Improve your heart health with these tips
According to the British Heart Foundation, heart disease is the biggest cause of death in the UK. By making 14 simple diet and lifestyle changes, as recommended by Dietician Helen Bond, you can make positive steps towards a heart healthy lifestyle, which will reduce your risk of heart disease.
1 Cut down on saturated fat
It’s important to know that the cholesterol we get from food (found in prawns, eggs, liver and kidneys) has very little influence on cholesterol levels in the blood; eating too much saturated fat has a much bigger impact. So, if you are trying to lower your cholesterol, it’s more important to cut down on saturated fat, which is found in fatty meats and meat products such as sausages and pies, high fat dairy foods like cheese, cream, butter, cakes, biscuits and pastries. Even worse are trans fats (in hydrogenated vegetable oils) which are usually found in biscuits, cakes, fast food and pastries.
Choose poly and monounsaturated fats instead such as olive, rapeseed and sunflower, for cooking instead and snack on nuts seeds and avocados instead of biscuits and chocolate
2 Minimise processed meat
The major culprit here is saturated fat, one of the biggest contributors to high cholesterol levels. Limit your intake of all processed meat products including salami, ham, sausages, burgers, kebabs and meat pies to no more than two servings per week. You can still enjoy meat, just go for good-quality, lean cuts such as lean steak or skinless chicken breasts.
3 Go Nuts
Nuts are high in heart-healthy monounsaturated fats, soluble fibre and plant sterols. They’re a good source of nutrients such as magnesium, vitamin E and potassium, which helps to blunt the effects of salt on blood pressure
Including just a small handful (around 30g) of nuts in your daily diet can help to reduce both total and LDL cholesterol. Contrary to what you might believe, people who eat nuts don’t tend to gain weight because they’re so filling.
4 Go to work on an egg
We now know that even though eggs are a source of dietary cholesterol they have very little influence on blood cholesterol levels. According to the Food Standards Agency there’s no recommended limit on how many eggs you should eat. It’s fine to enjoy eggs as part of a balanced diet. Studies have shown people who have two eggs for breakfast or lunch feel fuller for longer and go on to consume fewer calories during the day
5 Big up fruit and veg portions
You must get at least five a day (400g) of a mixture of different coloured fruits and vegetables. A high intake of fruit and veg has been associated with a lower incidence of heart disease, elevated cholesterol levels, blood pressure and obesity. Fruits and vegetables are low in calories, rich in soluble fibre, antioxidants and potassium which actively lowers blood pressure – another risk factor for heart disease.
6 Go Oaty
Oats contain high levels of beta-glucan, a soluble fibre that has been shown to lower both total and LDL cholesterol when consumed in amounts of around 3g a day.
Two or three portions of oats and barley (which is also a good source) will provide 3g of beta-glucan, which could be porridge for breakfast, a snack of oatcakes or oat biscuits and a couple of slices of hearty oat bread.
7 Reduce alcohol intake
Alcohol may raise HDL levels in those who drink moderately but remember that alcohol is full of empty calories. Booze is also a common contributor to weight gain, one of the biggest risk factors for high total and LDL cholesterol.
It is best to stick within the Department of Health guidelines of no more than two to three units of alcohol a day for women and three to four for men with two alcohol-free days a week.
8 Don’t forget your pulses
Beans and pulses are high in soluble fibre which can help to lower LDL cholesterol. Try to eat 80-100g serving per day. There are many varieties available, ready cooked with no need for soaking/boiling. Add chickpeas, lentils, borlotti beans and kidney beans to soups, salads, stews, curries and risottos.
9 Oily fish once a week
Oil-rich fish, such as salmon, trout, fresh tuna, sardines, herring and mackerel, are the best dietary source of omega-3 essential fatty acids. They lower blood pressure; reduce clotting tendency and lower triglycerides (another type of blood fat). Aim for at least one 140g portion a week.
10 Choose wholegrain Foods
Up to 1-2 servings of wholegrains daily. In addition to soluble fibre, whole grain foods also provide other heart protective nutrients especially those found in the germ – the most commonly removed part of the grain in processed cereals: unsaturated fats, phytochemicals, minerals such as iron and zinc as well as E and B vitamins. Choose wholegrain breakfast cereals, wholemeal bread, brown rice and wholewheat pasta.
11 Don’t Forget Soya foods
Soya Consuming 15g to 25g a day as part of a diet low in saturated fat can significantly reduce LDL by 4.3-10%. Start with 1-2 servings soya foods daily – a handful (28g) of soya nuts, 30g soya mince or a glass (250ml) of soya milk.
12 Plant stanols and sterols
Naturally found in small quantities in plants such as nuts, seeds, grains, fruits and vegetables. An intake of 1.5g to 2.4g a day can lower cholesterol by 7-10% in 2-3 weeks. To obtain the effective dose by consuming foods naturally containing stanols and sterols, will not be possible – therefore a more convenient way is to consume foods (spreads, yogurt, yogurt drinks and milk) that have been fortified with these compounds.
13 Get moving
Aerobic exercise will not only help manage your weight, it is also the most beneficial method of exercising your heart. This includes any repetitive rhythmic exercise involving large muscle groups such as swimming and walking.
14 How can BergaMet support heart health?
BergaMet is a natural supplement derived from the Calabrian Citrus Bergamot, a bitter tasting orange, grown primarily in the Calabrian region in Southern Italy. Bergamot juice has been used traditionally by locals for decades to support and promote the health of their cardiovascular system.
Bergamot differs from other citrus fruits not only because of its unique polyphenol content, but because it contains extremely large amounts compared to other citrus fruits. Two of these citrus polyphenols Brutelidin and Melitidin, in particular have demonstrated a range of potential heart health benefits including reducing LDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels, boosting ‘good’ HDL levels, reducing blood pressure and blood sugar levels and reducing arterial stiffness.
A double blind placebo controlled clinical trial on 237 patients with high levels of cholesterol, showed that total cholesterol was reduced by 38% and ‘bad’ cholesterol (LDL) reduced by 39% after a month of taking the supplement. It also reduced blood sugars by 22% and raised ‘good’ cholesterol by 41%.
Further research by the University Magna Graecia in Italy, which has been submitted for publication in the International Journal of Cardiology, shows that not only can it reduce ‘bad’ LDL cholesterol, while improving ‘good’ HDL cholesterol, but also help patients on prescribed statins to reduce their dosage.
Australian Cardiologist Dr Ross Walker who has given the supplement to around 2,000 of his heart patients and diabetics also claims dramatic benefits. Some of his patients have avoided taking statins altogether, which many people in the UK cannot tolerate due to side effects such as muscle pain, fatigue and/or liver problems.
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