Your heart is vital to living a healthy and long life, so you must take care of it, whether it be increased activity or the food you put into your body. Certain foods are great for heart health and will not only increase your overall health, but allow the benefits to work for your heart also. Certain foods are able to directly influence your blood pressure, inflammation in your body and cholesterol, which all directly influence heart disease. Here is a list of 5 foods that you want to start to incorporate into your diet as soon as possible if you have not already.
Leafy Greens
Vegetable greens that include spinach, kale and collard greens are full of vitamin K. This vitamin protects your arteries and helps your body to properly clot blood. After an analysis of 8 different studies, it was a recurring trend that leafy green intake was linked to a 16% drop in the chance of getting heart disease.
Avocados
Avocados are high in monounsaturated fats, which are good for your overall health, compared to other fats. This type of fat is linked to reduced level of cholesterol and lowering your chances of contracted diseases and deficiencies in your heart. Avocados are also high in potassium which is also linked to good heart health, one avocado has 28% of the amount you need to consume in one day.
Fatty Fish
Fatty fish include sardines, salmon, and tuna are full of omega-3 fatty acids, which have been studied directly for their effects on the heart and their overall health benefits to people that consume them. Eating fish long term also has the overall benefit to reduce excess body weight, which can be directly linked to heart problems as well as lowering blood sugar and pressure. If you are not a fish eater, there are other ways to receive these nutrients through fish oil pills sold at local drug stores.
Beans
Resistant starch which is found in beans help resist digestion while being fermented by the bacteria in your stomach, this is linked to consuming beans during meals instead of other sources of protein directly affects lower levels of triglycerides and cholesterol. Replacing other foods with beans not only is beneficial to your heart health, but your overall health as they are full of proteins that your body needs to continue its everyday functions.
Dark Chocolate
Although unconventional to eat for health reasons, indulging in dark chocolate can help reduce your risk of getting heart disease. Dark chocolate is rich in antioxidants that include flavonoids, that increase heart health. Those who eat dark chocolate at least twice a week have 32% lower risk of having built up plaque in their arteries, which forces your heart to pump harder to get the blood through your body. To get these health benefits of dark chocolate you should pick high quality chocolate that has at least a 70% cocoa content.