By: Kathryn Eftink
What you eat plays a significant role in your heart’s health. Heart-healthy foods help maintain healthy levels of cholesterol and blood pressure.
Cholesterol can clog your arteries, which deliver blood from your heart to other areas in your body; this can lead to a heart attack. Hypertension, or high blood pressure, causes your heart to work harder to pump blood which can lead to functional and structural damage to your heart.
Fruits and vegetables, healthy proteins, whole grains, unsaturated fats and oils, and nonfat and low-fat dairy are the power foods and foundation for a heart-healthy eating plan. But what exactly should you add to your grocery shopping list?
Fruits and vegetables
- Fresh vegetables like okra, edamame, carrots, and cabbage
- Leafy greens like spinach, romaine lettuce, kale, arugula, and bok choy
- Canned vegetables that have low sodium (140 mg or less of sodium)
- Frozen vegetables without added sauces or butter, like cauliflower or broccoli
- Fresh fruits like apples, bananas, blueberries, oranges, tomatoes, cherries, and papaya
- Canned, dried, or frozen fruit without added sugars
Dairy
- Soy milk or soy yogurt
- Fat-free or low-fat (1%) milk
- Fat-free or low-fat plain yogurt
- Fat-free or low-fat cheese or cottage cheese
Whole Grains
- Whole-grain bread, bagels, tortillas, and English muffins
- Whole-grain hot or cold cereals with no added sugar, like shredded wheat or oatmeal
- Whole grains like brown or wild rice, oats, or quinoa
- Whole-wheat or whole-grain couscous and pasta
Proteins
- Seafood like salmon, tuna, trout, oysters, and sardines
- Poultry like turkey or chicken breast without skin or lean and ground turkey or chicken
- Lean meats like beef sirloin, lean ground beef, or pork shoulder
- Beans, peas, and lentils like black beans or chickpeas
- Eggs
- Unsalted nuts and seeds like almonds, walnuts, and flaxseed.
- Nut butters like almond or peanut butter
- Tofu
Healthy Fats and Oils
- Olive oil or vegetable oil instead of butter for cooking
- Low-fat or light mayonnaise
- Balsamic Vinaigrette or Italian instead of creamy salad dressings like ranch
Changing your diet can be tough, but heart disease is the number one cause of death worldwide. If you can improve your heart’s health through your diet, you can potentially expand your lifespan.
Connect Perfusion’s team is more than perfusionists – they’re heart health advocates too! This grocery list is packed with heart-healthy options because they believe a healthy team is a happy and productive team.