February is American Heart Month, making it a great time to add some heart-healthy foods to your diet. Let’s look at some of the nutritional superstars.

What you eat has a direct impact on your risk of developing cardiovascular disease. Too much sodium, either from what we sprinkle on or what’s present in the food itself, can elevate blood pressure levels. Saturated fats can raise the bad cholesterol readings. The good news is that there are so many foods that will have a positive impact, reducing your risk or helping you manage existing heart disease.

Lemons
It’s not lemons’ nutritional profile that makes them heart-healthy, it’s their ability to replace salt. Both are flavor enhancers, so replacing some or all of the salt you’d use while cooking with a little squeeze of lemon will reduce your sodium intake.

Whole Grains
You’ve probably heard that oats are great for reducing cholesterol. Why not try a new grain like amaranth? It’s high in protein and nutrients like iron, calcium and magnesium. Plus it can help lower cholesterol. Try it in place of regular rice.

Non or Low-Fat Yogurt
Yogurt packs a healthy punch for lowering blood pressure. It gets its strength from lots of calcium and Vitamin D, plus potassium. Yogurt can be high in added sugar, so buy the plain stuff and add fresh fruit to sweeten it. Greek yogurt has become very popular and is a great choice with even higher levels of calcium and protein than regular yogurt.

Nuts
But they’re so high in fat! Yes they are, but high in the cholesterol-lowering fat we want in our diet. I recommend a serving of nuts (1/4 cup) or nut butter like peanut or almond butter (2 tablespoons) every day. Also try Brazil nuts.

Seeds
Seeds are little nutritional powerhouses, containing healthy fats, vitamins, minerals and fiber. Try flaxseeds ground and sprinkled in yogurt (buy them whole and grind yourself for optimal freshness), pumpkin seeds sprinkled in a salad and my favorite: chia seeds sprinkled in cereal. Like nuts, their high fat content makes them a food to portion carefully.

Store both nuts and seeds in the freezer. No need to thaw before using.

Wild Salmon
There’s no getting away from wild salmon’s contribution to heart health. It’s rich in omega-3 fatty acids which do so much for your heart: reduce cholesterol, inflammation, triglycerides, blood pressure; and can raise good cholesterol levels. Shop at a good fish market to get the freshest selection. If you just won’t eat fish, try a good quality fish-oil supplement.

Garlic
Why not add some garlic to your salmon’s marinade? Garlic contains allicin, which can help lower cholesterol and blood pressure. It’s a tasty addition to many foods, so enjoy it. Garlic’s pungency may make your family members complain that you can single-handedly ward off vampires. If so, add a little extra garlic to their plates so that you’re all protected. To avoid garlic’s sharp taste, cook before eating. Try roasting whole heads to spread on bread instead of butter or add to pasta sauces.

Water
Like lemons, water doesn’t have a strong nutritional profile. But it is a perfect replacement for unhealthy drinks. It’s easy to get too many calories from sugary sodas, juices and drinks that have healthy names but are really just sweetened water. Too many calories lead to weight gain and being overweight is never good for our health. Each week, replace one sugary drink with a big glass of water. Build upon your success until you’ve rid your diet of the high-calorie liquids and drink mostly water.

For a delicious heart-healthy meal, try Pistachio-Crusted Salmon .

Tags: heart health, Recipes

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 15th, 2012 at 5:00 am and is filed under Disease Prevention, Healthy Eating . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.