Eat to Improve your Heart Health

Many people fear a heart attack. Think of it as the last straw. Heart disease is, in many cases, a lifestyle disease that is avoidable and, with the right focus, you can avoid it, too.

There are some pretty big risk factors (outside of smoking and drinking in excess), and these include being diabetic, having high cholesterol and being overweight. But did you know that being menopausal, having conditions such as PCOS, and being of black or Asian ethnicity can increase your chances too? And genetic predisposition can affect it too.

What I want to talk to you about today is which dietary changes you might start to make from today, to protect your health and that of your loved ones. There’s fantastic news in this regard because a number of huge studies point to diet and lifestyle change being IT when it comes to prevention.

The INTERHEART study, published in the Lancet in 2004, followed 30,000 people in 52 countries. Researchers found that lifestyle changes could prevent at least 90 percent of all heart disease. 

This was another big one: the EPIC study in 2009 looked at how 23,000 people adhered to 4 simple behaviours: not smoking, exercising 3.5 hours a week, eating a healthy diet, and maintaining a healthy weight. Sticking to these four behaviours alone seemed to prevent 93% of cases of diabetes, 81% of cases of heart attacks, 50% of cases of strokes, and 36% of cases of all cancers. 

A SIMPLE STRATEGY FOR GOOD HEALTH

Of course, everyone is individual, and there is no official ‘single diet’ that all humans should eat. But if there were, this would be it because it handles what the essence of the problem is – overweight and a highly inflammatory internal environment.

Before I dive in with some of the answers, I want to say a little something about fat because chances are, if you’ve heard one thing about staving off a heart attack, it’s ‘cut back on fat’ (and especially the saturated kind). 

The success of some low-fat dietary models in weight loss is thought to be more likely due to the simultaneous reduction of sugar, refined carbohydrates and processed foods. 

Dietary fat actually turns off fat production in your liver. Unlike carbohydrates and protein, dietary fat does not trigger your pancreas to secrete insulin. 

There is one type of fat everyone should avoid, and it’s trans fats, a kind of Frankenstein fat added to food to improve shelf life and mouth-feel of products. One study actually found that the risk of coronary heart disease doubled with each 2 percent increase in calories from trans fats (Iqbal, 2014). Another researcher even concluded: “On a per-calorie basis, trans fats appear to increase the risk of CHD more than any other micronutrient.” (Mozaffarian et al., 2006).

THE REAL VILLIANS…

The real villains in the piece are refined grains and sugar. During processing, refined grains are stripped of the bran and germ, two parts of the grain kernel that contain a wealth of nutrients. The final product is starch with next to no nutritional value, providing little more than carbohydrates and calories. Refined carbohydrates can be found in a wide variety of foods, including white bread, pasta and rice, muffins, cakes, cookies, crackers, and bagels. Unfortunately, these foods make up a pretty good chunk of the modern Western diet and may be linked to a higher risk of heart disease. One study from China found that a higher carbohydrate intake, mainly from refined grains, was associated with an increased risk of coronary heart disease among 117,366 adults (Yu et al., 2013).

Sugar is one of the main culprits of heart disease. Added sugars from foods like sweets, desserts, juice and soft drinks can spike blood sugar levels, damaging the blood vessels, overloading the liver and increasing the risk of heart disease.

Interestingly, a study from Harvard School of Public Health actually found that participants who drank the highest amount of sugar-sweetened beverages had a 20 percent higher relative risk of developing coronary heart disease than those who drank the lowest amount (de Koning et al., 2012).

WHAT THIS MEANS IS …

A lower carbohydrate diet is recommended to balance blood sugar and therefore reduce insulin and blood glucose levels. Elevated insulin is a major risk factor for heart disease and promotes inflammation. You’re also likely will lose weight on a blood sugar balancing diet, and that in itself will reduce the risk for many chronic diseases, including heart disease and high blood pressure.

1. PROTEIN Eat a source of protein at every meal and snack. This can be any fish/ seafood, poultry, meat, nuts, seeds, tofu, eggs. Given you probably eat enough meat already and many people don’t eat nearly enough vegetable protein, see if you can bring in more fish and more vegetable sources of protein over the week. Ideally, eat two to three vegetable-based protein meals weekly. Replace animal-based protein meals with lentils, legumes, tofu, quinoa or nuts and seeds, for example. If you’re a fish eater, get in wild-caught fish, which are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, twice a week.
2. FRUIT & VEG Get plenty of fruit and veg but focus specifically on eating veg that grow above the ground and fruit that can be grown in this country. These foods naturally contain either less natural sugar or lower amounts of carbohydrates, which have an impact on hormones. At each meal, have this cover at least half of your plate. The aim is 7 a day and ideally 5 from veg. Over the course of a week, aim to eat all different colours - span the rainbow to enjoy a diverse intake of nutrients. Enjoy berries, citrus fruit, peppers and leafy greens.
3. FIBRE is a great addition, the soluble kind you’ll find in oats, lentils, split peas, flaxseed, citrus fruits and apples. All of those are heart-healthy choices. From the insoluble category, eat nuts and whole grains.
4. FAT Some fats are healthy, and let’s not forget that fat is actually essential for life. Get your fat from avocados, oily fish, nuts and seeds. 
5. CARBS Think carefully about the quality (what kind) and the quantity (how much) of starchy carbs like bread, pasta, cereals, potato, rice. Focus on wholemeal over white, sweet potato over regular white potato, basmati or brown rice over long grain. You can also try throwing in a few ‘faux carbs’ like cauliflower or broccoli rice, courgetti (courgette spiralised into noodle shapes), butternut squash waffles, and so on. 
6. PROCESSED MEAT In recent years, there have been numerous studies connecting processed meats, like hot dogs, salami and tinned meat, to a range of adverse effects on health. Not surprisingly, processed meats can also negatively affect heart health, so best to give them a wide berth.
7. VEGETABLE OILS can be very damaging for heart health. Recent studies show that oils like rapeseed are not helpful (even though the supermarkets are brimming with these options). In fact, the linoleic acid they contain has been linked to cardiovascular disease and cancer.
8. SUGAR Remove as much sugar as you can from your diet as this is the real villain in the tale. That means saving sugary treats for high days and holidays and, most of the time, ditching breakfast cereals, cakes, cookies, pastries, and so on, and checking the label of jarred sauces, where sugar often lurks.
9. FIZZY POP Avoid fizzy soft drinks. Eliminating soft drinks is one of the best things that everyone can do for their heart. Besides being laden with controversial chemicals and unhealthy ingredients, soft drinks are also brimming with added sugars.

Do you notice a trend in my diet tips? What’s to focus on is real food. What you would benefit from decreasing is the processed stuff most people kid themselves is OK for them to eat. Truly, your body doesn't know what’s going on when you shovel in heavily processed or chemically altered foods. 

Eating this way - sometimes referred to as a low GL (glycaemic load) diet - will also help, providing your body with a steady supply of energy through the day, rather than a high-octane rollercoaster of energy spikes and troughs.

Putting the food work into your life alongside the commitment to regularly de-stress, move your body and prioritise sleep is not always easy to do on your own. It is always helpful to have someone – like me – in the wings helping you fit what you already know about eating well into your life and keeping you motivated to follow your plan for long enough that you really see a shift in your health. 

If you would like to know more, why not book in for a free 30 minute health review here.

Setting goals that work

Having aspirations is a wonderful thing. We should all strive to better ourselves and realise our dreams. However, you need to keep your feet on the ground. If you set yourself the goal to learn how to play the saxophone with the aim of joining a jazz band, touring New York clubs and by next year, you may be overstretching yourself a bit – and that can be the exact opposite of empowering.
 

Although you may be a great talent, it is doubtful that you’d meet that goal, and realising that at some stage may put you off playing the saxophone altogether. Which would be a shame.

 

The fix: Set SMARTER goals

Research shows you are 80% more likely to achieve your goals if you:

• Make them SMARTER.
• Write them down.
• Make a contract to achieve them.

What are SMARTER goals?

Here are my top tips

• Be SPECIFIC - don't say 'lose weight' or 'get fit'. What does that even mean? What is more effective is to say 'lose 7lbs' or 'run 5K'.
• Make them MEASURABLE. How can you tell you've done them? Weight, waist circumference, minutes run, distance covered, weight lifted, etc.
• Make them ACHIEVABLE. As with the jazz playing, make sure it's something that you can actually do.
• Make them REALISTIC. Don't try to run before you can walk, or you'll be setting yourself up for failure. Set yourself up for success by making your goals realistic - do they fit with your lifestyle, time, other commitments.
• Make them TIMEBOUND. By when are you going to achieve them? By the end of January? By Christmas? Make a date and pop it in your diary.
• Make the goal EXCITING! No one wants to do something dull. Make it exciting. If it's not exciting in itself, think what will be exciting if you achieve it? Being able to run 5K, means you might be able to join a running group, for example.
• REWARD yourself for achieving your goal. What will you do if you achieve your goal? While the goal might be rewarding, actually having something to aim for can be very motivating. What would you choose? 

So, armed with this knowledge, what is going to be your SMARTER goal for this year? Let me know!  Get in touch if you fancy a bit of accountability. 

I'll wait to hear from you!
 

Coconut-crusted haddock

 

Haddock is currently in season, and this makes a great Friday night fish recipe. Pair along with a variety of green veggies, some roast sweet potato, and you have a filling and easy meal.

 

Ingredients (serves 1):

- 2 tbsp unsweetened shredded coconut

- 1 tbsp olive oil

- 1 garlic clove, crushed

- Seasoning to taste

- 1 haddock fillet

- 1 tsp finely chopped parsley

- 1/4 lemon

 

Method

- Preheat oven to 200 degrees celsius. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

- Combine the coconut, garlic and olive oil. Season to taste.

- Place the haddock on the baking sheet and gently scoop the coconut mixture on top of the haddock, pressing it down gently.

- Cook in the oven for 10 minutes.

- Add the parsley and a squeeze of lemon. Serve with veggies

- Enjoy!

Vegan Pancit Bihon

Savoy cabbages are one of my *favourite* vegetables. If you are just used to having them boiled or steamed, think again! They are delicious when stir-fried. 

As many people are trying Veganuary or at least some meat-free days, this might be one to try this month. Particularly, as Savoy cabbages are now in season!

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 tbsp avocado oil (divided)

340g tofu (extra firm, pressed and cubed)

3 tbsp tamari

3 garlic cloves, crushed

2 spring onions, sliced

1 savoy cabbage, shredded

1 medium carrot, sliced into batons

240 ml vegan broth

113g rice vermicelli noodles (dry, uncooked)

Method:

1. Heat half the oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Cook the tofu and 1/2 of the tamari until crispy and golden, about eight to ten minutes. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel.
2. Heat the remaining oil in the same pan over medium-high heat. Cook the garlic and the white ends of the spring onions for one minute. Add the cabbage and carrots. Cook for another five minutes, or until tender.
3. Push the cabbage and carrots to the side of the pan. Add the remaining tamari and vegetable broth and bring to a gentle simmer.
4. Add the noodles and cook for about three minutes, or until the noodles are al dente. Stir the cabbage, carrots and noodles together. Divide into bowls, top with the crispy tofu and garnish with the remaining green onions. 
5. Enjoy!

Is histamine intolerance causing your symptoms?

What you eat and your health are a fantastically complicated puzzle. For so many reasons linked to modern living, some foods can disagree with you. You may already experience this directly. People with digestive problems can often point to specific foods causing upsets and, if you think you have a food intolerance, you might already suspect wheat, dairy, yeast, eggs, or any number of foods to be the culprit lurking behind your symptoms. 

There’s one often-overlooked component found in some foods that you might not know about yet that I want to talk about today. Could it be this that’s causing you problems?

Histamine…too much of it for your body

If you have an allergy, you might already know about histamine since you probably take antihistamines to try to neutralise the effect is has on the body. Histamine is a signalling molecule that has a lot of roles in the body like making stomach acid and keeping you alert. It is also involved in the immune response and protects you from foreign invaders. 

When your immune system spots a potential invader, one type of immune cell (your B cells) to make IgE antibodies and these are a bit like warning signals to other immune cells to tell them to be on alert. When they meet the ‘invader’, other immune cells (this time your mast cells and basophils) throw out histamine and other inflammatory chemicals to neutralise the attack. 

This works really well for some types of invader - like parasites, as an example – but not so much when the system overreacts to harmless substances like peanuts, pollen, animal hair.  Welcome to the common allergy. It’s a histamine thing. And, if you have an allergy, you might be well used to antihistamines that can block or dampen the effect of this kind of allergic response.

If you’re reading this thinking, this doesn’t concern me as I don’t have an allergy, here’s why you should be interested. Histamine can be a problem for many other people – especially women since there is a big link between oestrogen and the cells that release histamine. 

Histamine symptoms tend to track with your menstrual cycle, peaking when oestrogen is at its highest and then again before your period. If you experience any of these symptoms, histamine could be the culprit:

• Headaches
• Brainfog
• Bloating and digestive discomfort like pain or diarrhoea
• Insomnia
• Runny nose or congestion
• Itchy eyes
• Hives
• Flushing
• Dizziness

This is because oestrogen stimulates the mast cells to make histamine while at the same time downregulating an enzyme called that breaks down histamine, diamine oxidase (DAO). As a triple whammy, histamine triggers the ovaries to make more oestrogen. This can result in oestrogen dominance, where oestrogen is present in the wrong ratio to other hormones.

Histamine problems can also be a feature of perimenopause due to erratic release of oestrogen. Although oestrogen levels are dropping rapidly, progesterone falls faster, leaving oestrogen unopposed. 

Why do some people suffer, and others don’t?

1. Genetics. Some people do not make enough of the histamine-clearing enzymes. 
2. SIBO – or Small Intestine Bacterial Overgrowth, as this impairs DAO activity.
3. Any conditions of oestrogen excess like fibroids and endometriosis or progesterone deficiency
4. The birth control pill – this can cause both oestrogen excess and progesterone deficiency
5. Vitamin B6 deficiency – this vitamin is needed to make DAO
6. Certain medications - antibiotics, antidepressants, medication given for high blood pressure and heart rhythm problems, among many other common drugs like ibuprofen, aspirin and diclofenac.  

Dealing with histamine problems

One of the things you can do to manage histamine problems is reducing foods that either contain histamine or are ‘histamine liberators’. 

Which foods contain histamine?

• Red wine and champagne 
• Aged cheeses
• Pickled and fermented foods, including ketchup, soy sauce and vinegar
• Processed deli meats like ham, salami, bacon
• Smoked or canned fish
• Shellfish
• Aubergine
• Avocado
• Spinach
• Dried fruit
• Bananas
• Bone broth and fish stock
• Left overs!

These foods, while they don’t contain histamine, trigger the release of histamine:

• Citrus fruit
• Chocolate and cocoa
• Tomatoes
• Egg whites
• Fish
• Peanuts

And alcohol and black or green tea interfere with the enzymes needed to break down histamine. 

Improving your gut health is always worth doing since do much of your health relies on a healthy gut. If you’ve been ignoring symptoms, especially if you think you have irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), we should talk. Getting your digestive system back into balance pays dividends for all aspects of your health.

Inflammatory foods like gluten, dairy, sugar and processed foods make the situation worse, encouraging the body to release inflammatory cytokines and histamine.

At the same time, increase anti-inflammatory foods. An easy way to do this is to add herbs and spices into your cooking. Particularly helpful ingredients include ginger, thyme, oregano, basil, chamomile, and turmeric

Support oestrogen detoxification by eating plenty of cruciferous veggies like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels sprouts

If you experience any of the symptoms I’ve talked about here, please do get it touch. It’s very easy to read things like this or take advice from Dr Google and end up following a very restrictive diet when this is not always necessary. Working one-to-one with a nutrition professional means that you can take advantage of their years of study to find a programme that helps support your health without overly restricting what you eat. It’s a minefield out there! 

Or, if you're struggling for inspiration, why don’t you book in a free 30 minute health review with me – just click here.

 

Sugar-Free White Christmas Bites

These are delicious little Christmas bites which make a great treat to have during the festive season. 

And they look beautiful too!

Makes 20

Ingredients:

562 ml coconut butter

281 ml coconut milk

1 vanilla pod, seeds scraped

1 tbsp rice malt syrup

50g desiccated coconut

100g macadamia nuts, chopped

100g pistachios

100g frozen raspberries (keep in freezer until ready to use)

Method:

• Line a 20cm square slice tin with baking paper. 
• Melt the coconut butter in a bowl over hot water until it has completely turned to liquid. 
• Place the coconut butter in the food processor. Add the coconut milk, vanilla, syrup and coconut until well combined. It is important to work quickly here, because you do not want the coconut butter to start solidifying.
• It is easier to stir through the dry ingredients when it is still runny. Stir in the macadamia nuts and pistachios. Gently fold in the frozen raspberries.
• Pour mixture into the prepared tin. Place the tray in the freezer for 3-4 hours. Use the baking paper to lift the frozen cake out of the tin and slice into squares (about 20). These are best stored in the freezer.
• Note: You can eat them directly from the freezer or you can place them in the fridge for 30 mins before serving to allow the raspberries to soften a little.
• Enjoy!