How can you manage your diet for a healthy heart with Dietitian Lauren Manning.

Diet for a Healthy Heart

Did you know that approximately 1.2 million Australians over the age of 18 have a condition related to disease of the heart or blood vessels?! These conditions are known as cardiovascular disease (CVD). High cholesterol and high blood sugar levels are risk factors for CVD but can be modifiable with changes to your diet.

Consuming saturated fats and trans fats can increase the amount of ‘bad’ cholesterol in your body.

We find saturated fats in
  • Meats (salami, sausages, or processed meat products likes pies and sausage rolls)
  • Cakes, biscuits and pastries
  • Coconut oil and cream.
We find trans fats in:
  • Deep-fried foods
  • Takeaway foods and
  • Food containing ‘hydrogenated oils’.

It is best to minimise your intake of saturated and trans fats but choosing more monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. These fats increase the ‘good’ cholesterol and help to remove the ‘bad’ cholesterol from our body.

We find monounsaturated fats in:
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • Avocado
  • Olive oil spreads
  • Nuts (peanuts, cashews and almonds)
We find polyunsaturated fats in:
  • Seeds (chia, flax and sunflower)
  • Nuts (walnuts, hazelnuts and brazil nuts)
  • Sunflower oil
  • Soy products
  • Oily fish (salmon, mackerel, trout and tuna)

Increasing dietary fibre can also remove ‘bad’ cholesterol from our body, but also lower our blood sugar levels.

We can find dietary fibre in:
  • Fruits and vegetables with the skin on
  • Nuts and seeds
  • Whole grains like rolled oats, grainy breads, wholemeal pasta and brown rice
  • Lentils, chickpeas and beans

If you are unsure about how much dietary fat and dietary fibre, you should be eating or the types of fat which are best for your heart health, book in with a dietitian to receive a heart health plan.

 

Dietitian
Symmetry Physiotherapy Hoppers Crossing

 

For more interesting articles about your diet check out – Do Dairy Foods Cause Inflammation?