A prophylactic diet for the heart allows you to please the palate - and rightly so, after all, tasty food is a great pleasure. You do not have to give up tasty meals for your diet to protect against heart disease. A heart-he althy diet doesn't have to be completely fat-free.
Many people believe that thediet for the heartis fat-free. This is not entirely true. Fat is not that bad. It is needed by tissues as a source of energy and building material. Fat is also involved in the production of many very important substances, e.g. hormones. What's more - it supports the immune system and allows the penetration of important vitamins into the cells - A, D, E and K.
But that's not the end. A diet that is completely fat-free or very low in this ingredient is even harmful to the circulatory system! It is sometimes the cause of increasing the level of bad cholesterol (LDL) responsible for the development of atherosclerosis and lowering the concentration of good cholesterol (HDL), which cleans the arteries of atherosclerotic plaques. It is also known that certain types of fats are very effective weapons in the fight against high blood pressure and diabetes.
So, what is the truth about the effects of fats on the he alth of the heart?
Diet for the heart: proportions are the ground
Fat should not provide more than 30% of your daily calorie intake. The correct proportions between the different types of fat (saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated) are also important.
Doctors consider the Mediterranean diet to be the he althiest because it is rich in monounsaturated fats. There is great strength in these relationships. They lower the concentration of total cholesterol in the blood, and thus protect the heart against ischemic disease. They lower the level of LDL, which is responsible for the development of atherosclerosis. There are also many indications that they raise HDL levels and cleanse the blood of bad cholesterol. Regularly used, they can reduce the risk of hypertension.
Allies of your heart
- Magnesium - regulates the work of the heart, deficiency causes arrhythmias. Its sources are nuts, poppy seeds, green vegetables.
- Selenium - protects blood vessels against free radicals that accelerate atherosclerosis. It balances blood pressure and regulates the heart rhythm. You will find it in seafood,corn, kidney.
- Potassium - is necessary for the proper functioning of the heart. Bananas, tomatoes and potatoes abound in this element.
- Copper - neutralizes LDL cholesterol and protects arteries against plaque. It is most abundant in nuts, soybeans, beans, grains, and parsley.
Valuable monounsaturated fats can be found in olive oil and rapeseed oil (excellent not only for salads, but also for baking and frying).
Diet for heart he alth: omega-3 fatty acids
This is what the unique polyunsaturated fatty acids are called, the protective role of which for the heart can hardly be overestimated. Omega-3 acids significantly reduce the aggregation (i.e. clumping) of platelets. Thanks to them, cholesterol plaques cannot stick to the walls of blood vessels and create blockages. The advantages of these acids include lowering the concentration of total cholesterol, LDL fraction and triglycerides. Omega-3s are found in cold-sea fish such as tuna, salmon, sardines, mackerel, halibut and herring. Therefore, our menu should not lack fish (at least twice a week), because the body does not produce this type of acid itself. For an effective omega-3 diet, you need to provide about 1 g of them per day (e.g. 100 g of herring).
Polyunsaturated fats derived from grains and vegetable oils have lost some popularity. And this is because - as scientists have proved - that their consumption lowers the level of not only total cholesterol, but also HDL fraction, i.e. the one important for the he alth of blood vessels. This does not mean, however, that we should completely remove them from the menu. They are found in vegetable oils (e.g. soy, sunflower, corn) and in green vegetables such as kale.
For the sake of the heart, we should significantly reduce saturated fatty acids, i.e. fatty acids of animal origin. Their excess increases the level of total cholesterol and LDL fraction, and adversely affects blood clotting. Trans fatty acids, formed in the process of hardening vegetable oils, may turn out to be dangerous. It has been proven that they not only raise LDL levels, but also lower HDL levels. They are located in the so-called hard margarines and ready-made confectionery and crisps.
Diet for heart he alth: don't lose your taste
It is known that the heart favors a diet with a limited amount of s alt, fatty additives (mayonnaise, cream). This does not mean, however, that our meals must be unpalatable. On the contrary. S alt, which raises blood pressure, can be successfully replaced by herbs. If we can afford it, let's also invest in steam cookers. Thanks to such treatment, the individual ingredients are extractednatural flavors, and then adding s alt is no longer necessary.
Garlic should be an important addition to the dishes, which effectively cleans the arteries of cholesterol. To make the soup white, it is worth adding milk instead of cream, dilute the mayonnaise-based sauce with yogurt, and when baking the dough, replace some of the fat with … a banana. The taste of the cake will not change and there will be fewer calories.
Diet for heart he alth: antioxidants
Trying for heart he alth also protects against free radicals. They are present in every organism, but they become dangerous only when their amount exceeds certain limits. Then they can have a negative impact on our he alth, leading to heart disease, liver disease, cancer and accelerating the aging process. Free radicals attack the molecules that make up our body. To prevent this, you need antioxidants that can stop the destructive march of free radicals through the body.
Antioxidants reduce the risk of cancer and cardiovascular disease. But that's not all - the effect of antioxidants has also been shown to reduce the risk of developing, for example, hepatitis, diabetes, edema, hemorrhoids, allergies, atherosclerosis, macular degeneration or a general decline in immunity. We can find antioxidants in vegetable oils, cereals (especially oats), citrus (oranges, grapefruits), green vegetables (broccoli). They are also found in berries (currants, blueberries, chokeberry), red and orange vegetables (tomatoes, peppers, carrots) and in basil.
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