If you've recently been diagnosed with coronary artery disease, you've probably been told that it's time to make some changes. Not only will you need to remember to take your medications and get more exercise, but you'll also need to make a number of improvements in your diet. You'll need to start taking the same steps as others who want to reduce their risk for heart disease. The good news is it's easier than you think.
Limiting Cholesterol
As a rule, the body makes enough cholesterol to meet its needs. Any additional cholesterol circulating in the blood gets deposited on the inside of the arterial walls. Foods that are high in cholesterol result in accumulated cholesterol in the bloodstream after digestion. Avoid canned meats, cold cuts, hot dogs and sausages, fatty marbled meats, egg yolks and liver. Eating these foods makes it easy to exceed the American Heart Association's recommendation of 200 mg of cholesterol per day.
Reducing Sodium
Cutting down on your sodium intake is another way to lower your risk for coronary artery disease. High-sodium foods can exacerbate high blood pressure--a common problem associated with coronary artery disease. The American Heart Association recommends that healthy adults limit their sodium intake to 2,300 mg or less per day. If you have heart disease or have been diagnosed with high blood pressure, you may want to look for ways to lower your salt intake even more. Things to avoid are table salt, canned soups and regular soy sauce. Replace them with herbs and spices, salt substitutes and reduced-salt varieties of soups and condiments.
Lowering Fat Intake
Diets filled with saturated fat and trans fat can increase your risk for heart disease. Saturated fat is present in many foods of animal origin and fast foods. Trans fats are added to margarine, cookies, doughnuts and potato chips--highly processed foods intended for long shelf lives. Limit your saturated fat intake to less than 7 percent of your total daily calories. Limit trans fats to 1 percent or less. Try exchanging olive or canola oil for butter or lard. Avoid bacon, heavy cream sauces, non-dairy creamers, cocoa butter and coconut oil.
Sugar and Sugar Substitutes
Another place to make changes is your sugar intake. Sugar is added to a number of foods--even some that would surprise you. Fruit juices and regular sodas contain as much as 150 calories per serving. Drinking that many calories in a day can lead to obesity, which causes the heart to work harder. Sugar substitutes have come a long way in the past few years. Sweeteners like saccharin, Sucralose, aspartame and stevia are now available in many of the foods you enjoy and are a good way to cut calories, lose weight and take the load off of your heart.
