The American Heart Association recommends eight servings of fruits and vegetables per day, totaling 4 1/2 cups. To add to the challenge, the American Heart Association also emphasizes variety. Fortunately, nature accommodates with a vast array of delicious and heart-healthy vegetables, some with proven ability to keep your heart strong and healthy.
Broccoli
A broccoli extract known as glucosinolate protects the heart from damage due to decreased oxygen supply, according to a study published in the March 2010 issue of the "British Journal of Nutrition," and fresh broccoli was found to be even more cardioprotective than cooked broccoli, in the laboratory animal study. Thirty days of diets that included fresh steamed or cooked broccoli both preserved the strength of heart contractions following an injury, where blood and oxygen supply were temporarily decreased and then restored, a condition that causes increased oxidative stress on the heart. The researchers also noted fewer heart attacks and decreased incidence of cell death in the broccoli-fed groups. The researchers surmised that steamed broccoli's advantage over cooked broccoli may have come from enhanced activation of sulphoraphane, one of the active components of broccoli, and from increased activity of certain antioxidant enzymes in broccoli.
Soy
Soy protein protects against heart attack, according to a study published in the October 2010 issue of the "Singapore Medical Journal." In the laboratory animal study, diets supplemented with soy protein resulted in significant increases in thyroid stimulating hormone and T4 -- an inactive form of thyroid hormone -- compared to a group that received a standard diet. Total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol, the bad form of cholesterol, were increased in the standard diet group compared to the soy protein group. The researchers concluded from the results of their preliminary animal study that soy protein confers heart-healthy benefits that may protect against heart attacks.
Green Beans, Tomatoes and Grapes
Certain fruits and vegetables prevent blood clots, while others are useful for breaking up blood clots, according to a study published in the April 2011 issue of the journal "Blood Coagulation and Fibrinolysis." In the test tube study, researchers evaluated19 fruits and 26 vegetables for their blood clot-preventing and blood clot-digesting effects and found that green beans and tomatoes were particularly effective at inhibiting platelet aggregation -- an initial stage of blood clot formation, grapes slowed the clotting process and raspberries showed the ability to digest fibrin -- the protein strands that comprise blood clots.
Onions
Parts of onion plants that are thrown away in processing may provide valuable heart-health benefits, according to a study published in the May 2010 issue of the "Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry." In the laboratory animal study, onion byproducts moderately lowered cholesterol and blood lipid levels. A study of Welsh green onions turned up potential cholesterol-lowering properties. The laboratory animal study, published in the 2010 issue of the journal "Bioscience, Biotechnology and Biochemistry," found significant ability of Welsh onion to lower total cholesterol and triglycerides. The researchers identified a compound called kaempferol as one of the potential active cholesterol-lowering components of Welsh onions.
References
- "British Journal of Nutrition"; Comparison of the Protective Effects of Steamed and Cooked Broccolis on Ischemia-Reperfusion Induced Cardiac Injury; S. Mukherjee, et al.; March 2010
- "Singapore Medical Journal"; Effects of a Soybean Protein Diet on Ovariectomised Female Albino Rats Subjected to Myocardial Infarction; G.M. Hamed, et al.; October2010
- "Blood Coagulation and Fibrinolysis"; Antiplatelet, Anticoagulant, and Fibrinolytic Activity In Vitro of Extracts from Selected Fruits and Vegetables; C. Torres Urrutia, et al.; April 2011
- "Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry"; An Onion Byproduct Affects Plasma Lipids in Healthy Rats; E. Roldán Marin, et al.; May 2010
- "Bioscience, Biotechnology and Biochemistry"; Welsh Onion Attenuates Hyperlipidemia in Rats Fed on High-Fat High Sucrose Diet; Y. Yamamoto, et al.; February 2010
- American Heart Association: Fruits and Vegetables
