Heart And Health: What Foods To Avoid To Protect Your Heart?

It's no open secret that a healthy, balanced diet is the key to good health! However, each of our organs requires specific nutrients in order for it to function properly. And today we're going to focus on the most important one: the heart! So what foods should you avoid to optimally protect your heart? Decryption.

Heart and health: diet plays a major role

Heart-healthy eating recommendations change a lot over time. What is more, varied diets keep appearing, which can easily cause confusion. But as a general rule, trusting fruits and vegetables, whole grains as well as lean meat and low-fat dairy products, is always the best choice!

On the other hand, processed foods, fried foods and those that contain a lot of salt, added sugar and unsaturated fatty acids are to be avoided at all costs! Let's take a closer look at what foods are harmful to heart health.

Limit salt intake to protect your heart

According to the American Heart Association, consuming too much salt increases blood pressure, which increases the risk of heart attacks, kidney failure and even loss of eyesight. The explanation is quite simple: because of the salt, the body stores more water, which makes it difficult for the heart to function properly. Also try to avoid the following foods:

• Processed meat.
• Fast food.
• Frozen ready-made meals.
• Melted cheese.
• Salty snacks.

To ban foods with added sugar

To protect your heart in a natural way, foods with added sugar are also to be avoided or better - to be banned. Indeed, it turns out that they have a specific negative effect on cardiovascular health, according to a study that appeared in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2014. It found that people who provided themselves 17% - 21% of calories from added sugar, were 38% more likely to die from heart disease.

Scientists will need more studies to establish exactly why sugar harms the heart. However, they suspect that it not only promotes weight gain but also increases blood pressure and exacerbates inflammation in the body, which in turn promotes the development of heart disease. Here are some of the foods high in added sugar:

• Sugary drinks.
• Confectionery.
• Sauces with spices like ketchup.
• Frozen processed foods and ready meals.

What other foods are harmful to cardiovascular health?

To better protect your heart and benefit from a healthy cardiovascular system, here are the harmful foods to ban from your menu:

• Fried meat such as chicken and fish nuggets.
• Fried pastries.
• Palm oil.
• Butter.
• Animal fat.
• White bread.
• White rice.
• Fried and white flour foods.

Sources:

American Heart Association

Journal of the American Medical Association