Proper Nutrition: Taking Care of your Heart.

Heart disease is one of the leading causes of death in the western and civilized world; it can affect all gender and race, and while there is a small amount of adolescent and pre-adolescent heart disease reports, the chances of a 15 year-old getting some sort of heart disease cannot be fully dismissed. Although genetics play a part in the overall health of a heart, lifestyle and diet or nutrition are the major factors at play here; since one cannot alter his or her genes any more than he or she can alter his or her DNA, the only logical conclusion would be to maintain a healthy lifestyle and to have proper nutrition.

Maintaining cardiovascular health means committing to a proper diet, and thus leading to an ideal weight. As for nutrition, steering clear or reducing saturated fat intake can greatly reduce the risk for heart diseases. Foods that are known to have high levels of saturated fats are hydrogenated oils such as coconut and palm oil; dried coconut, usually found in sweets such as in some candy bar; butter, a key ingredient in cakes, cookies and bread; rendered animal fats, mostly used to make burgers, sausages and fried foods; dark chocolates, found in desserts and other sweets, and fish oils such as Menhaden and Sardines; although these fish oils contain omega-3 fatty acid, they also have levels of saturated fat that should not be dismissed. Some other foods that is known to contain saturated fats are, cheese, especially goat and Parmesan; nuts such as, Pilinuts, Brazilnuts and Macadamia; processed meats such as, sausages and pates and whipped cream which is mostly used as cake and coffee toppings.

Sodium have always been known to be a risk factor in developing and aggravating heart disease; therefore, maintaining a steady but modest amount of sodium in one’s diet and nutrition would greatly help in taking care of your heart. Foods that are found to have high levels of sodium are, the common table salt, bullion cubes, powdered broths, soy sauce; processed foods such as, salami and bacon, sun-dried tomatoes; snack foods such as, pretzels and pop corns; pickled foods such as, dill and olive pickles, and the saltwater crab.