Heart palpitations cause you to experience the feeling of your heart racing or pounding. The Cleveland Clinic describes heart palpitations as something like a flutter, a skipped heart beat or a heartbeat that does not feel normal. While usually harmless, palpitations can happen at any time and may be caused by stress, fear, heart disease, exercise, medical conditions and reactions to medication or food containing caffeine. A healthy diet may prevent heart palpitations.
Heart Palpitations: Harmless or Serious?
Heart palpitations, while scary, are often harmless reactions to emotions, medications, conditions or certain foods. However, palpitations may be a sign of a more serious heart condition if you already have a heart condition, or if they are accompanied by dizziness, blackouts or trouble breathing. Palpitations that occur with chest pain, shortness of breath or unusual sweating could be signs of a heart attack and need to be reported to a doctor immediately.
Stress Reducing Diet
Stress and anxiety often trigger heart palpitations. A diet rich in B vitamins assist the body with effective stress management. Niacin and pantothenic acid are two B vitamins that work with the body to create hormones responsible for stress. Niacin helps with the creation of serotonin, a hormone responsible for the overall feeling of well-being. Niacin can be found in legumes, lean meats and fish. Panothenic acid is a B vitamin that ensures proper function of the adrenal glands, which produce and release hormones responsible for stress. Sources of panothenic acid include fortified cereals, broccoli, avocados and mushrooms.
Heart Disease Diet
Heart palpitations may be a sign of a more serious condition, such as heart disease. A healthy diet keeps your heart in great shape and free from the fluttering and skipping associated with palpitations. To avoid heart disease, the MayoClinic.com recommends a diet low in fat, sodium and cholesterol, and high in lean proteins, whole grains and fresh fruits and vegetables.
Foods to Avoid
Caffeine is a stimulant and a proven contributor to heart palpitations. Reducing your consumption of caffeine will reduce heart palpitations. While coffee is the most widely consumed source of caffeine, other sources to avoid include tea, soft drinks, chocolate and energy drinks. The Center for Science in the Public Interest also reports over-the-counter headache medications often contain large amounts of caffeine and may cause heart palpitations.
