February has an extra day this year, so that means one more day to focus on heart health. Is the saying “You are what you eat?” true? When it comes to heart health, the answer is a resounding “Yes!” Eating the right way is not about dieting, which is really a temporary change in your eating habits to lose a few pounds; it is about making better choices every day so that they become part of a healthier lifestyle. A healthful eating pattern and lifestyle from the start are your best approaches for staying healthy and preventing disease, or at least slowing its course. Most health problems do not start with a single event in your life. Instead they are a combination of factors. Some you cannot control, such as your family history, gender, or age; but many you can. Today I would like to focus on the lifestyle choices you have control over.
We know that eating certain foods can increase our heart disease risk. Fried food choices and sugary snacks are choices that elevate cholesterol levels and blood glucose levels; both important risk factors with heart disease. How much you eat is as important as what you eat. Overloading your plate, and eating until you feel stuffed can lead to eating more calories, fat and cholesterol than you should. Of course the portions served in restaurants are often more than anyone needs.
Strive to eat more low-calorie, nutrient-dense foods, such as fruits and vegetables and whole grains. Those foods have the added bonus of high fiber which may help give you a fuller feeling. Then you will be less likely to load up on high calorie, refined, processed or fast foods.
I seem to always come back to some tried and true lifestyle choices that relate to healthy eating.
• Start your day with breakfast
• Include a fruit or vegetable at every meal or snack
• Reduce portion sizes
• Eat slowly and eat only until you are no longer hungry
• Choose to eat more nutrient dense foods
• Eat whole foods instead of highly processed foods
These strategies are part of my “Action Plan for Healthy Living” and “Action Plan for Managing Obesity” fact sheets. Stop by my office for your copy – I’m always happy to share!
Donna Krug is the Family & Consumer Science Agent with K-State Research and Extension – Barton County. You may reach her at (620)793-1910 or dkrug@ksu.edu