Heart Health Nutrition

The fate of your heart isn’t determined by luck or even by your family history or your genes. The health of your cardiovascular system is largely in your hands. To give yourself the best odds, start with a heart-healthy diet.

The whole foods diet that consistently gets high marks for its cardiovascular benefits is the Mediterranean diet (1). Good news for you, Simply For Life’s entire program is rooted in the principles of the Mediterranean diet!

Our #1 nutrition tip for a healthy heart? Eat plenty of vegetables, fruit, and whole grains. 

Fruit and vegetables are some of the best foods for your heart, but most Canadians aren’t eating anywhere near enough. These foods contain a variety of vitamins and minerals, as well as fibre and antioxidants, and have been shown to help prevent heart disease.  

Whole grains are foods like brown rice, whole-grain pasta, grainy bread, and oats. These foods are full of fibre and can help lower your cholesterol. Swapping from refined grains like white bread and white rice to wholegrain versions is a simple change that can improve your health. 

Simply For Life Heart Health Supplements

For extra support and with guidance from your Simply For Life Coach, consider the following four supplements, which have been shown to support a healthy cardiovascular system.

Omega 3

Adding our Omega-3 supplement to your routine might help lower your cholesterol and blood pressure levels. (2) Two main omega-3 fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), are found mainly in fish and fish oil. Omega-3s are essential fatty acids, meaning our body can’t make them, so we have to get them from food. EPA and DHA are omega-3 derivatives, and both help reduces and control inflammation.

Magnesium

Magnesium regulates the function of hundreds of enzymes, acts as an important electrolyte, helps your body build proteins, and is essential for a healthy heart. Low levels can cause arrhythmias, spasms in the blood vessels, high blood pressure, angina, and blood clots. There is a strong link between low magnesium levels and the formation of calcium deposits in the arteries that can contribute to the development of atherosclerosis. (3) Research shows that magnesium also acts as a natural calcium channel blocker by relaxing blood vessels and increasing the supply of blood and oxygen to the heart while also reducing the heart’s workload. (4)

Psyllium

Numerous studies have shown that fibre like psyllium, taken as part of a healthy diet, can help lower a person's risk of heart disease. Psyllium can affect your heart by lowering blood pressure, improving lipid levels, and strengthening the heart muscle. Studies have shown psyllium can lower total, as well as LDL (bad) cholesterol levels, which may help reduce the risk of heart disease.

Vitamin D3 + K2

Research shows that chronic heart failure is often linked to vitamin D deficiency, and very low levels are associated with more negative health outcomes. It’s been found that vitamin D deficiency can increase blood pressure and the risk of cardiovascular diseases. (5)

References

1. https://health.usnews.com/best-diet/best-diets-overall

2. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28062061/

3. https://openheart.bmj.com/content/5/2/e000775

4. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10712282/

5. https://academic.oup.com/eurheartj/article-abstract/43/18/1731/6448753?redirectedFrom=fulltext