Heart disease is still the leading cause of death in the United States and diet can play a HUGE role in reducing your risk for heart attack, stroke and cardiovascular disease. We are sharing things you can add to your meals that might help improve your heart health.
How many do you regularly include in your meals?
The Mediterranean Diet and Heart Disease
A Mediterranean style diet that focuses on whole grains, plenty of fruits and veggies, nuts, seeds, beans and legumes has been connected with a reduced risk of heart disease.
Read more here – The Connection Between the Mediterranean Diet & Heart Disease
We decided to break it down even further by putting together a list of some foods/ingredients that you can ADD to your meals that have some pretty great heart health benefits.
- beans and lentils
- fatty fish
- walnuts
- mushrooms
- plants, plants and more plants
Beans and Lentils
If you aren’t already aware, we are HUGE fans of beans and lentils. They are a great, plant based way to add fiber, protein, and essential vitamins and minerals to your diet. They are also inexpensive, which these days is hard to say when it comes to groceries.
Anyone looking for more detailed info can check out these posts –
- What’s the Difference Between Dry and Canned Beans?
- Why We Love Lentils (and you should too!)
- 80 Recipes Using Canned Beans
- 25 Recipes Using Beans and Lentils
Some practical tips for adding more beans and lentils into your meals –
- Create a bean based chili (instead of meat based) for a filling, hearty and heart healthy bowl of goodness.
- This Ridiculously Easy Meatless Chili recipe is one of our favorites
- Add some canned beans to your favorite green salad for extra protein and fiber. Black beans, kidney beans, northern beans and chickpeas are some of our favorites for salads
- Spread hummus on your sandwich and not only does it add a creamy and flavorful addition but you’re adding some plant based protein and fiber
- Take your favorite pasta dish even further by adding a some beans for texture, flavor and nutrition
- This Spinach White Bean Gnocchi Skillet from Recipe Runner is a favorite at our house. So filling!
- This Easy Bean Salad makes a great dish to meal prep that you can easily add to lunch during the week
If you aren’t familiar with lentils, there are many different kinds and just like beans, they come in dry form or many places carry pre-cooked lentils in their refrigerated foods area.
Simple ways to add them to your meals include –
- adding cooked lentils to spaghetti in place of ground beef
- adding cold lentils to salads
- making lentil soup
- we love taking lentils and mixing them with bruschetta for an easy and flavorful side dish
There are so many great grab-and-go snacks on the market now that feature beans. A few favorites that we like –
Fatty Fish
Fatty fish like salmon, mackerel, herring, sardines and tuna are a good source of lean protein, low in saturated fat, a source of selenium, zinc, iodine and iron. Not to mention a natural source of B vitamins, Vitamin D and Vitamin A.
However, one of the biggest benefits of eating seafood are the Omega 3 Fatty Acids, which can promote brain development, help build muscle and tissue and help reduce the risk of heart disease.
Check out more detailed info here – Health Benefits of Seafood
Another way that adding more fish to your diet means that it can take the place of red meat, which is higher in saturated fat. Swapping red meat once a week with fish is a great goal if you are looking to slowly increase your fish consumption.
Some fun ways to add more fish to your meals –
- adding smoked salmon to meals
- Nordic Breakfast Toasts
- Smoked Salmon without the Bagel – simply add some cream cheese to smokes salmon, roll up and serve with tomatoes, onion and capers drizzled with olive oil
- tuna makes a great addition to sandwiches, salads and even dips
Some of our favorite fish recipes include –
Walnuts
Nuts are a big part of the Mediterranean diet and for good reason! They contain heart healthy fats and can be a good source of protein and fiber.
Walnuts are an especially good addition to meals because they contain the highest levels of Omega 3 fatty acids (compared to other nuts).
Read more here – Why We’re Nuts about Walnuts for Heart Health
Some great ways to include more nuts in your meals –
- a balanced snack of walnuts plus a piece of fruit and a little bit of cheese or avocado
- these Brain Boosting Walnut Clusters are a great sweet treat that only use 3 ingredients
- sprinkling on top of salads, like this Vibrant Walnut Raspberry Salad
- adding to pastas right before serving
- creating a dip, like this Walnut Pesto Feta Dip or this Pea and Walnut Pesto
Mushrooms
Mushrooms have so many health benefits and make a great addition to a healthy diet. They are low in fat, carbohydrate and full of vitamins, minerals and iron.
We included them in this list because they have a hearty texture that is similar to ground beef, so they make a great addition to meatballs, meatloaf, tacos and burgers. I like to reduce the ground beef by about half and sub in finely diced mushrooms. No one even knows the difference in my house.
If you are simply looking for a great way to cook mushrooms, check out this recipe – Amazing Garlic and Herb Sautéed Mushrooms.
Some simple ways to add them to meals you might already be eating –
- add to pasta sauce
- sauté and serve on top of chicken or steak
- mix in with scrambled eggs or frittatas
Plants, Plants and More Plants
While not a specific food you can include in your meals, we can’t talk about heart health and not mention plants.
“Plants” is a term we use to include vegetables, fruits, whole grains, olive oil, nuts, seeds, bean and legumes.
Most people in the United States are severely lacking on their daily intake of plants. In fact, the #1 Thing Missing from your Diet is fiber that you can get from plant foods.
It’s not surprising that plants make up the base of the Mediterranean Diet Food Guide Pyramid. Meaning that the base of meals should be heavily focused on plants.
Some tips for increasing plants in your diet –
- Rather than the meat/chicken/pork/fish being the star of the meal, make the star the veggies/whole grains and then add the rest like you would a side dish
- Aim to include fruits and veggies at every meal
- Finish off salads, pastas or dips with nuts or seeds
- Switch from butter to olive oil whenever possible
- Include a variety of colored fruits and vegetables to get a wide array of nutrients
Check out more detailed info here – What Does Eating a Plant Based Diet Mean?
Some of our favorite plant based recipes include –
Taking Care of your Heart Health
In summary, heart health is extremely important to all of us and still the number one cause of death in both men and women in the US.
By focusing on what things you can ADD to your meal, rather than REMOVE, you are viewing your healthy lifestyle changes in a positive way. Notice we really didn’t talk about what to eliminate in this post. Positivity is important.
