How to celebrate American Heart Month - all year round

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By MotherDove
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celebrate American Heart Month - all year round

February was American Heart Month. March is National Nutrition Month. Not surprisingly, the two go hand-in-hand. What better way to celebrate the health of your heart than through better nutrition? First, educate yourself and your family - if you have better information, you'll make better choices. Next, make a few simple changes for the sake of your heart and your overall nutrition. Here are some suggestions for changes you can make in your diet that will support your family's heart health - all year round!

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Nuts - walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, etc.
Beans
Citrus fruits
Green Tea, other herbal caffeine-free tea
Spinach
Raw tomatoes
Salmon

Step 1

Nuts!! - Kudos to nuts! Any kind of nut - walnut, cashew, pecan, hazelnut. Did you know that an ounce of nuts a day, a simple handful, can reduce your chance of heart attack by 15 to 50%?! Try to find a nut that you enjoy au naturale - without added sugar, salts, or flavorings. Even if you don't love nuts, how bad can a handful be? Especially, since it lowers your chance of heart attack.
Step 2

Beans - Again, another wide open choice here. Any kind of bean - great northern, lima, cranberry, black - whatever suits your fancy! Beans are high in fiber. They can lower your blood pressure and your cholesterol, thereby lowering your risk of heart disease. Try to get beans into your diet at least 3 times a week. It's not that tricky to do. Add beans to your salads, pasta sauces, casseroles and rice. There are many varieties that come in convenient cans or frozen. You can even order specialty, heirloom beans online.
Step 3

CITRUS FRUITS - Eating the actual fruit, rather than just drinking the juice, gives you the pectin fiber and folate, as well as the vitamin C you need to lower your cholesterol. Here's an idea: Eat an orange, tangerine or grapefruit with your nuts for a super-healthy daily snack!
Step 4

Make a salad of SPINACH (for the folate and vitamin C), SALMON (for the Omega3) and roasted TOMATO (for the lycopene.) What a super, delicious heart-healthy recipe. You can used raw or wilted spinach, canned or smoked salmon. Roast your tomatoes in the oven for at least 20 minutes because cooked tomatoes give you more lycopene than do raw ones. Toss this all together with a tangy wine vinegar and olive oil dressing, sprinkle with sesame seeds and you'll have happy taste buds, as well as a happy heart.