Food & Heart

For most people, eating is one the pleasure of life. We want our food to be tasty and satisfactory, but we also want it to be healthy. Mismanagement in eating food plays an important part in a number of serious health problem-particularly coronary heart disease.There is a striking link between heart disease and the amount of fat in the diet, particularly saturated fats. As the proportion of saturated fat in the diet increases, so do deaths from heart disease. Gradually, the arteries which supply the heart muscle become narrowed by a fatty substance called “atheroma”.

SATURATED FAT:

The basic building blocks which used to make up the fat in foods are called fatty acids and depending on their chemical structure they can be known as either saturated or unsaturated fat.

Saturated fats are found in animal foods like meat and in dairy products. Chicken, turkey, rabbit and oily fish, like herring, have fats which are less saturated than other animal fats.

The unsaturated fatty acids can vary between the most unsaturated (polyunsaturated) and least unsaturated (mono-unsaturated). Oils, which are liquid at room temperature, usually have a high level of polyunsaturated fatty acids. Fats from plant sources, like nuts, are generally less saturated but two plant oils, coconut and palm oil are highly saturated.

CHOOSING FOODS

Here are some tips for choosing food that will help to cut down the chances of coronary heart disease.
If using meat choose as lean a cut as possible. Lean cuts are being promoted in many super-markets, so look out for them.
Choose dishes where meat is combined with vegetables, beans or pasta – it makes smaller amount of meat go further.
Use skimmed or semi-skimmed milk instead of full cream type. Do not use coffee creamers or dried skimmed milk which have vegetable fat added. Both these products also contain saturated fat.
Use margarine “high in polysaturates” or a low fat spread instead of butter.
Look for low-fat alternatives to meat products like sausages and pies.
Avoid dishes with rich, creamy sauces.
Watch out for baked goods, cakes, biscuits and sweet and savoury pies which all contain a lot of fat.
Eggs – Limit whole eggs to 3 per week, because the yolk is rich in cholesterol. You can eat as much egg white as you wish.