Eating for a healthy heart
Heart disease remains the biggest killer in the UK and Ireland.
Yet following a sensible, healthy diet can substantially reduce the risk of developing heart disease, and increase the chances of survival after a heart attack.
Follow these diet tips for a healthy heart. Combined with half an hour’s physical activity each day, they’ll lower the threat of heart disease and help you live a longer, more active life.
- Eat at least 5 portions of fruit and vegetables daily.
- Reduce the total amount of fat you eat. (The GDA of fat for men is 90g/day and 70g/day for women..)
- Reduce and replace some saturated fats with polyunsaturated fats and monounsaturated fats to help improve the ratio of 'good’ cholesterol to 'bad' cholesterol in your blood.
- Eat 2 portions of fish (1 portion is 140g) each week, one of which should be an oil-rich fish such as mackerel, herring, pilchards, sardines, trout or salmon. Omega-3 fatty acids found in oily fish help to prevent blood clots from forming.
- Reduce your salt intake to no more than 6g a day.
- If you drink alcohol, drink moderately. 3-4 units of alcohol a day may have a protective effect on the heart if you’re over forty years old.
- Oat bran is rich in soluble fibre called beta-glucan, which has been found to help reduce high cholesterol. Eating a breakfast high in oat bran is a great way to start the day and may help control your cholesterol level. 3g of oat beta-glucan should be consumed daily to get the maximum benefit, but even 1g a day can have a small cholesterol lowering effect. And of course, porridge, oat cakes and oat based breakfast cereals such as Kellogg's Optivita are tasty snacks at any time of day.
- Finally, keep a healthy weight throughout life and keep physically active