The 3-day Cardiac Diet: Effectiveness And Disadvantages

If we make the euristic map of heart health, we will pinpoint healthy eating and regular physical activity. We will also add the frequency of meals and the best time of day to supplement vitamins and minerals. Let's still focus on cholesterol-lowering foods that promote plaque cleansing and a healthy metabolism. And finally, of course, avoiding the diets that flood social networks. To support our thesis, we present to you the 3-day cardiac diet, sincerely, unvarnished, with its effectiveness and disadvantages.

The 3-day cardiac diet: what is it?

Even though opinions differ, it exists and has its followers. Even though he is at the bottom of the list (0.25 out of 5), he deserves credit because the 3-Day Heart Diet can help improve your cardiovascular disease risk profile for years to come.

Since overweight and obesity make children, young people and adults sick, maintaining an adequate weight is the key to good heart health. This eating pattern provides a simple meal plan and claims to help you lose up to 4.5kg in just 3 days. However, it has been heavily criticized for being too restrictive, ineffective, and dangerous. Moreover, it is not based on science. Although weight loss can result, regaining pounds is likely once you resume a normal diet. This is why it is essential to elucidate the words.

Also known as the Birmingham Diet, it is said to have been developed at the University of Alabama-Birmingham, although there is no evidence to support it. Some say it was created to help people with heart disease lose weight before surgery.

"Heart diet" is an unofficial term for heart healthy eating. This is a plan to eat lots of nutrient-dense foods - fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean poultry, and fish. And that also means avoiding saturated fat, trans fat, and excess sodium and sugar.

Why and how to follow the heart failure diet

In general, eating a heart-healthy or heart-healthy diet would be recommended for someone with high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or any history of heart disease. In this group we can find people who have relatives suffering from heart problems. But even if you don't have a cardiovascular health problem, it's important to follow a low-salt diet, as it can lower your risk of heart disease in the future. In fact, this is how we should all eat. By limiting junk food and adding more nutritious foods, you will be fueling your body with what it needs to stay healthy and eventually improve your overall health.

According to academic experts, following a 3-day cardiac diet menu can help you lose weight, lower your blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar. It can even increase your energy through a healthier food choice. In any case, the results will vary from person to person, as they depend on a variety of factors including what you ate before dieting, your lifestyle choices (exercise and smoking), and how much you eat. other risk factors.

Heart healthy foods

When following a small heart diet, it's important to eat plenty of heart-healthy foods, including fruits and vegetables, as well as foods high in fiber and omega-3 fatty acids to increase your metabolism.

Fruits and vegetables

Without doubt, fruits and vegetables are at the top of the list of healthy foods, as immune system boosters and suppliers of the nutrients your body needs. At the same time, they are inflammation reducers. The more fruits and vegetables you eat, the less likely you are to eat junk food and get heartburn and irritation of any organ. At mealtimes, it is recommended to fill half of your plate with vegetables and / or fruit.

Granted, the good news is that each vegetable and fruit has an individual impact on you, as long as you eat them without added salts or sugars. The more rainbow colors you consume, the more varied nutrients you get by understanding what the colors of vegetables and fruits say about their health benefits. If you vary the vegetables each day and try to choose more non-starchy options like potatoes and sweet potatoes, you will have more positive nutrition plans. Despite the tendency to often ignore white or beige vegetables as being non-nutritious, these foods, like onion, cauliflower, and mushrooms, are incredibly healthy.

What nutritional plan to establish for 3 consecutive days?

Basically, the plan sets strict rules for what foods you should eat for 3 consecutive days during the week. During the remaining 4 days, you can taste the foods you want. This cycle should be repeated at the start of the following week as many times as needed until you reach your target weight. As long as the meal plan provides detailed information on what foods to eat and at what meals, as well as the allowable amounts of each food, please do not make any substitutions or use any other ingredients during the 3 days. As a result, the meals mostly revolve around toast and a source of protein, and the calorie count is extremely low, 800-1000 per day. Finally,the diet sets no guidelines for lifestyle changes, such as physical activity or hydration.

Foods allowed or not

The only spices to allow are salt and pepper, while for dessert, vanilla ice cream is permissible once a day during dinner. You probably think fiber is good for digestion, but that's not all. As soluble fiber, it is also one of the most important nutrients for heart health. Eating 10 to 25g of soluble fiber a day will help lower cholesterol levels and better manage blood sugar. Where to find them? No doubt, in oats, beans, berries, ground flax seeds, omega-3 fatty acids. Since the list of recommended vegetables is long, you have a great choice between: spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, tomatoes, arugula, peppers, carrots, asparagus.

Namely that omega-3 fatty acids are found in oily fish and in some nuts and seeds. These good fats can lower blood pressure, lower triglyceride levels, slow the growth of plaque in the arteries, and reduce the risk of arrhythmias. Your doctor may prescribe an omega-3 supplement if you are following a diet for heart patients. This does not prevent you from simultaneously eating foods rich in omega-3s such as: salmon, tuna, herring, sardines, walnuts, ground flax seeds, hemp seeds, chia seeds.

At the same time, as companions of the 3-day cardiac diet, tolerate fruits like: grapefruit, bananas, melons and apples. Among the allowed vegetables are: turnip greens, green beans, carrots, cauliflower, beets, cabbage and broccoli. However, you can not do without dairy products: vanilla ice cream, cottage cheese and cheddar cheese.

Protein is plentiful in tuna, eggs, skinless poultry, peanut butter, and lean cuts of beef and pork. If we are talking about grains, we must mention toast and savory crackers. As for good hydration, black coffee, tea, water and diet soda.

In case a food does not appear in the above list, you can assume that it is prohibited in the diet.

Is weight loss a lasting result?

Being very restrictive, the 3-Day Cardiac Diet limits the amount of food you can eat, is very low in calories, and can lead to short-term weight loss. However, keep in mind that almost all diets with a daily calorie count of 800-1000 lead to a drop in body weight. This is because you are taking in fewer calories than your body is burning. On the other hand, cutting back too many calories can lead to side effects such as hunger, nausea, headaches, and fatigue. In addition, the restrictions of the plan only apply 3 days per week. You follow a normal diet for the next 4 days, which means your weight can vary considerably.

As such, the diet can be unsustainable in the long run and lead to weight gain once you resume a normal diet. This is because it fails to promote long term lifestyle changes or healthy eating habits.

How does the salt-free diet affect heart health?

While there is no evidence to support the idea that the 3-Day Heart Diet is beneficial for heart health, it limits most processed foods, which may be beneficial.

That said, while it does away with most processed and sugar-rich foods, it does allow for large servings of ice cream, beef franks, white bread, and diet soda which have all been linked to unwanted cardiovascular outcomes. According to a large study of more than 105,000 people, those who ate more ultra-processed foods had a higher risk of heart disease over an average of 5 years. Yet the 3-day cardiac diet is only followed for short periods of time, with no guidelines on what to eat for the rest of the week. Thus, more research is needed to determine how other components of the diet may affect heart health.

No flexibility, no substitutions, the diet is difficult to follow if you have dietary restrictions or special dietary preferences. It can also be embarrassing for adventurous eaters or those who like to experiment in the kitchen.

Additionally, you may be at risk of nutrient deficiencies if you go through multiple diet cycles, especially because the diet may not be suitable for people of different body sizes, activity levels, or nutritional needs.

Sample 3-day menu

The 3-Day Cardiac Diet provides strict guidelines on food and meal composition. Keep in mind that no substitutions or additional ingredients are allowed. Salt and pepper are allowed, but other seasonings, herbs and spices are not. You can drink black coffee or tea for breakfast, while diet sodas are allowed in some variations of the diet.

Here's a sample 3-Day Heart Diet Meal Plan:

Day 1

Breakfast: half a grapefruit or juice and 1 slice of toast with 1 tbsp (16 g) peanut butter

Lunch: 1 slice of toast with ½ cup (73 g) tuna

Dinner: 85g lean meat, 1 cup (180g) cooked green beans, 1 cup (130g) carrots or beets, 1 small apple and 1 cup (150g) vanilla ice cream

Day 2

Breakfast: 1 hard-boiled egg, 1 slice of toast and half a banana

Lunch: 1 cup (225 g) cottage cheese or ½ cup (73 g) tuna and 5 salted crackers

Dinner: 2 francs of beef, 1 cup (90 g) of cooked cabbage or broccoli, ½ cup (65 g) of turnip or carrot leaves, half a banana and ½ cup (75 g) of ice cream. vanilla

Day 3

Breakfast: 1 hard-boiled egg and 1 slice of toast

Lunch: 28 g of cheddar cheese, 1 small apple and 5 salted crackers

Dinner: 1 cup (146 g) tuna, 1 cup (100 g) cooked green beans or cauliflower, 1 cup (130 g) carrots or beets, 1 cup (160 g) melon and ½ cup (75 g) vanilla ice cream

Other ideas

At breakfast, beware of the sugars hidden in many grains and juices, and look for ways to incorporate lean protein, fiber, and omega-3s into your morning meal.

• Healthy omelet: 1 egg + 2 egg whites with ¼ to ½ avocado and vegetables with a few tablespoons. hummus or ½ cup baked sweet potato.
• Tofu or egg scramble with tomato, spinach, black beans, garlic, a few slices of avocado with 1 slice of 100% whole wheat bread.
• Loaded oatmeal: mix together 1 cup of gluten-free oatmeal cooked with cinnamon, 1 tablespoon of almond butter and top with a few chopped nuts, ½ small sliced banana.
• Protein-filled rice cake: brown rice with 1 to 2 tablespoons of low sodium peanut or almond butter (without “partially hydrogenated oils”) with 1 small sliced banana.

At lunch you can opt for many typical dishes of this part of the day - cold cuts, meat, pizza and soup, all high in sodium.

• Chicken and Avocado Sandwich: 100% whole wheat bread with baked chicken, a few slices of avocado, lettuce, tomato with vegetable salad (beets, onions, carrots) and chickpeas or black beans with l olive oil and vinegar.
• Bowl of homemade rice or quinoa: 1/2 to 2/3 cup brown rice or quinoa, ½ cup black beans or pinto beans, 1 to 2 cup vegetables (spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, beans greens), garnished with baked chicken, fish or tofu.
• Lean ground turkey burger with green onion and red pepper, topped with a few slices of avocado (or 1 slice of Swiss cheese), served in a tortilla of low sodium brown rice or collard greens
• Avocado tuna salad made with ½ mashed avocado with sliced grapes and a few chopped nuts, lettuce and a slice of tomato on 1 slice of whole grain bread or on a bed of greens
• Low sodium bean or chili soup, garnished with a few slices of avocado.

At dinner, the way you prepare the meal will help you stick to your heart-healthy diet. Select lean cuts of meat and trim the fat, also remove the skin from the poultry before cooking. Grill meat instead of pan frying and drain fat from food before eating.

Remember: A change in your diet can be difficult at first, but it can really change your health and your life for the better. And with a little practice, you'll learn to stick to your heart rate plan and enjoy your personalized food.

Once you've enjoyed your recipes and incorporated them into your meal plans, it shouldn't feel like a diet, it should just become your routine.