Smart food choices can lower your risk for heart disease

Fuel the body with the right food and you'll be rewarded with good health, especially good heart health.

Any heart patient will tell you that rehabilitation includes dietary classes that teach wise food choices. Diet is important to the heart because unhealthy foods can raise the blood pressure, cause heart-stressing weight gain, increase cholesterol levels and clog arteries.

Cutting out steak dinners, cheeseburgers and cream sauces can make you feel deprived, but Venessa Provins, a dietitian at Porter hospital who teaches a free healthy heart diet class, said its easier to think about adding healthy things rather than subtracting unhealthy things.

"We often focus on what we can't eat, but it's easier to focus on what to add, and then the bad stuff decreases and your taste buds adjust. Once you give healthy foods a chance you end up enjoying them."

Healthy choices

Push your shopping cart down a grocery store aisle and you'll see heart symbols on packages stating their product is heart healthy.

"This can be confusing to people," said Lori Granich, a dietitian at St. Margaret Mercy in Dyer. "You'll see these claims on margarine, cereal, and even orange juice. Many companies have jumped on the heart healthy bandwagon. But truly, the legitimate heart healthy foods are oats, omega-3 fats, potassium, calcium, flavanoids, and antioxidants."

Oats have soluble fiber that lowers artery clogging cholesterol. Omega-3 fats help prevent irregular heartbeat and lower triglyceride levels and raise HDL levels.

"HDL is the good cholesterol," Provins said. "Think H for healthy. Think L for lousy; LDL is the bad cholesterol."

Omega 3s can be found in things like flaxseed, oily fish, such as salmon, sardines, tuna, herring, trout; nuts, such as walnuts; and oils, such as canola and olive oil. Provins recommends two servings of fish a week. Granish says if you don't care for fish, omega 3s are included in many products now, such as butter replacement spreads.

"You can also get it in a fish oil supplement," she said.

Potassium helps maintain good blood pressure by counteracting sodium. Potassium is high in bananas and oranges. Calcium, found in dairy products, almonds, and even broccoli, helps the heart muscle contract and relax.

"Choose low-fat or fat-free versions of dairy," Provins said.

Flavanoids help protect blood vessels and prevent excess inflammation throughout the body.

"These are in red wine, tomatoes, apples, berries, dark chocolate," Granich said. "Of course, the wine and chocolate should be in moderation."

Antioxidants are nutrients that help prevent oxidative damage in the body. Although these are present in all fruits and vegetables, those rich in antioxidants are deep red and blue.

Although five servings of fruits and vegetables is the norm (1/2 cup of cooked or one cup of raw vegetables, and one small piece of fruit is a serving), Provins prefers nine servings for heart health, five those are vegetables. "Make sure they are colorful, such as dark green, red and orange, so that you get a variety."

What to cut out

• Limit salt. Sodium raises the blood pressure, so no more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium. The new recommendation for African Americans, people 50 and older, and those with high blood pressure is less than 1,500 milligrams of sodium. "Plenty salt is in processed foods," Provins said. "So it's best to make your own. You can replace the salt by adding in more flavor with herbs and spices."

• Decrease cholesterol. "Cholesterol comes from anything with a face," Provins said. "So green beans are cholesterol free. Americans eat too much meat. We should eat no more than six ounces a day, and leaner cuts. Three ounces is the size of a deck of cards or the palm of a woman's hand. You can bulk out the portion by sautéing vegetables in a little olive or canola oil to go on the top, such as peppers and mushrooms. The juice from the vegetables will also make a nice sauce. If you're making a sandwich, bulk it out by using plenty of vegetables."

• Decrease saturated fats and avoid trans fats. Trim the fat, take off the skin. Avoid palm oil and coconut oil. Trans fats exist in stick margarine and canned shortening, and in processed baked goods Read the label to check.

• Healthy fats have the same calories as unhealthy fats, so if you need to lose weight, moderate intake. No more than 30 percent of calories in your daily diet should come from fat. Healthy fat is unsaturated, such as in liquid oils from soy beans, olive, safflower. Or avocados and nuts (walnuts and almonds are the best choices). One shot glass of nuts is a serving.

• Limit alcohol. Alcohol in moderation can raise the HDL, but Provins said alcohol can negatively affect blood pressure and interfere with medication. Heavy drinking can cause high blood pressure. "No more than one can of beer, five ounces of wine, one and a half ounces of 80 proof alcohol per day," she said. "And remember that the calories in alcohol are empty calories."