Are you heart healthy? This term gets thrown around a lot, but most people aren’t even sure what being heart healthy is all about. Well, today’s your lucky day. You’re going to learn all about heart disease and how to prevent it!
Heart disease is the number one killer of people worldwide. If you’re young, you may think you have nothing to worry about. But that’s just not true! The fatty deposits, called plaque, in the arteries of the heart, start to form at age 2. I don’t mean to scare you, but plaque build-up is a very serious thing. Most people will have no symptoms of the plaque build-up until they are diagnosed with heart disease. But I do have some good news, the build-up can be reversed through good nutrition and exercise.
The easiest way to decrease your risk of heart disease is by controlling your blood cholesterol levels. It is recommended that every person get their cholesterol level checked at age 20 and then once every 5 years, if your levels are normal. Normal blood cholesterol levels are:
- Total blood cholesterol below 200 mg/dL
- HDL cholesterol: >40 mg/dL for men and >50mg/dL for women
- LDL cholesterol: <100>
In order to lessen plaque build-up in the heart, a low saturated fat diet is required. There is a common misconception that eating high levels of cholesterol causes someone to have high blood cholesterol. But the real dietary cause of high blood cholesterol is a diet high in saturated fat. Saturated fat intake should not exceed 7% of your total calorie intake, which is approximately 20 grams per day. Foods with a high amount of saturated fat include:
- Fatty cuts of meat
- Dairy products, such as, cheese, ice cream, butter, and whole and 2% milk
- Sweets, such as, cookies, cakes, and chocolate
- Processed meats, such as, hot dogs, bacon, and sausages
Other ways to decrease your risk of heart disease include: exercising for 30 minutes each day, control your blood pressure, moderate alcohol intake (1-2 drinks/day), maintaining a healthy weight, not smoking, and getting regular check-ups at the doctor.
I hope this information helps all of you live a longer and healthier life! Please keep the questions coming, I love to help.
Becky <3
2 comments:
It's funny, I grew up with a lot of this information decades ago, but somehow people seem to be shifting into watching their carbs and totally scarfing up saturated fats again.
You see a lot of "health" blogs out there advocating tons of butter and red meat and cheese. A little is fine, but I agree with you that a lot is NOT a good idea.
Why are you always hating on cheese? What'd it ever do to you?!
Miss you! Come back and be my trainer.
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