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10 tips for a healthy heart

Eat your way to a healthy heart with these easy-to-follow guidelines for lowering your cholesterol

If you have high cholesterol, high triglycerides, a family history of heart disease or have even been diagnosed with heart disease yourself, your initial reaction to planning meals is most likely: Help. But don't worry - following a heart-healthy diet can be as simple as 1-2-3. Just stick to these guidelines and you'll be sure to see those cholesterol levels coming down.

1. Reduce saturated fat intake. Saturated fats are typically solid at room temperature. Try the squeeze test: the firmer the fat, the more it's saturated. Take a pack of butter and tub of margarine - it's obvious that the butter is more solid, meaning it contains more saturated fats.
   
   Saturated fats contribute to the plaque build-up inside our arteries and help raise blood levels of cholesterol. Butter, lard, whole milk, cream, animal fat (think of the skin and fat on poultry and the fat and marbling in red meat) and bacon are especially high in saturated fat. Saturated fats are also used in many snack products such as chips, biscuits, crackers and pastries. Read the nutrition information per portion - anything that provides more than 3g of saturated fat per portion should be limited to occasional treats or avoided.

2. Use monounsaturated fats. Olive oil and canola oil are high in monounsaturates, which help reduce blood cholesterol and may help raise levels of HDL, the 'good' cholesterol. Use olive or canola oil in cooking or as a salad dressing. You can even find margarine spreads that are made from olive or canola oil. Don't go overboard: a little bit goes a long way.

3. Increase your fibre. Fibre is found only in plants - fruits, vegetables, grains and legumes. Try to eat 25-35g fibre each day (read the labels for the amounts in foods you normally eat). Fibre helps lower blood cholesterol and people who eat more fibre have a lower risk of heart disease. Start your day with a bowl of high-fibre breakfast cereal (at least 5g fibre per serving) and you'll be well on your way to meeting your fibre goal.

4. Think seafood. Eating a decent portion of seafood (75-100g) once or twice a week increases the amount of healthy omega-3 fatty acids you eat and decreases your risk of heart disease. Choose coldwater fish for the most omega-3 fatty acids: mackerel, salmon, albacore tuna and sardines.

5. Eat less animal protein. Try to keep your portions of chicken, turkey, pork, beef and veal to the size of a deck of cards (about 75g). That way, you'll eat less fat and you'll have room for more veggies. Which leads us to the next suggestion...

Over the page: 5 more tips for healthy heart

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