Heart-Healthy Plant- Based Eating
by Tracy Albrant, RN, BSN F
ebruary is the month of hearts, flowers, and love, how- ever, let us reflect a bit on the health of our own hearts this month so we can love and live for many years to come. Heart disease is the number one cause of death for both men and women and among almost all races with 630,000 American deaths related to heart disease yearly
(CDC, 2017). These figures should motivate us to attempt to decrease our risks if we want to live the longest, healthiest life that we can. Some risk factors for heart disease like aging and family history can- not be changed. Risk factors we can modify include avoiding exces- sive alcohol, abstaining from smoking, exercising regularly, maintain- ing a healthy weight, controlling blood pressure, and lowering LDL cholesterol (NIH, 2017).
Our diet plays a major role in heart health. LDL cholesterol levels can be lowered by controlling fat intake. The American Heart Asso-
ciation (2017) recommends saturated fat (meat, cheese, and butter) and trans fats (partially hydrogenated oils, i.e. fried foods and bakery items) being no more than 5% to 6% of daily total calories. This translates to 11 to 13 grams in a 2,000-calorie diet. The better choice for fat intake is unsaturated fat, which is found in avocados, nuts, and seeds. Dr. Dean Ornish (Ornish Lifestyle Medicine, 2017), among many other healthcare professionals, recommends a plant-based, whole food, low-fat diet for improved health. See Dr. Ornish’s website in the nutrition section for more information at
www.ornish.com.
Where and How to Start? Consider introducing a few plant-based meals to your diet each week.
Images of salad and broccoli may come to mind, but a plant-based diet has so much more delicious food to offer! One advantage to eating a low-fat, plant-based diet is more volume can be consumed as (continued on page 36)
HORSE & AG MAGAZINE I FEBRUARY / MARCH 2018 35
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