs, and has kicked heart disease to the curb!
While weight loss may be a key factor in reducing risk of heart disease, it is important to make sure your food choices are healthy, sustainable, and nutritious. Quite often, people develop toxic eating habits in order to lose weight by eating very low calories of poor nutrient quality foods. Do your heart a favor and gravitate towards nutrient rich foods that provide a variety of vitamins and minerals.
Sodium and potassium are key components in heart disease since they regulate blood pressure. Including potassium rich foods like bananas while reducing sodium to no more than 1500mg per day can help reduce high blood pressure and thus heart disease. Beware of food labels since sodium is a common preservative and additive!
Reducing saturated fat helps to 6% of calories minimize risk for heart disease. Saturated fats are solid at room temperature and typically come from animal products like sausage and bacon, or from processed foods such as pastries and fast foods. Try replacing saturated fats with unsaturated fats that are healthier and provide more vitamins and minerals such as avocado and natural peanut butter.
The American Heart Association recommends eating fatty fish twice a week due to its richness in omega-3 fatty acids. By including foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids, you may notice improved blood pressure, decreased triglyceride levels, and reduced blood clotting, and better overall heart performance. If you’re not a fish fan, try including nuts, seeds, and plant oils into your diet.
Follow the DASH diet or Mediterranean diet as a model for heart healthy eating. The DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet focuses on reducing sodium and sugar but increasing nutrients like potassium, calcium, and magnesium through eating mainly fruits, vegetables, whole-grains, lean protein, and low-fat dairy. On the other hand, the Mediterranean diet follows the same recommendation as the DASH diet, but with less dairy products and more fish.
For a Valentine’s day heart-healthy treat, click here!
For more on my take of the Mediterranean diet, click here!
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Kay Loughrey, MPH, RDN, LDN
Transformational Speaker, Breakthrough Coach, Nutritionist-Dietitian
Candice Shipley, Student Nutritionist
Nutrition & Food Science – Dietetics
University of Maryland, College Park | 2023