February's Feature American Heart Month

February is American Heart Month. Two essential lifetime habits to reconsider during this month are your healthy diet and your ongoing regular exercise program. Eating healthy is especially of great concern if you have already been diagnosed with heart disease, have had a heart attack, and/or have a known blockage in your coronary arteries. Your risk for future heart health problems is not going away. As we age, eating that so to speak "heart healthy diet" does change. How? It becomes more important.

The basics of a heart healthy diet can be said in four words - eat more whole foods. The general description of a whole food is a food that has not been processed. Foods that are not processed are healthier for our bodies. Unprocessed foods are higher in fiber, contain more essential nutrients, are lower in fat, have fewer additives and are lower in sodium. Whole unprocessed foods also taste better.

The guidelines for a heart healthy diet include limits on sodium, cholesterol and fat intake. The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute states that the "recommendations for cholesterol and sodium are the same for everyone…regardless of the number of calories you eat. You should eat less than 300 milligrams of cholesterol a day and no more than 2400 milligrams of sodium a day". The total number of calories you eat in a day is linked with the recommended amount of fat and saturated fat you consume in your diet. Eat no more than 30 percent of your daily total calories from fat. No more than ten percent of those total calories from fat should come from saturated fat. Basically, eat less fat.

Read your food labels regularly. You all know that fat is hidden in foods. Remember that saturated fat is found in all animal products. This includes dairy foods, meat and lard. Saturated fat can also be found in tropical oils including cocoa butter, palm oil and coconut oil. If you do consume processed foods regularly, don't be surprised to find some of these types of saturated fats mentioned buried within the ingredient lists. Food manufactures change their food ingredients more often than you think.

Keeping your heart healthy takes effort. The decision to eat less fat, eat more fruits and vegetables and, maintain an active lifestyle is your choice. Take charge of your heart health today and everyday.

Colette Thompson, MS, RD
Aroostook Agency on Aging