Healthy Heart

Healthy eating to reduce your risk of heart disease   Following on from last week’s blog on heart disease, let’s talk about one of the key risk factors you can control to help reduce your risk of heart disease. Making these simple changes can also help you reduce your risk of related health conditions like high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes.   Eating a healthy balanced diet is important to keep your whole body working well. Healthy eating can also help control your weight, blood pressure and cholesterol levels. This means in the long term it can help to reduce your risk of developing coronary heart disease.   Eat Regularly Try not to skip meals, especially breakfast, as this can cause your mood to worsen and make you feel irritable, tired and hungry. Start the day with breakfast, people who eat breakfast regularly are more likely to stay a healthy weight than people who don’t.   Get your daily intake of fruit and veg Eating a wide variety of fruit and veg will ensure you get all the vitamins and minerals you need to keep healthy. Try to eat at least five portions of fruit and vegetables every day.   A portion is about a handful, or: ·         80g of fresh fruit or vegetables ·         30g of dried fruit or vegetables ·         A small glass (150ml) of fruit juice (limit this to 1 per day maximum)   Your fruit and veg can be: ·         Fresh ·         Frozen ·         Tinned (in juice or water) ·         Dried ·         Juiced - remember juice only counts as one portion a day.   We need fat You need some fat in your diet, but choosing the right type of fat is important for your heart health. Remember that all types of fat are high in calories so you should only eat them in small amounts.   Try to cut down on foods that are high in saturated fats. These fats can increase the level of cholesterol in your blood. They are found in foods like butter, lard, palm oil, coconut oil and full-fat dairy products, such as whole milk, cream and hard cheese. Go for lower fat dairy products such as low-fat milk and cheese.   Unsaturated fats are a healthier choice and are in foods like nuts and seeds, rapeseed oil, olive oil, sunflower oil, corn and soya oils and spreads made from them.   You should eat no more than 6g of salt a day Six grams of salt is the equivalent of about one teaspoon. Try to use less salt in your cooking and when eating your food. Check the labels on snacks and ready meals and choose ones that are lower in salt and eat less processed food that has a lot of salt in it. This includes some ready meals, pizza, ketchup, sauces, sausages, bacon and some types of bread and some breakfast cereals.   Hydrate  We need about 6–8 drinks a day to maintain good levels of hydration All non-alcoholic drinks count, but a glass of water, low fat milk and fruit juice are the healthiest. Coffee, tea, colas and some energy drinks contain caffeine which some people use to boost their energy levels. Make sure these are not your only drinks, as a lot of caffeine may increase your blood pressure and cause sleep problems.   Protein We need protein in our diet to keep our skin, muscles and the rest of our body healthy. Oily fish such as mackerel, herring, sardines, kippers and salmon are good sources of protein and omega-3 fats. Aim for a couple of portions of fish a week and make one oily fish. Aim to include a portion of protein at every meal. Foods high in protein are: ·         Lean meat ·         Eggs ·         Fish, including oily fish ·         Low fat milk ·         Beans ·         Lentils ·         Soya