Eating a heart-healthy diet and living a healthy lifestyle can prevent you from getting heart disease and lower your risk of dying from heart disease.
In addition to eating heart-healthy foods, it's just as important to avoid fast foods and instant foods. Fast foods high in bad cholesterol can increase the risk of blocked blood vessels that can lead to a heart attack.
To avoid the risk of heart disease, you must have a healthy lifestyle, such as eating healthy foods, exercising regularly, and not smoking. This can reduce the risk of heart disease by up to 82%. People aged 70 to 90 who are used to living healthy can also reduce the risk of death from heart disease by 66%.
Healthy Food Groups
A healthy lifestyle that you can live is to eat foods that are healthy for the heart. So what are the foods in question?
To nourish the heart and help it to function vigorously, the phytonutrients found in vegetables and fruits can be useful. These compounds help protect plants from germs, fungi, and pests. As for humans, these compounds can help the body to function properly.
Here are some foods that contain phytonutrients.
- Nuts
Eat plenty of nuts, such as pinto beans, up to three cups per week. As well as being high in heart-healthy phytonutrients, nuts are also high in fiber and water that make you feel full quickly. They prevent you from consuming more calories. Additionally, nuts are also rich in antioxidants, which play a role in preventing cell damage caused by exposure to free radicals as a cause of cancer, Parkinson's disease, and Alzheimer's disease.
- Whole grains
Consuming whole grains such as oats, brown rice, or corn as the main source of carbohydrates can reduce the risk of various diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes, certain cancers, and obesity. This is because these grains contain protein, serum, antioxidants, B vitamins, and minerals. The minerals in question are iron, zinc, and magnesium.
- Apples
Eating 12 apples per day is believed to reduce the risk of heart disease. Apples effectively reduce bad cholesterol in the body and help regulate blood sugar. This is because in addition to containing phytonutrients, apples also contain other compounds that are good for the heart, namely epicatechin. This substance is a compound rich in antioxidants and can help lower blood pressure.
- Garlic
Garlic is known not to affect blood pressure, so it can be consumed frequently. Garlic can also replace salt to add a savory flavor to foods. It's good for heart health because the more salt you consume, the greater the risk of developing high blood pressure, which can trigger heart disease and stroke.
- Wine The
Health benefits of grape are believed to have the potential to prevent heart disease and hypertension or high blood pressure. This is because grapes contain fiber and flavonoids which are helpful in preventing heart damage.
- Berries
Varieties of berries such as blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries can be used as a healthy snack. Berries are high in fiber, and antioxidants are believed to reduce the risk of heart attack. In addition, the sweet taste of the berries does not trigger diabetes. However, research into the effects of berries on protecting heart health still needs to be studied further.
- Green tea
According to the results of the study, those who drank more than five cups of green tea per day had an approximately 25% lower risk of dying from heart attack and stroke. However, be careful with the consumption of green tea. Drinking more than five cups of green tea a day can increase the risk of developing kidney stones. Therefore, if you consume a lot of green tea, increase your water intake to avoid dehydration and keep your urinary system smooth.
In addition to eating heart-healthy foods, you should limit your salt intake to no more than 56 grams per day or the equivalent of 2000 2400 mg of sodium (sodium) per day. For people at risk for heart disease, the maximum sodium intake is 1,500 mg. It is also necessary to exercise regularly and avoid smoking so that the body is healthy and the heart is always strong to properly pump blood throughout the body.