Think you drink too much coffee? Well think again! According to a recent article on WebMD, studies show that drinkers of coffee and tea have a dramatically lower chance of dying from heart disease than those who abstain.

A recent study, which involved over 37,000 people from The Netherlands in the last 13 years, found the following:

• People who drank three to six cups of tea per day had a 45% lower risk of death from heart disease than people who drank less than one cup of tea a day.
• Drinking more than six cups of tea a day was associated with a 36% lower risk of heart disease, compared to drinking less than one cup.
• People who drank more than two, but no more than four, cups of coffee a day had about a 20% lower risk of heart disease than people who drank more or less coffee or no coffee at all.
• Moderate coffee consumption was associated with a slight, but not statistically significant, reduction in death from heart disease, but neither coffee nor tea affected stroke risk.

While 6 cups of tea may seem like a lot for one day, remember that a large mug of tea may contain 3 or more cups worth, and Iced Tea counts too!

The researchers believe that Flavonoids (powerful antioxidants) found in black and green tea and coffee may explain the beneficial effect seen in the study. Flavonoids are also found in other heart healthy foods and drinks such as red wine, red grapes, dark chocolate, blueberries, and red beans.

A new study confirms eating nuts on a daily basis lowers cholesterol levels and reduces the risk of coronary heart disease.

Researchers from Loma Linda University in California examined 25 studies from seven countries. 583 men and women with different levels of cholesterol were observed and none of them were taking cholesterol-lowering medications. All participates ate nuts which included almonds, hazelnuts, pecans, pistachios, walnuts, macadamia nuts, and peanuts.

On average, patients ate an average of 2.4 ounces daily. This resulted in an average 5.1% reduction in total cholesterol concentration, a 7.4% reduction in LDL (bad cholesterol), and an 8.3% reduction in the ratio of LDL to HDL (good cholesterol) levels.  Triglyceride measurements also declined by 10.2%, but only among people with initially high triglyceride levels.

Nuts also have a favorable effect on blood lipid levels and may lower coronary heart disease. Though, this only applied to those with a high LDL, low body mass index, and had Western diets.

However, too much of a good thing can be a bad thing. To reap the benefits, one should eat no more than 3 ounces of nuts per day due to their high calorie density.

Americans love sugar. So much so that Americans on average consume 2.5 to 3 times the recommended amount. Excess sugar consumption is known to cause obesity, diabetes, and other conditions related to heart disease. Now new research show it may lead to unhealthy cholesterol and triglyceride levels.

Added sugar is any type of caloric sweetener used in prepared or processed food. In this study, people who ate large amounts of added sugar had 3 times the risk of having low HDL which is a major risk factor in having heart disease.

Added sugar does not only add extra calories to food, it also has no nutritional value. Yet, it is found in almost everything from fruit juices to cereal. The American Heart Association advises only 6 teaspoons of sugar for women and 9 for men per day. Yet, a single can of soda has 10 teaspoons of sugar. At the end of the day, added sugars make up about 16% of our daily total calories.

The solution to this problem is to avoid foods with little to no added sugars. Reading the food label is a great way to spot added sugars, but differentiating natural sugars from added sugars can be a bit tricky. Basically, any words with syrup or end in “ose” like fructose are added sugars.

Though, the best method is to make a few simple changes to our diet, such as cutting out sugary drinks. Beverages are our number one source of added sugar and by eliminating it from our diet is a sure way to reduce added sugar intake.