To keep your heart in good shape, there are some foods you should avoid consuming every now and then.
Below are some of the foods
Sugar, Salt, Fat
Over time, high amounts of salt, sugar, saturated fat, and refined carbs raise your risk for a heart attack or stroke. If you’re worried about your heart, you’ll want to keep these out of regular rotation.
But rather than fixate on any one bad food, it’s wise to focus on your overall diet. You can still have these things if you mostly eat heart-healthy fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean protein, and low-fat dairy.
White Rice, Bread, and Pasta
Rice, bread, pasta, and snacks made from white flour are missing their healthy fiber, vitamins, and minerals.Refined grains quickly convert to sugar, which your body stores as fat. A diet high in refined grains can cause belly fat, which studies link to heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Try to get at least half your grains from whole grains like brown rice, oats, and whole wheat. When you shop, look for the words “100% whole grain.”
Alcohol
Moderate drinking won’t harm your heart unless you have high blood pressure or high triglycerides, a type of fat in your blood that can boost your odds of heart disease. Heavy drinking, on the other hand, can lead to high blood pressure, heart failure, strokes, and weight gain. So if you don’t already drink, don’t start.
Red Meat
Eating too much beef, lamb, and pork may raise your odds for heart disease and diabetes. It may be because they’re high in saturated fat, which can boost cholesterol. More recent studies point to how gut bacteria process a part of the meat called L-carnitine. Limit your portions. Also, look for lean cuts like round, sirloin, and extra-lean ground beef.
Fried Chicken
Deep-frying chicken adds calories, fat, and sodium to an otherwise healthy food. Studies have linked fried food with type 2 diabetes, obesity, and high blood pressure — all of which raise your odds of heart failure. For a crispy but healthier choice, bread skinless chicken breasts in whole-wheat flour and bake instead of frying.
Flavoured, Full-Fat Yogurt
Yogurt can be a super source of nutrition. Eating it regularly might protect you from high blood pressure. But watch the kind you buy. Flavored yogurts are full of added sugar, with its links to weight gain, high blood pressure, inflammation, and heart disease. For the healthiest choice, get plain low-fat yogurt and add your own fresh fruit, cinnamon, or vanilla for flavor.
Butter
Butter is high in saturated fat, which can raise your bad cholesterol and make heart disease more likely. You’re better off to replace butter with olive oil or vegetable oil-based spreads, which contain heart-healthy mono- and polyunsaturated fats. If you have high cholesterol, a spread with stanol is even better. Regular use can help lower your LDL cholesterol levels.
Fried Chicken
Deep-frying chicken adds calories, fat, and sodium to an otherwise healthy food. Studies have linked fried food with type 2 diabetes, obesity, and high blood pressure — all of which raise your odds of heart failure. For a crispy but healthier choice, bread skinless chicken breasts in whole-wheat flour and bake instead of frying.
Pizza
Pizza can be healthy if you make it the right way, but most take-out pizza and frozen pies have staggering amounts of sodium, fat, and calories, all of which can raise your risk of a heart attack. When you order out, opt for a thin crust (whole wheat if possible), ask for less cheese, pile on the veggies, and skip the pepperoni or sausage, which are loaded with salt. For the most heart-healthy pizza, make it yourself.
Source: www.webmd.com
