Heart-Healthy Foods To Add To Your Daily Diet
A healthy heart beats around 100,000 times a day, i.e. 70 times a minute. A feat! A balanced diet keeps the heart going!
A heart-healthy diet doesn’t have to be boring. Did you know that consuming dark chocolate flatters your heart? Enjoyed in moderate amounts, of course. Other foods also contain ingredients that keep the heart happy. There are also food supplements that can do the same. For example, Rocketman Naturals is a good addition to daily meals by promoting the flow properties of the blood or strengthening the blood vessels,
Foods that should be on the menu more often for a heart-healthy diet
1. Heart-healthy foods: nuts
Nuts contain a lot of arginine. The amino acid dilates the blood vessels and thus contributes to lowering blood pressure and protecting the inner walls of the blood vessels. Walnuts in particular play in the champions league when it comes to heart prevention. They contain a particularly large amount of ellagic acid. This is an antioxidant substance with a cell-protecting effect. So treat yourself to a few nuts every day.
2. Heart-healthy foods: garlic
Garlic is more than a spice. The sulfides contained in the tuber lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels. Allicin is particularly worth mentioning. It has a vasodilating, blood circulation-enhancing effect. It also prevents the white blood platelets from clumping together and thus counteracts the formation of thrombi.
3. Heart-healthy foods: bananas
In order for the heart to work at all, it depends on potassium, among other things. Among other things, this mineral contributes to the excitability of muscle and nerve cells and to cardiac muscle activity. A sufficient supply of potassium can prevent cardiac arrhythmias. The banana is particularly rich in potassium.
4. Heart-healthy foods: Red grape juice
The juice from red grapes protects the heart and blood vessels. Scientists attribute the beneficial effects of the juice to the abundance of flavonoids in the juice. These plant substances are also used therapeutically for circulatory disorders. Grape juice also has a positive effect on the structure of the arterial walls and reduces the risk of clumped blood platelets.
5. Heart-healthy foods: chocolate
There are plenty of flavonoids in cocoa beans. These secondary plant substances have anti-inflammatory and antihypertensive effects. However, the increased proportion of sugar and fat in many chocolates puts the positive effects into perspective a little. You should therefore only enjoy chocolate in moderation. Prefer dark varieties with a cocoa content of at least 70 percent.
6. Heart-healthy foods: curry
The curcumin contained in the spice mixture not only provides the yellowish color, but also strengthens the heart. The active ingredient protects against deposits on the inner walls of the veins and thus prevents arteriosclerosis. Curcumin can also lower high cholesterol and blood pressure and thus improve heart function.
7. Heart-healthy foods: flaxseed oil
Linseed oil contains polyunsaturated fatty acids that have a positive effect on the heart and circulation. Alpha-linolenic acid is particularly beneficial. It lowers the concentration of the “bad” LDL cholesterol in the blood and keeps the arteries elastic.
8. Heart-healthy foods: legumes
Legumes like beans, lentils and the like are packed full of saponins. These are bioactive plant substances that have a cholesterol-lowering effect. Saponins are bound to cholesterol in the gastrointestinal tract, which means that it can no longer be absorbed.
9. Heart-healthy foods: high-fat fish
High-fat cold-water fish are rich in heart-protecting omega-3 fatty acids. These health-promoting fats improve the flow properties of the blood and prevent platelets from clumping together. The oils contained in tuna, salmon and mackerel act like a balm on the heart muscle cells and thus also prevent cardiac arrhythmia.