Best Foods for a Healthy Heart :

Eating for a healthy heart is not difficult. Just eat real food. "Yeah, right," you say. "What’s that?"

Perhaps the injunction to "just eat real food" is not as simple as it sounds. We are so confused by conflicting messages in the media. Yesterday, oatmeal was good for the heart, but today it is bad (high in carbohydrates). Yesterday, eggs were bad for the heart (high in cholesterol), but today they are good (low in carbohydrates).

It is easy to see why we are bewildered. It is enough to toss it all aside and dip into a double hot fudge sundae.

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Before we stoop to that level, however, let’s simplify a heart healthy diet. Can you remember "two sets of three?"Three Foods You Should Rarely (if Ever) Eat
Bacon and other rancid fats top the list of nefarious foods. Considering the popularity of high-protein diets that emphasize bacon and eggs for breakfast, we’re probably consuming more bacon than ever, but science (and common sense) says that bacon and other processed meat consumption are associated with an increased risk of certain forms of cancer, diabetes (major risk factor for cardiovascular disease) and stroke.

Carbonated beverages are second on the list. This subject hits so close to home that I ask the studies to deliver the message: "Higher consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages is associated with a greater magnitude in weight gain and an increased risk for development of Type 2 diabetes in women..."

Another study reports, "Increasing intake of rapidly absorbed carbohydrates... can create self-perpetuating insulin resistance state and predicts greater CHD (coronary heart disease) risk..." And, "recent data suggest that a high intake of rapidly absorbed carbohydrates... may increase the risk of coronary heart disease by aggravating glucose intolerance and dyslipidemia."

Soft drinks certainly fall into the category of rapidly absorbed carbohydrates. What this simply means is that soft drinks cause weight gain, increased risk of diabetes, insulin resistance, and elevated blood fats, all of which lead directly to coronary heart disease.

You’ll hate the third category of "no-no foods:" processed carbohydrates in general, as in white bread, white pasta, white rice... These foods also fall into the class of rapidly absorbed carbohydrates and lead directly to an increased risk of heart disease.

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