Eating Well and Losing Weight

Eating the right foods is important, especially when you have heart disease. A heart-healthy diet and physical activity help you maintain good health and reduce your risk of future heart problems.

Good nutrition and weight control are a crucial part of your treatment plan because they help reduce your risk of heart attack or stroke. If you are overweight, even modest weight loss (3% to 5% of your body weight) can improve your health. Losing more weight can produce greater health benefits.

Healthy Eating Goals

Here are five healthy eating goals everyone can agree on — even the experts!  Try to add these healthy habits to your daily life over the next couple of weeks.

Five Simple Goals

1. Eat more fruits and vegetables.  Any expert will tell you fruits and vegetables are healthy foods. And most of us don’t eat enough of them. 
2. Eat more whole-grain foods. Whole-grain foods are low in saturated fat and high in fiber.  Whole grain foods include whole wheat bread, rye bread, brown rice, and whole grain cereal.
3. Use healthier oils and sprays such as olive, canola, corn or safflower as your main kitchen fats. Not all fats are bad for us. Some fats, such as olive, canola, corn and safflower oils, are quite good, especially when used to replace solid fats.
4. Eat more chicken, fish and beans than meat. In general, skinless poultry, fish and vegetable protein, such as beans, are lower in saturated fat than meat (beef, pork and lamb).
5. Read food labels to help you choose healthier foods. Food labels provide information to help you make better food choices. Learn what information to look for (such as calories, sodium, saturated fat and trans fat), and how to find it quickly and easily.

The right foods and regular physical activity help you:

• Make better use of the food you eat.
• Control blood sugar.
• Lower blood cholesterol.
• Control blood pressure.
• Lose weight and avoid gaining weight.