5 tips to a healthier heart

The news is full of the dangers of high cholesterol, high blood pressure, heart disease. You also hear solutions such as exercise, getting enough vegetables, and choosing healthier fats. Wouldn’t it be nice to have some specific tips that you could take action on right way to enjoy a healthy heart? Yes – and here are five of those tips:

Milk switch:
Whole milk has 150 calories and 8 grams of fat, of which 5 grams are saturated fat. Skim milk has 90 calories and 0 grams of fat. We know that saturated fat is one of the leading dietary causes of high cholesterol and heart disease.So – if you are using whole milk, now’s the time to switch to skim milk. Small change. Big benefits.

From potato chips to pistachio nuts
Do you like pistachios? I love them too. There are lots of studies to prove that eating moderate amounts of pistachios lowers the risk for heart disease. This powerhouse nut has fiber, potassium, healthy unsaturated fats, and phytosterols which work at making you heart-healthy effect. One ounce of pistachios, which would be 48 nuts, has the same number of calories as one ounce, of 14, chips. Nuts are more filling, have three times the protein, half the saturated fat and far less salt than potato chips. So which do you prefer? Pistachios or potoato chips?

Garlic or Salt?
Salt is like a silent killer. A nasty pretend friend which raises your blood pressure, increasing your risk for cardiovascular disease, while seeming to make your food tastier. Use garlic instead of salt. It will help lower your blood pressure and get the benefits of garlic, which means fighting cancer with antioxidants and lowering LDL cholesterol.

From butter to olive oil
Okay, so both contain fats and similar in calories. But while butter is saturated fat, olive oil is unsaturated fat. (Read more about good fats, bad fats). So – replace butter with olive oil, since butter contributes to weight gain, another factor for heart disease. 

Whole grain bread, not white
Why whole grains in our diet? When your diet is high in  whole-grain foods it significantly lowers your risk of cardiovascular disease, heart disease and stroke. So, instead of buying white bread next time, go for 100% whole wheat bread.

Stay healthy!

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Stay healthy!
Vidya Sury