healthy heart resources: healthy eating
healthy eating
The old saying "you are what you eat" is certainly true when it comes to your heart health.
Think of your body like a car. What happens if you continually put bad fuel in your car? What happens if you forget to put gas in it? Sooner or later, that engine is going to stop working.
Your body, your heart and your brain needs good nutrition to function properly.
Did you know that the word "diet" is actually the Greek word for lifestyle? So, think of "diet" about what you are doing for your body instead of what you are doing without. Eat for LIFE!
Do You Know How Food Portions Have Changed in 20 Years?
Have you noticed how portion sizes have increased? While the "supersize" movement may be great for advertising campaigns, the result is that we're often eating portion sizes meant for 2 people.
Once you take these quizzes, it's easy to see why adults, and children, are struggling to maintain a healthy weight!
DOWNLOAD: Portion Size Matters
When eating out, share meals or take home leftovers for the next day. Use a smaller plate and remember to fill that plate with lots of fruits and veggies!
Healthy Eating Plans & Recipes
Let's take the "D" word out of our vocabulary and, instead, focus on creating a healthy lifestyle that includes eating REAL food!
Forks Over Knives - Plant Based Living
Survivors Have Heart Champion Cookbook
Choosing Healthy Options
The healthiest lifestyle to adopt and maintain is one that centers on REAL food that nourishes your body. If it comes in a bag, bottle or box, you need to know what's you're buying and consuming.
1. Choose real food! Eat more vegetables and fruits. Fresh or frozen is preferred, but if your budget means canned, that's okay, too. Just make sure you rinse your vegetables to reduce the sodium intake and watch for added sugars in the fruits.
2. Become a label reader! The new food nutrition labels have more information. Download sample here
3. Choose lean meats and void processed/packaged meats. Try substituting meats a few days a week with other proteins. Start by making every Monday "Meatless Monday" and try new recipes!
4. Avoid sugary drinks like sweetened teas, sodas, fruit juices and sports drinks. Choose water or unsweetened beverages instead.
5. Limit added sugar and sodium. For women and children, a good limit for added sugar is no more than 24g (6 tsp) per day; for men, that would be 36g (9 tsp) per day. Adults should have no more than 2300mg of added sodium but if you have heart disease, your limit is closer to 1500mg each day.
