Heart friendly foods and dining London
In the developed world heart disease is a major killer of todays over 50s. On an individual basis it is generally caused by a combination of poor diet and insufficient exercise in combination with contributory factors such smoking. The good news is that advances in medicine mean that heart disease is no longer the automatic killer it once was a few decades ago; the bad news for some is that keeping your heart happy and fully functioning means watching what you eat.
Matt Roberts Personal Training
020 7626 0888
020 7626 0888
52 Cornhill
London
London
Food Therapy Ltd
020 7935 5530
020 7935 5530
100 Harley Street
London
London
Rejuv Ltd
020 7486 8822
020 7486 8822
107 Harley Street
London
London
Holmes Chemist
020 7286 8822
020 7286 8822
6 Nugent Terrace
London
London
Jean Marie
020 7584 6888
020 7584 6888
68 Gloucester Road
London
London
Lighterlife
020 7354 2495
020 7354 2495
436 Essex Road
London
London
A A Postage & Packing Machinery Ltd
020 7052 0609
020 7052 0609
24 Beauchamp Place
London
London
Fabulous Nutrition
077 7558 2332
077 7558 2332
56 Glengall Road
London
London
Urban Bliss Clinic
020 8969 3331
020 8969 3331
333 Portobello Road
London
London
Heart friendly foods and dining
What exactly are “heart-friendly” foods? In the face of a stream of contradictory and constantly changing evidence what are we to believe about what we should eat and not eat in order to protect the heart? The answer, in short, seems to be to focus on avoiding heart unfriendly foods and outside of that to eat a little of everything and not too much of anything.
Heart friendly foods are generally those which are natural and fresh. That doesn’t mean that all processed food is bad, but that processed foods should only form a minor part of your diet and any one type of processed food should only be consumed in very small amounts. Avoid fats, sugar and salt. Think “treat” instead of regular habit if you are going to consume them.
Experts seem to agree that a diet which is largely based on fruit and vegetables – cooked without fat, raw, dried, frozen or tinned – is heart-friendly. Small regular amounts of protein such as lean meat and fish – again unprocessed and cooked without the addition of large amounts of fat - are also good..Foods such as cheese, eggs, bread, butter, nuts, milk – are not intrinsically heart unfriendly in themselves and can provide you with minerals, vitamins or roughage that you might not get elsewhere. Even alcohol, it seems, isn’t entirely bad and may even be beneficial. But the essential thing to remember is to consume all of these only occasionally in small amounts as part of a varied diet.
Many people who are new to “eating healthily” sometimes feel that they can no longer go to the restaurants they once frequented because they won’t find any “heart-friendly” dishes they can eat. Today, by and large, this is rarely the case. All types of restaurants and cafes have to cope with a wide range of dietary requirements relating to either health or personal choice.
If you are worried or unsure, phone the restaurant in advance and explain that you are looking for low fat, low sugar, low salt, unprocessed dishes and see what they suggest. In many cases it will simply mean having a normal dish without the usual rich sauce and minus such accompaniments as fried rice or chips. But beware - don’t be tempted to go for the vegetarian option thinking it will be automatically heart friendly – such dishes often contain a significant amount of fat.
The most important recommendation is to seek specialist advice and ask your doctor what they recommend. If you do have heart problems already you may need medication which in itself will put some foods off limits. Even if not, they may suggest that if you are overweight you make an effort to restrict your food intake for a while to slim down. And they are almost certain to suggest that, unless you are already very fit, you increase the amount of exercise you do on a daily basis. All worth doing if you want to live a long and healthy life.
Click here to access more useful information for the over 50s from in my prime.
Heart friendly foods are generally those which are natural and fresh. That doesn’t mean that all processed food is bad, but that processed foods should only form a minor part of your diet and any one type of processed food should only be consumed in very small amounts. Avoid fats, sugar and salt. Think “treat” instead of regular habit if you are going to consume them.
Experts seem to agree that a diet which is largely based on fruit and vegetables – cooked without fat, raw, dried, frozen or tinned – is heart-friendly. Small regular amounts of protein such as lean meat and fish – again unprocessed and cooked without the addition of large amounts of fat - are also good..Foods such as cheese, eggs, bread, butter, nuts, milk – are not intrinsically heart unfriendly in themselves and can provide you with minerals, vitamins or roughage that you might not get elsewhere. Even alcohol, it seems, isn’t entirely bad and may even be beneficial. But the essential thing to remember is to consume all of these only occasionally in small amounts as part of a varied diet.
Many people who are new to “eating healthily” sometimes feel that they can no longer go to the restaurants they once frequented because they won’t find any “heart-friendly” dishes they can eat. Today, by and large, this is rarely the case. All types of restaurants and cafes have to cope with a wide range of dietary requirements relating to either health or personal choice.
If you are worried or unsure, phone the restaurant in advance and explain that you are looking for low fat, low sugar, low salt, unprocessed dishes and see what they suggest. In many cases it will simply mean having a normal dish without the usual rich sauce and minus such accompaniments as fried rice or chips. But beware - don’t be tempted to go for the vegetarian option thinking it will be automatically heart friendly – such dishes often contain a significant amount of fat.
The most important recommendation is to seek specialist advice and ask your doctor what they recommend. If you do have heart problems already you may need medication which in itself will put some foods off limits. Even if not, they may suggest that if you are overweight you make an effort to restrict your food intake for a while to slim down. And they are almost certain to suggest that, unless you are already very fit, you increase the amount of exercise you do on a daily basis. All worth doing if you want to live a long and healthy life.
Click here to access more useful information for the over 50s from in my prime.