Heart Healthy Tips

February is considered “Heart Month” a time  to take a look at what we are eating by adding foods that support a healthy heart. It’s important to follow the guidelines to eat no more then 30% of your calories from fat. There are unhealthy fats and healthy fats and with more research we are discovering that if we add the healthy fats to our diet we are supporting a healthier heart. When we decrease the unhealthy fats then we could reduce our risk of high cholesterol, heart disease and insulin resistance.

What are good sources of healthy fats?
Avocados

Cold-water fish (salmon)

Nuts, seeds

Nut butters

Sesame, olive, macadamia, grape seed, safflower oil

What are the unhealthy fats?

Processed desserts (cakes, doughnuts)

Margarine

Cheese

Red meat

Shortening

Poultry skin

Lard

Potato chips, snack foods

Look at the ingredient list and if you see hydrogenation then you want to pass on this food item. Also a good rule of thumb is for every 100 calories there should be 3 or less grams of fat, and 1 or less grams of saturated  fat.

For more information consider the Heart Healthy workshop on February 19th from 6-7:30.