5 Super Foods That Prevent Heart Disease

What are some foods that prevent heart disease? Which foods are good for the heart and can help you to prevent heart disease? What are some foods that one can eat to prevent himself or herself  from getting heart disease? What are some top foods a man or woman must eat if that person wants to prevent heart disease?

In this article, I want to show you 5 foods you should eat if you want to prevent heart disease.

1.    Salmon

One of the foods that you must eat to prevent heart disease is salmon. This fish which is found in cold waters is a wonderful source of protein. Additionally, it contains a lot of omega-3 fatty acids which are good for the heart.

Omega- 3 fatty acids decrease triglycerides, or bad fats and bad oils, in the body. Furthermore, omega-3 fatty acids lower the pressure of the blood flowing through the heart. These acids also help to reduce blood clotting, reduce irregular heartbeats, and also prevent inflammation of the blood vessels (inflammation can damage those vessels) thereby helping to reduce the risk of heart attack.

So, for your breakfast, you may choose to eat 5 slices of bran bread or 5 slices of wheat bread with a cup of green tea and 3 ounces of smoked salmon.

For your lunch, you may choose to eat unpolished brown rice with and salmon stew—prepare the stew with 2 ounces of fried salmon.

And for your dinner, you may choose to eat cooked wheat or boiled sorghum with cabbage stew and three ounces of roasted salmon.

2.    Chocolate

Chocolate is another of the foods that is good for preventing heart disease. Chocolate contains antioxidants known as flavonoids which breakdown down bad cholesterol and fats in the body. Bad cholesterol and fats contribute to the buildup of plaque in the blood vessels, which can damage the arteries of the heart and other tissues of the heart and increase one’s risk of getting a heart attack.

In other words, eating chocolate helps to protect the heart and its blood vessels from damage and also reduces one’s risk of suffering from a heart attack.

The darker the color of the chocolate you eat, the higher the amount of cocoa in the chocolate and the higher the amount of oxidants in it. Therefore, choose to buy dark chocolate when you go shopping instead of light colored chocolate (milky- colored chocolate).

Eat one bar of dark chocolate three times in a week. You may choose to eat a bar on Sunday morning before you go to church, another bar of dark chocolate on Wednesday afternoon after you take your lunch, and another bar of dark chocolate on Friday evening after you enjoy your dinner.

3.    Spinach

Spinach is a very good source of fiber—1 cup of spinach contains 6 grams of fiber.  Fiber lowers the amount of cholesterol in the body, thereby helping to prevent plaque from building up in the arteries of the heart and so helping to protect the heart tissues from damage. Additionally, fiber prevents narrowing of the lumen of the arteries so that blood can flow freely through the heart, thereby reducing one’s risk of getting a heart attack.

 So, make it a habit to consume spinach regularly. For your breakfast, you may choose to eat two cups of cooked spinach with your wheat bread or oatmeal, or one cup of cooked spinach with bread toast instead of eating your bread with butter, which contains saturated fats and so is not good for the health of your heart.

For your lunch, you may choose to use 5 cups of spinach to prepare spinach stew which you can use to eat cooked brown rice.

And for your dinner, use 5 cups of spinach to prepare stew and use that stew to eat 1 serving of potatoes or pasta.    

4.    Nuts

According to the Harvard Medical School, nuts contain healthy protein, fiber, and unsaturated fats which help to fight low density lipoprotein (LDL), or bad cholesterol. Low density lipoprotein contributes significantly to the deposition of plaque in arteries—plaque can block the blood vessels in the heart and that can cause a heart attack.

Additionally, nuts contain a high amount of an amino acid known as arginine which helps the blood vessels of the heart to function optimally.

Studies have shown that eating a handful of nuts a day gives the best results. So, every day, make it a point to eat a handful of tigernuts, peanuts, walnuts, pistachio nuts, or Brazilnuts after your main meals.

5.    Soy Protein

Research shows that eating 25 grams of soy protein a day, or 2 ½ cups of soy milk or 10 ounces of tofu, can help to cut your low density lipoprotein (LDL), or bad cholesterol, level by 6 %.

Soy protein fights bad cholesterol, which contributes to atherosclerosis, or hardening of arteries, by suppressing the activity of a protein known as transforming growth factor- beta (TGF-beta) that protects the aorta and other blood vessels of the heart from damage (which may be caused by high blood pressure and other factors)—it makes the cells of the heart and its blood vessels unresponsive to TGF-beta, thus allowing atherosclerosis to develop.

So, drink 1½ cups of soy milk in the morning after you eat your breakfast, and 1 cup of soy milk in the afternoon after you take your lunch. Additionally, use soy beans to prepare stew and use that stew to eat your white rice, millet, or potatoes.

Conclusion

Some foods that prevent heart disease and which you must eat regularly if you want to have a strong and healthy heart are salmon, dark chocolate, spinach, a handful of nuts a day, and soy protein.

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