There are a variety of different diet plans that have been designed to promote your health. One such diet, known as the Heart Smart or Heart Healthy diet, is a set of guidelines which is designed to help protect against heart disease. This diet contains many good features, but it may not be right for everyone as it requires you to check nutrition labels and information yourself.
Fats and Cholesterol
One focus of a heart healthy diet is limiting consumption of saturated fats, trans fats and cholesterol. Saturated fats and trans fats can increase the amount of LDL cholesterol, also known as "bad" cholesterol in your blood. According to the Mayo Clinic, saturated fats should comprise less than 7 percent of your daily calorie intake and trans fats should represent less than 1 percent of your daily calories. In addition, you should limit your cholesterol consumption to a maximum of 300 mg per day. By limiting your intake of butter, margarine and red meat you can lower your saturated fat, trans fat and cholesterol intake. Replacing these fats with polyunsaturated fats, such as those found in olive and canola oil, can help you keep your LDL cholesterol lower.
Other Guidelines
A heart smart diet also has limitations on the number of calories and amount of sodium consumed each day. Your caloric intake should be limited to the number of calories that you need to maintain or achieve a healthy weight, the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute explains. You should also keep your sodium consumption under 2,400 mg per day to help prevent hypertension. The heart healthy diet from the American Heart Association also contains other recommendations, such as 4.5 cups of fruits and vegetables each day, at least two servings of fish and four servings of nuts each week, plus three servings of whole grains each day.
Purpose
The goal of heart healthy and heart smart diets is to reduce your risk of developing cardiovascular disease. These diets are tailored toward reducing your blood pressure and cholesterol levels. High cholesterol can lead to atherosclerosis, which causes cholesterol to build up in the arteries and narrow the arteries. High blood pressure puts extra strain on the heart. Both of these factors can contribute to a heart attack or heart failure.
Advantages
One of the advantages of a heart smart diet is that it is not overly restrictive, which means you can eat a variety of foods and plan your own meals, so long as you follow the basic guidelines. The diet is also founded on sound nutritional principles and emphasizes eating a variety of foods, including fruits, vegetables and whole grains, to get all of the nutrients you need. A heart smart diet also does not require any special supplements or pre-packaged meals.
Disadvantages
Following a heart smart diet, on the other hand, requires you to monitor your own nutrition. This means that you need to look up the nutritional information for foods and make your own food choices, which can be difficult if you are unaccustomed to planning a diet with healthy foods. This diet also requires you to determine your own caloric needs, which means you may need to talk to your doctor or a dietitian to determine how many calories you should be eating each day.
