Just being in the grocery store can be overwhelming, but to make a list of all the certain types of food to buy from this massive food warehouse can feel down-right impossible. So to help you out, we’ve put together a few tips from heart.org for the heart healthy shopper to keep in mind when looking to buy the right foods.

Fruits and Veggies:

Be sure to buy and eat plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables. Fruits and vegetables that are deeply colored throughout tend to be higher in vitamins and minerals than others.  When fresh foods aren’t available, choose frozen or canned vegetables and fruits in water without added sugars, saturated and Trans fat, or salt.

Stock up on raw vegetables for snacks such as carrot and celery sticks, broccoli, cherry tomatoes and cauliflower. It’s also a good idea fruits and vegetables that are good sources of fiber, including beans, peas, oranges, bananas, strawberries and apples.

Instead of buying more traditional desserts, try fresh or canned fruits without added sugars, dried fruit without added sugars, and gelatin that contains fruit, instead of baked goods and sweets. While delicious and very good for you, fruit juice is no substitute for the real thing. It doesn’t provide the fiber whole fruit does and it’s not as good at satisfying hunger.

Dairy:

Select fat-free (skim) or low-fat (1%) milk and try to avoid milk that contains added flavorings such as vanilla, chocolate or strawberry, as they usually have added sugars and calories.

Buy fat-free, low-fat or reduced-fat cheeses and use egg whites or egg substitutes instead of egg yolks. Watch out for the saturated and/or partially hydrogenated fats hidden in casseroles, bakery goods, desserts and other foods. Read the Nutrition Facts label to determine the saturated fat, Trans fat and cholesterol content of foods you’re considering.

Meats:

Buy and prepare more fish. You should eat one serving of grilled or baked fish at least twice a week. (A serving is roughly the size of a checkbook.) Good examples of fish to buy include salmon, trout and herring. Choose lemon juice and spices to eat with fish; don’t add cream sauces and stay away from fried fish—it can be high in fat — often Trans fat.

Select more meat substitutes such as dried beans, peas, lentils or tofu (soybean curd) and use them as entrees or in salads and soups. A one-cup serving of cooked beans, peas, lentils or tofu can replace a two-ounce serving of meat, poultry or fish.

Pick up nuts and seeds, which are good sources of protein and polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats – but remember, they tend to be high in calories, so eat them in moderation.

Hopefully this information will make your grocery shopping experience a little easier and a lot healthier!

What other heart healthy grocery shopping tips do you have?

One way to keep your heart healthy is to eat the right foods! Here are a few good snacks that will help keep your heart and stomach happy:

Fresh Herbs– Fresh herbs make many other foods heart-healthy when they replace salt, fat, and cholesterol. Many fresh herbs, such as rosemary, sage, oregano, and thyme, have high levels of antioxidants.

Red Wine– A little red wine is a heart-healthy choice. Resveratrol and catechins, two antioxidants in red wine, may protect artery walls. Alcohol can also boost HDL, the good cholesterol.

Sweet Potatoes—With a low glycemic index, sweet potatoes won’t cause a quick spike in blood sugar the way white potatoes do. They also contain a good amount of fiber, vitamin A, and lycopene to add to their heart-healthy profile.

Coffee– Studies show that people who drink 3-4 cups a day may cut their risk of heart problems by 25%, and even decaffeinated coffee works.

Cayenne Chili Pepper– A small study in Australia showed that simply adding chili to a hamburger meal produced lower insulin levels in overweight volunteers.

To see what other foods are great for your hear, check out this great slideshow from WebMD.

One of the biggest worries for anyone who has recently had any sort of health issue from pregnancy to post-op surgery is, knowing if and when it is safe to fly. But that worry is one thing people who suffer from some cardiovascular diseases can check off the list. According to a recent study by a U.K. panel, “Air travel isn’t necessarily dangerous for people with some heart conditions.”

It is still recommended that patients with seriously high-risk wait until their condition is fully stable, but low-risk patients are OK to fly just three days after suffering from a heart attack. People are afraid that the pressurization in the cabin can cause heart conditions to worsen; the panel found that there is a bigger risk of heart attack before you fly, from the anxiety of traveling, anger due to delays, exertion from carrying luggage and fear of flying.

Every website, magazine, and even Doctor seems to have a general list of “Tips” for preventing cardiovascular problems. According to an article on WebMD, the American Heart Association suggests that the best “tip” for controlling and/or preventing heart disease is to personalize your approach rather than blindly following a general guideline.

One member of the team that released this finding said, “We need to do a better job finding ways to help people not only change their behaviors, but maintain them over a lifetime. As health care providers, we’re pretty good at saying that you are at risk for a disease, you need to lose weight, be more physically active, and eat more fruits and vegetables. While that’s easy to say, it’s not easy for the person to actually translate it into their everyday life.”

Here are some suggestions for easily integrating positive behavioral changes into your everyday life:

• Set realistic dietary and exercise goals

• Keep track of progress toward goals
• One-to-one counseling, which provides customized support to implementing and maintaining lifestyle changes
• Participate in small groups who share the same health-improvement goals
• See a health care provider that uses motivational interview techniques to encourage patients
• Seek counseling on how to manage setbacks
• Maintain recurring follow-up visits with doctors to update them on your progress and discuss concerns

While factors such as weight, smoking and blood pressure are much more important when it comes to risk factors of heart disease, an article published by MSNBC reports that short people (under 5’3”) have a 50% higher risk of having heart problems than tall people (over 5’9”).

The study, paid for by the Finnish Foundation for Cardiovascular Research, went through 52 earlier papers written by experts with data on height and heart issues for over 3 million men and women. These papers did not focus on height alone, but it was found that short people were 1.5X more likely to die from heart issues.

Scientists are unsure exactly why shorter people are at such a higher risk for heart problems. One popular guess is that shorter people generally have smaller body parts such as arteries, which makes it easier for them to get clogged up. No matter what the scientific reason for the elevated risk, Borge Nordestgaard, a professor of genetic epidemiology at the University of Copenhagen not connected to the study suggest the only thing for short people to do is pay close attention to heart health when he said, “We don’t want to scare short people, but perhaps they should be extra cautious about their lifestyle.”

Ever wonder if and how much smoking will increase your chances of having a heart attack? The NorthShore University HealthSystem website is providing an interactive tool that measures how much smoking alone can increase your risk of having a heart attack in the next 10 years.

This risk assessment tool was created by the U.S. National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) using information based on research from the Framingham Heart Study. The Framingham Study was established in 1948 and has been researching the causes and effects of Cardio Vascular Diseases (CVD) for three generations. The study is responsible for identifying many major CVD risk factors and has provided important information on risk factors such as blood pressure, blood triglyceride and cholesterol levels, age, gender, and psychosocial issues.

The tool calculates your risk of heart attack, based on smoking alone, using the values you enter for yourself (your gender and age), as well as a systolic blood pressure of 120 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg), an HDL cholesterol measurement of 55 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL), and a total cholesterol measurement of 200 mg/dL.

While this tool is a great way to discover how smoking by itself can increase your risk of having a heart attack, smoking can also have negative effects on CVD risk factors like cholesterol and blood pressure. So if you smoke, be sure to see a doctor and check for other risk factors for heart disease, your risk may be higher than this tool indicates.

According to an article published by HealthDay News, new research suggests that higher levels of testosterone are associated with an increased risk of heart disease in older men.

The new U.S. National Institutes of Health funded study, concerns men over the age of 65 and is based on a tracking of hormone levels and heart disease among nearly 700 community-dwelling men, found that men on the highest end of the testosterone spectrum had more than twice the chance of suffering from heart disease than those on the lower end of the spectrum.

The finding contradicts previous, smaller studies and is incredibly significant because many older men are using medications that increase their testosterone levels for various, non-life threatening, health issues such as low sex drive and mood disorders.  Based on this research, these men could be putting themselves at a higher risk of cardiovascular disease without even knowing it.

While this research could be a huge step forward in early detection of cardiovascular issues, Dr. Kristen Sueoka, author of the study, believes there is still much work to be done before testosterone levels can be used as a detection tool:

“One day testosterone measurements may be used to help predict which men are more likely to develop cardiovascular disease, but we need more studies to confirm that high testosterone is a risk factor for heart disease.”

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.

When most people think of healthy foods, they think GREEN. But studies show that the color RED isn’t only the official color of The American Heart Association’s “Go Red for Women” heart health awareness movement, but it’s also the color of the foods that both men and women should have in their diet to maintain a happy, healthy heart. Here are some examples (from CBS News) of red “heart foods,” why they’re so great for you, and a delicious dish you can make with each!

TOMATOES: DISH: Fresh tomato sauce over pasta
- One of the MOST concentrated food sources of Lycopene, an antioxidant that may help protect you from heart disease
- Low Cal – A medium size tomato only has 22 calories
- Part of your recommended daily amount for fruits and veggies: at least 4.5 cups a day

BEETS: DISH: Beet Salad
- Provides 19% of your daily value for Folate
- NO saturated fat
- High in manganese and potassium

RED CHILI PEPPERS: DISH: CHILI
- Contains an antioxidant (capsaicin)
- Can help protect blood vessels
- Increases your body’s metabolism

RED KIDNEY BEANS – DISH: CHILI
- low in fat, contain no cholesterol, and are high in folate, potassium, iron and magnesium
- good source of fiber – can help you feel full longer, which may help in weight loss
- healthy sub for red meat
- AHA recommends eating at least 4 servings/week of beans, nuts or seeds

POMEGRANATE – DISH: Yogurt sprinkled with seeds
- may help reduce the buildup of plaque in arteries and lower blood pressure
- rich with Vitamin C and antioxidants – which may reduce inflammation and lower BAD cholesterol
- **WARNING: check with your doctors, may have interactions with medications, may not be for people on statins

Whether you’ve been diagnosed with a coronary artery disease (heart disease) or not, regular exercise is key to a healthy, happy heart. During the hot and humid summer months, it can be both difficult and dangerous to stay active if you don’t take the proper precautions. Here are some suggestions from the American Heart Association on how to stay active and safe, even when it’s hot outside:
• Go to a gym for a nice, cool environment with a variety of activities.
• Visit your favorite local swimming hole or taking swimming lessons at a pool.
• Start a walking group with your friends at the mall.
o The MyStart! Community, an online tool, encourages walkers to connect with others — whether from the neighborhood or on the other side of the country — to stay on track with a walking program.
• Take up an indoor sport, such as racquetball, basketball or volleyball, or taking an aerobics class.
• Go ice-skating.

If you do choose to exercise outside this summer, be sure to wear light, breathable clothing and pay close attention to possible signs of heat exhaustion and/or heatstroke (which can progress quickly). Drink plenty of water and pour some on your head if you need to cool down quickly. Consult a doctor or personal trainer about setting up an exercise program that will be safe and effective.
Enjoy the summer weather and stay cool!