Hearts aren’t just for Valentines – February is also American Heart Month.
Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, making it more important than ever to prioritize your heart health. One effective way to care for your heart is by adopting a healthier diet, as a balanced nutritional approach can greatly reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease.
People who focus on healthy eating frequently see a decrease in risk factors associated with heart disease, including:
- Reduced blood pressure
- Lower blood sugar
- Lower cholesterol
- Less abdominal fat
- Healthier lipid profile
Here’s the recommendation:
Incorporate a variety of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats into your daily meals. However, achieving this can be challenging, especially when it comes to including enough vegetables.
A helpful approach you can follow to ensure a positive impact onheart health is the DASH diet. The Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet was developed in the 1990s in response to a rise in heart disease and other chronic diseases. This diet focuses on whole foods, low sodium, increased potassium, healthy fats, and lean protein.
Here’s how you can sneak in more fruit and veggies at every meal:
Breakfast
- Fold cooked sautéed mushrooms, onions, and spinach into your omelet.
- Fill a warm tortilla with sautéed mushrooms, onion, tomato, and bell pepper, low-fat cheese, scrambled egg whites, and turkey sausage (or black beans for protein).
- Add spinach to your eggs on toast or in your smoothie.
- Put a chopped banana in your cereal or smoothie.
Lunch
- Slip sliced tomato, spinach, lettuce, or bell pepper into your sandwich.
- Opt for a side salad.
- Blend roasted vegetables into a cup of soup.
Dinner
- Blend roasted tomatoes, garlic, onion, and zucchini to make homemade pasta sauce.
- Swap out your pasta for spaghetti squash or zucchini noodles.
- Opt for a cauliflower pizza base or cauliflower rice.
Snacks
- Dip corn chips in fresh salsa.
- Serve veggie chips with fresh salsa and guacamole.
- Add fruit to your Greek yogurt.
Contact a local Registered Dietitian Nutritionist to learn more about a healthy diet and how to incorporate it into your busy life!
