Eating for a healthy heart

The foods you choose to eat can have a big impact on your heart health. Eating a healthy diet that contains heart-friendly foods can help reduce your risk of coronary heart disease. It can also stop you from becoming overweight, reducing your risk of type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure.

"Some foods help our heart health by helping protect against high cholesterol and high blood pressure," explains Bupa Dietitian Tahlia Dewar. "These aren't fancy foods, they're everyday foods that are part of the national guidelines, the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating."

Here's how to eat for a healthy heart:

Healthy fats are split into 2 categories: monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats.

"Both these types of fat help increase what is known as HDL, or 'good' cholesterol," says Tahlia. "This type of cholesterol protects our arteries. It acts like a sponge, helping absorb any 'bad' LDL cholesterol, and transporting it to our liver where it's removed from the body."

Polyunsaturated fats include the beneficial omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, and are found in:

• oily fish, including salmon, sardines and tuna (2 to 3 serves a week)
• nuts, including walnuts, Brazil nuts, and pecans (a small handful a day)
• seeds, including sunflower seeds, chia seeds and flax seeds (a sprinkle a day)
• oils, including sunflower, safflower, flaxseed and grapeseed (a tablespoon per serve).

Monounsaturated fats are found in:

• avocado (a quarter per serve)
• olive oil and canola oil (a tablespoon per serve)
• nuts, including almonds, macadamias, cashews and peanuts (a small handful a day).

While these fats are great to incorporate in your diet, you need to be mindful of how much you eat.

"They're very energy dense, which means they are high in calories," says Tahlia. "Avoid over consuming them so you're not hindering any weight loss efforts."

"Unhealthy fats, also known as saturated and trans fats, increase the level of 'bad' LDL cholesterol in our blood," says Tahlia. "This 'bad' cholesterol increases the risk of the fatty plaque build-up within our arteries, increasing the risk of blockages, which can lead to heart attack or stroke."

Saturated fats are found in foods such as processed meats, red meat, coconut oil, palm oil and butter.

"Choose lean protein sources such as chicken or fish, when possible," says Tahlia. "Red meat is a great source of iron and protein so there's no need to eliminate it completely. Guidelines recommend 350g to 450g of cooked lean red meat a week depending on your personal situation."¹

If you like a deli meat, opt for "lean ham or turkey breast rather than salami or more processed meats," says Tahlia.

Trans fats are often found in shop-bought biscuits and cakes. "You don't need to eliminate these completely, but they should be limited."

"When we eat foods that are high in soluble fibre, this forms a gel-like substance in our stomach," says Tahlia. "This gel traps cholesterol particles in our digestive system, lowering the amount of cholesterol we would otherwise absorb."

Get your soluble fibre from:

• rolled oats
• fruit and vegetables
• legumes (lentils, chickpeas and beans)
• psyllium husk.

"The sodium component of salt holds on to water in your body. This can end up increasing blood pressure," explains Tahlia. "High blood pressure is a big risk factor for heart disease and stroke."

Guidelines recommend eating no more than 2,000mg of sodium a day, which is the equivalent to around a teaspoon of salt. "Sodium is in almost all packaged foods, so always prioritise fresh food over packaged," says Tahlia. "Look for labels that say 'low salt' or 'reduced salt' where possible. When reading labels, look for products with less than 400mg of sodium per 100g."

Plant sterols are natural compounds found in plants. They've been proven to help lower your cholesterol levels to reduce the risk of heart disease.² In their natural state, plant sterols are found in fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds and legumes. However, they can also be added to products such as milk and margarine.

"Studies have shown plant sterols can lower LDL cholesterol by about 10 %,³ which is significant," says Tahlia. "However, you need to have 2 to 3 grams a day for them to be effective. That's a cup of heart-healthy milk, or around 2 teaspoons of cholesterol lowering spread."

"Full-fat dairy products can be high in saturated fat," says Tahlia. "However, dairy products are important in our diet because they're a good source of protein and calcium. Choose low-fat options when it comes to milk, yoghurt and cheese, with 2g or less of saturated fat per 100g."

Eggs and shellfish contain natural dietary cholesterol, but for most people this doesn't matter. According to Tahlia:

However, someone with established cardiovascular disease can be more sensitive to dietary cholesterol in food. "For these people, the guidelines are no more than 7 eggs a week," says Tahlia.

The Heart Foundation offers information and advice on eating for a healthy heart.

The Australian Guide to Healthy Eating gives guidelines and information about the types of food you should include in your diet.