Dr. Botta's Health Blog & News
2/10: Valentine's Heart Things to Remember
Posted on: Thursday, February 10, 2011
Keywords: Heart, Disease, Diet, Alcohol, Stress, Exercise, Smoking, Fruit, Soy, Pork
In honor of Valentine's Day I'd like to share some ways that we can all help our hearts to be healthy. First, I'd like to get your attention and share some hardcore statistics with you:
- 2,600 Americans die of heart disease every day
- 500,000 women die of heart disease per year
- 300,000 Americans die per year from lack of activity and poor diet
5 of the 10 leading causes of illness and death that are lifestyle related and changeable:
- Alcohol consumption
- Maladaptive response to stress and tension
- Lack of exercise
- Smoking
- Poor diet
I'm not talking about bumping your elbow on the counter and getting some swelling. I am talking about a chemical state that your body shifts into when we eat inflammatory foods and do not get appropriate exercise.
Here are some suggestions to help make your food choices ones that discourage inflammation:
- Fruits (especially blueberries and organic strawberries),
- Veggies (broccoli, brussel sprouts, spinach, kale, escarole),
- Nuts (10 almonds, 10 walnuts),
- Whole grains (notice I did not say "whole wheat"),
- Soy/tofu (make sure anything you buy with soy is organic),
- Cold water fish (sardines, wild salmon, wild trout),
- Beans,
- Non-fat yogurt with active cultures,
- Anything with lycopene (tomatoes),
- Cold pressed extra virgin olive oil,
- 1/3 of an avocado at a time (avocados have very-good-for-you fats in them, eat them at breakfast, lunch, and dinner),
- Green tea (see my blog on green tea for more benefits of this ancient indulgence),
- Spices (tumeric, rosemary, ginger), and
- Low glycemic foods (keep your sugar intake below 8g per serving and eat foods that do not spike your blood sugar levels).
An excellent way to cook food is to stir fry with olive oil and water (use the water to steam also). This is soooo healthy! And the steam makes the food cook faster... almost as fast as those microwave things, and much healthier.
Foods to avoid that increase inflammation: Lamb, beef, pork, butter, whole milk, commercial cooking oils, anything deep fried, margarine, sugar, high glycemic foods, coffee, egg yolks, alcohol, white flour, anything trans fat or partially hydrogenated, high fructose corn syrup, and fructose.
A good supplement to block the inflammatory process: Omega 3 fatty acids (1 gram per day).
A good way to decrease the amount of food you consume: Decrease the size of your plate!
Drink water, drink water, drink water! How much??? One half your body weight in ounces of water per day!
Exercise! Even walking at a good pace three times per week can make a huge difference in your overall state of health. Three 20-minute exercise sessions a week (get your heart rate up to 220 minus your age) can make a huge difference in your overall health.
An excellent gift for yourself and your loved ones on this February 14th is to take a step in a heart healthy direction. Try adding/eliminating just one food at a time to help decrease your internal inflammation. Try cooking something as a team with olive oil and water... I'll bet the food won’t be the only thing steaming in the kitchen! Douse yourselves with water and get those hearts pumping at least three times per week. You'll be amazed at the difference in your health and the way you feel after 30, 60, 90 days. Why not document it in a nice red journal, just to remind you it's all about your heart.
As a side note: Even as commercialized as Valentine's Day is... I still think having one day a year to spread love and not prejudice, hate, and terror is a good thing. So let's embrace this day, wear red, and have a smile for everyone.
Be Healthy!
Dr. B
See Dr. Botta's Practitioner Page
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