Heart Healthy Diet

Heart Healthy Diet

 

A heart healthy diet is low in saturated fat, sodium and added sugar. It helps to:

  • Control or decrease cholesterol and triglycerides in your blood.
  • Control or decrease blood pressure and fluid retention.

Heart healthy laboratory test goals

  • Total cholesterol less than 200 mg/dL
  • HDL (good) cholesterol:
    • Men:  40 mg/dL or greater
    • Women:  50 mg/dL or greater
    • The ideal level for heart health is 60 mg/dL or greater
  • LDL (bad) cholesterol less than 70 mg/dL 
  • Triglycerides less than 150 mg/dL

Know your fats!

Saturated fats

  • Saturated fats increase cholesterol — both total and LDL (bad) cholesterol.  
  • Saturated fats are mostly in animal foods, such as fatty meats and high-fat dairy products.
  • These fats are usually solid at room temperature, like butter.
  • The main source of saturated fat in the American diet are meats and cheeses, whole and 2% milk and butter, pizza, and high-fat snack foods and sweets.
  • Saturated fat is also in coconut oil, palm oil and palm kernel oil, which are in many snack foods and sweets.

Trans fats

  • By law, trans fats have been phased out of many foods. However, some foods, like baked goods, still have trans fats. 
  • Many food manufacturers now use saturated palm or palm kernel oil in place of trans fats.  These fats increase LDL (bad) and total cholesterol.
  • Trans fats are bad for your heart health because they increase LDL (bad) cholesterol and decrease HDL (good) cholesterol. 
  • You can tell if a food has trans fats by reading its food label and looking for “partially hydrogenated oil” of any type.
  • Fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans and nuts are naturally trans fat free!

Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats

  • Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats are both unsaturated fats that are generally heart healthy.
  • Unsaturated fats protect HDL (good) cholesterol. They are found in plants and fish.
  • They are usually liquid at room temperature, like olive oil.
  • Examples of polyunsaturated fats include:  sunflower, corn, soy and flax oils as well as walnuts, flaxseeds and fish.
  • Examples of monounsaturated fats include:  olive, peanut and canola oils as well as avocado, almonds, hazelnuts, pecans, pumpkin seeds and sesame seeds.

Ways to reduce your blood cholesterol

Limit saturated fat and trans fats in your diet

  • The American Heart Association recommends aiming for a healthy eating pattern that has 5% to 6% of calories from saturated fat. For example, if you need about 2,000 calories a day, no more than 13 grams of them should come from saturated fat.
  • Read food labels and look at the saturated fat of foods you eat to get an idea of how much is in the food you eat.
  • Replace saturated fats in your diet with heart healthy fats. For example, use olive oil or another plant oil to cook instead of butter.

Limit foods high in cholesterol

  • While cholesterol from food does not usually lead to higher blood cholesterol levels, high cholesterol foods tend to be high in saturated fat.

Increase fiber in your diet

  • Eat more fiber to help lower your cholesterol. Aim for at least 25 to 30 grams of fiber a day from food.
  • There are 2 types of fiber:  soluble and insoluble. Both are good for us. Soluble fiber is especially good at helping to decrease cholesterol levels.  
  • Foods high in soluble fiber include:  oats, barley, beans, Brussels sprouts, mangoes, apples and pears.  
  • Foods high in total fiber include:  all fruits and vegetables, whole grains, beans, lentils, and nuts and seeds.

Ways to lower your triglycerides

  • Limit the amount of saturated fat in your diet.
  • Avoid or greatly limit the amount of alcohol you drink.
  • Make at least half of the grains that you eat unrefined carbohydrates or whole grains. Examples include whole wheat bread and pasta, brown rice, quinoa, barley and millet, and fruits and vegetables.
  • Limit the amount of refined carbohydrates in your diet, such as white bread, rice and pasta, and sweets made from white flour. 
  • Limit added sugars in your diet. Too much sugar in the body gets changed into triglycerides. Limit sugar to 9 teaspoons a day for men and 6 teaspoons a day for women. This is about 150 calories a day from sugar for men and 100 calories a day for women. 

These foods often have added sugars:

  • Sugar-sweetened beverages, such as soda, fruit drinks, sports drinks, lemonade, iced tea and flavored coffee — Over 40% of added sugars in the American diet come from sugar-sweetened beverages!
  • Sugar-sweetened dairy products, such as ice cream, sweetened yogurt and chocolate milk
  • Sugar-sweetened cereals
  • Cakes, cookies, candy and pie

Sodium

Sodium is an important mineral that is present in most foods. Most people eat more sodium than they need. On average, Americans eat more than 3,400 milligrams of sodium a day. If your body can’t get rid of the extra sodium, fluid builds up. Extra fluid increases the work of the heart and kidneys and may increase blood pressure.  

  • Aim for no more than 2,300 mg of sodium a day.
  • If you are over 50 or have high blood pressure, aim for 1,500 mg of sodium a day.
  • 1 teaspoon of salt has 2,300 mg of sodium.

Ways to limit sodium in your diet

  • Prepare meals at home. More than 70% of the salt we eat comes from packaged foods and restaurant meals. 
  • Limit processed foods high in salt. Examples include breads and rolls, cheese, processed meats, frozen meals, pickles, salted snacks, soups and pasta sauce.
  • Read food labels:
    • A low sodium food has 140 mg of sodium or less per serving. 
    • A very low sodium food has 35 mg of sodium or less per serving.  
    • A reduced sodium food has 25% less sodium than normal.
  • Eat more fruits and vegetables. Aim to fill half your plate at meals with fruits and/or vegetables.
  • Limit salt use when cooking at home. Use herbs and spices or lemon juice to flavor food instead of salt.

Maintain a healthy weight

If you are at your ideal body weight, it is important that you avoid any weight gain. If you are overweight, weight loss can be helpful in lowering your cholesterol and blood pressure. 

Ways to manage your weight

  • Keep snacking in check. Calories from snacks can add up quickly and lead to weight gain over time. Keep snacks around 200 to 300 calories.  
  • Keep serving sizes moderate. Avoid large servings and second helpings. 
  • Satisfy your appetite with raw vegetables and fruits. Drinking water and calorie-free beverages can also help.
  • Do not skip meals. Skipping meals can lead to overeating at the next meal.
  • Eat mindfully. Pay attention to your hunger level and keep distractions to a minimum while eating. Stop eating when you feel full.
  • If you have diabetes, keep your blood sugar in a healthy range.
  • Be active every day. Being active helps with weight loss by burning stored calories, and it is good for your heart.

Healthy eating patterns

An easy way to follow a heart healthy diet is to follow a healthy eating pattern. 

An eating pattern is the foods you eat and when you eat them. Eating patterns can be healthy or unhealthy or somewhere in between. 

A healthy eating pattern includes foods that are naturally low in saturated fat, sodium and sugar. If you follow a healthy eating pattern, you do not need to worry about counting grams of saturated fat, milligrams of sodium or grams of sugar. 

A healthy eating pattern contains mostly healthy foods, like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat or fat-free dairy products, lean protein sources, nuts, seeds and liquid vegetable oils. 

There is still room for some unhealthy foods, just less often and in smaller amounts.   

Some healthy eating pattern options

Foods to include in a healthy eating pattern

Dairy - Eat 3 cups a day

Foods to eat more often:

  • Non-fat, low fat, or 1% milk
  • Low-fat or reduced fat yogurt
  • Low-fat cheeses, such as mozzarella (look for less than 150 mg of sodium)

Foods to eat less often:

  • Whole milk or full fat yogurt
  • Cream or half & half
  • Ice cream, cream cheese or sour cream
  • Processed cheeses, like American cheese

Protein - Eat 5 to 6 ounces a day

Foods to eat more often:

  • Skinless poultry and fish
  • Lean cuts of beef and pork, such as loin, leg, round and extra lean hamburger
  • Egg whites or egg substitute
  • Dried beans, peas and soy
  • Nuts and nut butters

Foods to eat less often:

  • Fried or breaded meats
  • Higher fat cuts of meat, like fatty beef and pork
  • Bacon, sausage, hot dogs and corned beef 
  • Poultry with skin (it is okay to cook with the skin on but take it off before serving)

Fruits and vegetables - Eat 4 to 5 cups a day

Foods to eat more often:

  • Fresh, frozen or canned vegetables with no added salt
  • Fresh, frozen, canned or dried fruit 
  • Tomato or vegetable juice, canned without salt

Foods to eat less often:

  • French fries and onion rings
  • Pickled vegetables and sauerkraut (high sodium)
  • Canned soups
  • Vegetables with cream, cheese or heavy sauces

Grains - Eat 6 to 7 ounces a day

Foods to eat more often:

  • Whole grain bread, pasta and rice 
  • Cooked cereals, such as oatmeal
  • Whole grain cereals
  • Whole grains, such as quinoa, bulgur, barley, teff and buckwheat

Foods to eat less often:

  • Refined (white) grains
  • Breads or crackers topped with salt
  • Biscuits, cornbread or other “quick” breads
  • High-fat baked goods

Other foods and snacks - Keep snacks around 200 to 300 calories

Foods to eat more often:

  • Whole grain pretzels and crackers (limit to 1 to 2 servings due to sodium) 
  • Nuts and nut butters (watch calories)
  • Avocado
  • Unsalted popcorn or limit regular popcorn to a serving with no more than 200 mg of sodium

Foods to eat less often:

  • Deep fried snacks, like potato chips
  • Candy
  • Cookies, cake, muffins and pie
  • Foods with palm or coconut oils

© 2000 – June 8, 2021, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center.

This handout is for informational purposes only. Talk with your doctor or healthcare team if you have any questions about your care. For more health information, call the Library for Health Information at 614-293-3707 or email: health-info@osu.edu.