Heart-Healthy Breakfast

Your overall diet can have a big impact on your risk for heart disease, so start your day off right with a heart-healthy breakfast. Instead of traditional breakfast meats and eggs fried with butter, choose nutrient-dense foods that provide benefits for your heart. A nutrient-dense food provides healthy substances such as vitamins or minerals without extra calories from added sugar, starch or saturated fat. Examples include fruit, vegetables whole grains, lean proteins and dairy products. Consult a nutritionist for help determining the best foods to eat for your heart-healthy breakfast.

Grains

A whole grain, such as whole-grain bread, a whole-wheat English muffin or tortilla, whole-grain hot or cold cereal or bran cereal, can be the basis of a heart-healthy breakfast. People who eat more whole grains tend to have a lower risk for heart disease. You should get at least half of your grains from whole grain sources, according to the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans from U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Dietary fiber, such as that in whole grains, is healthy for your heart because it helps lower levels of low-density lipoprotein, or LDL cholesterol, in your blood. Whole grains make better choices than refined grains or breakfast pastries, such as doughnuts, which are high in calories, unhealthy fats, starches and sugars, and lower in fiber, vitamin E and iron naturally found in whole grains.

Healthy Proteins

A heart-healthy breakfast is low in saturated fat, which raises the level of LDL cholesterol in your blood. Fatty meats such as bacon or pork sausage are high in saturated fat. Keep your breakfast healthy by choosing leaner proteins, such as chicken, fish, vegetarian breakfast sausage or turkey bacon. You can also choose low-fat or fat-free dairy products, such as milk or yogurt, for high-quality protein as well as calcium.

Other Components

You may reduce your risk for cardiovascular disease when you increase your consumption of fruits and vegetables, according to the 2010 Dietary Guidelines. Many fruits and vegetables supply vitamin C, an antioxidant that may be healthy for your heart. Have fruit on the side or in your cereal or yogurt, or have vegetables in an omelet or sandwich to make your breakfast healthier for your heart. Reduce your cholesterol intake by using an egg substitute or egg whites instead of whole eggs. Nuts and peanuts provide heart-healthy fats, so consider using them as part of your breakfast. Limit your intake of processed breakfast foods, such as those with eggs, cheese, biscuits, sausages or bacon, which are often high in sodium, saturated fat, cholesterol or trans fat and may increase your risk for heart disease.

Weight Control

Obesity can increase your risk for heart disease, and a healthy breakfast can help you control your weight. Make sure your heart-healthy breakfast has a balance of complex carbohydrates, healthy fats and high-quality protein to decrease your hunger and give you energy throughout the morning. Monitor portion sizes so your breakfast fits into your calorie-controlled daily meal plan. Choose nutrient-dense foods to meet your nutrient requirements while staying within your limits for calories.