Eating a healthy diet – and staying away from hidden threats – should be your first defence against heart disease.

But how do you use nutrition to keep your heart healthy? The first step is knowing which foods are good for your heart’s health, and which aren’t. While certain foods can help your heart function properly, others, if eaten in excess, greatly contribute to heart disease by disrupting the body’s natural balance and damaging the cardiovascular system. To compensate for this, the body increases its blood cholesterol levels and blood pressure, which ends up straining the heart more then necessary.

But that damage isn’t irreversible: small diet and lifestyle changes go a long way to support the body in healing itself and to prevent further damage from occurring. To keep your heart happy, check out the nutrition tips below and start giving your body what it needs to heal and thrive.

Know Your Bad Fats

There’s been a lot of discussion in recent years about good fats versus bad ones. It may seem like a confusing distinction, but it’s easier than you think to identify the fats that are doing harm to your cardiovascular system and to limit them in your diet. The big culprits to avoid: saturated and trans fats.

If you think the term “saturated fats” sounds scary, there’s good reason: diets high in them lead to increased cholesterol levels, which in turn may damage the heart’s arterial walls, putting you at risk for heart disease, stroke and other vascular conditions. Animal-sourced foods, such as beef, veal, lamb, pork, lard, chicken skin, butter and cream – as well as full-fat cheese and milk – are the source of the most concentrated amounts of saturated fat. You can significantly reduce the amounts in your diet by choosing to eat leaner cuts of meat and lower-fat versions of dairy products. Reducing your red meat and pork consumption, or even eating vegetarian meals a few times a week, may also help.

Meanwhile, trans fats lurk in some margarines and many packaged foodstuffs, such as cookies, cakes, frozen meals and fast foods. Studies have revealed that trans fats cause harm by disrupting the body’s natural cholesterol balance. In essence, they are so unhealthy that our cells have trouble recognizing them as food and don’t know how to process them. Read your food’s labels, and become informed about which products are bogged down by trans fats. You can start by aiming to reduce them in your diet, but cutting them out completely is the best way to show your heart you care.

But Don’t Forget the Good Ones

Heart-helping Omega-3 fats are the good guys in the quest for a healthier heart. These unsaturated fats assist the body in lowering blood pressure, cholesterol and the viscosity of the blood. All three components are risk factors in heart disease, so lowering them is extremely important in maintaining a healthy heart. Additionally, Omega-3 fats are not only cardio-protective but also decrease inflammation throughout your entire body. Fatty fish, such as salmon, sardines and trout, are the best sources of Omega-3, but you’ll also find significant amounts in foods including flax seeds, chia seeds, walnuts, soybeans and pumpkin seeds.

Watch Out for Simple Sugars and Refined Grains

Simple sugars and refined grains contain no healthy fibre and are detrimental to your overall health, let alone heart health. They negatively impact blood sugar levels, contributing to increases in triglyceride levels and weight gain. Yet they’re in so much of what we eat. Sugar can be in everything from granola bars to your favourite condiments, such as ketchup and mayonnaise. Meanwhile, refined grains – such as white flour – pop up in regular pasta, white bread and cookies. Whether your goal is nourishing your heart or losing weight, it’s crucial to weed out these nutrient-poor foods and replace them with their more natural, less-refined counterparts. Look for sweet alternatives like honey, maple syrup, agave nectar or molasses, and grain options such as brown or wild rice, and products made with whole wheat, whole rye, amaranth, barley, buckwheat, millet or oats.

Slow Down on the Sodium

Sodium is another repeat offender that turns up in excessive quantities in fast food, processed foods, condiments and even some seemingly healthy canned goods. As a result, most people consume way more sodium than is required for good health. Reducing sodium intake is beneficial in maintaining healthy blood pressure and therefore a healthy heart. To cut down on sodium, start by simply increasing your intake of whole foods and homemade meals, taking a pass on the pre-packaged, over-processed and nutritionally empty temptations out there. Your sodium consumption will be significantly lowered instantly. Then remove the saltshaker from your table and get creative with herbs and spices – increasing flavour in your homemade meals.

Get Good Vibes From Extra Fibre

Getting enough fibre is essential to good health. Fibre functions to slow the absorption of glucose when you eat, thereby preventing high blood sugar levels, which can be damaging to the blood vessels and heart. It also lowers the total amount of cholesterol circulating in the blood stream, helping to reduce your risk of developing high blood pressure, atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), heart disease and stroke. The good news is that it is both easy and delicious to choose fibre-rich food. Start with legumes, berries and vegetables (such as peas, beans, cabbage, carrots, celery, broccoli, zucchini and leafy greens). When looking for more concentrated sources of fibre, reach for wheat bran, oat bran, ground flax seeds, ground chia seeds and psyllium husk, which can be easily added to other recipes, sprinkled over salads or stirred into your favourite smoothie.

And remember: fibre requires your body to be well hydrated in order to function effectively, so aim to drink at least three to four litres of water every day and follow your high-fibre meals with an extra glass!

A Colourful Plate is a Heart-Helping One

Brightly coloured fruits and vegetables are excellent sources of disease-fighting elements called phytonutrients and antioxidants, which help to prevent – and can even reverse – negative processes such as heart disease. Studies also suggest that they can help with weight loss, increase energy and fight cancer-causing free radicals in the body. What better arguments could you need to snack on delicious fruits and vegetables instead of harmful processed treats? Be sure to always stock your fridge with a variety of fresh produce, eat at least one large salad each day and make sure every meal includes some form of fruit or vegetable.

Take These Tips to Heart…

… and you’ll quickly be fostering better cardiovascular health. You’ll be surprised at how easy these simple improvements are to make, and how quickly you’ll start to feel the benefits of a heart-loving diet.

FEATURED RECIPE

Chicken and Black Bean Salad

This salad isn’t just mouth-wateringly tasty, but it’s low in sodium and cholesterol, and high in fibre too – making it the perfect Valentine for your heart. Ask for other heart-healthy recipes at your local U Weight Loss clinic this month.

Ingredients:

4 oz Boneless, skinless chicken breast
1/3 cup Low-sodium black beans
1/2 small Red pepper
1/4 cup Salsa
1/4 Avocado
2 tbsp Light sour cream
1 cup Spinach

Instructions:

Cut up cooked chicken breast into small cubes and place in medium-sized bowl. Drain the black beans, rinse well and add to bowl. Chop pepper and mix in with chicken, beans, salsa and the avocado cut into small chunks. Place spinach on plate and top with chicken mixture and sour cream.

Caloric Information:

Approx. calories for this meal: 400
42.3% Protein
26.2% Carbohydrates
31.5% Fat