"1.5 million deaths per year in the U.S. are from diseases associated with diets high in saturated fats and cholesterol. The major dietary sources of fat in the American diet are meat, poultry, fish, dairy products and fats and oils. Dietary cholesterol is found only in foods of animal origin. Reduce consumption of saturated fat and cholesterol. Increase consumption of whole grain foods and cereal products, vegetables and fruits." Surgeon General's Report on Nutrition and Health, 1988.

The "western" diet, is characterized by high intakes of red and processed meats, sweets, fried foods, refined grains, and desserts. This has been found to be associated with a high incidence of chronic diseases like diabetes mellitus, cancer and the number one killer , cardiovascular diseases. Scientific data has repeatedly shown that a prudent heart healthy diet drastically reduces your propensity to succumb to these diseases.

So how do you change your diet to a heart healthy one? To start, cut down on the intake of saturated fat. A major source of saturated fat is meat, including organ meats and poultry. "Meat, which contains cholesterol and saturated fat, was never intended for human beings, who are natural herbivores." William C. Roberts, M.D. and Editor in Chief, American Journal of Cardiology, vol. 66, October 1, 1990. Other sources of saturated fats are egg yolks and dairy products like whole milk, cream, ice cream, whole milk cheeses, butter and lard. Certain plant oils like palm, kernel, and coconut are also high in saturated fat. On the other hand you can lower your cholesterol by consuming polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats. Plant oils such as safflower, sesame, soy, corn and sunflower seeds are high in polyunsaturated fats. Plant oils such as olive, canola and peanuts and fruits such as avocados are high in monounsaturated fats. "Those who eat flesh are but eating grains and vegetables at second hand; for the animal receives from these things the nutrition that produces growth. The life that was in the grains and the vegetables passes into the eater.

We receive it by eating the flesh of the animal. How much better to get it direct by eating the food that God provided for our use!" 1905 Ellen G. White 1827-1915 Founder of the Seventh Day Adventists. And completely eliminate or reduce to less than 2% the consumption of the heart unhealthy trans-fatty acids. These not only raise your bad LDL cholesterol but also decrease your good HDL cholesterol. In A recent Harvard University study of more than 80,000 women suggested that replacing just 2 percent of trans fat calories with calories from healthier fats reduced the risk of heart disease by more than 50 percent. No wonder, the state of California, and cities of New York and Philadelphia have passed laws banning the use of oils, margarine and shortening containing trans fats in restaurants, bakeries, delicatessens, cafeterias, and other businesses classified as "food facilities. Deep fried fast foods are typically high in trans-fats.

Eat grilled or baked fatty fish at least once a week. Fatty fish include salmon, tuna, sardines, or mackerel. Marine life is high in omega 3 fatty acids. These protect against cardiovascular disease by their anti-atherogenic effects. They also improve endothelial and platelet function, lower levels of oxidative stress and encourage plaque stability. Omega-3 fatty acids are also present, though in smaller amounts, in flaxseed oil, walnut oil, soybean oil and canola oil.

Eat more than 400 gm of fruits and vegetables per day. "Nothing will benefit human health and increase chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet." Albert Einstein. Clinical trials have shown that diets rich in fruits and vegetables decrease cardiovascular disease by several mechanisms, including improvement in cholesterol levels, lowering blood pressure and decreasing inflammation, homocysteine levels, and blood clotting. Besides providing the cholesterol lowering poly and mono unsaturated fats, certain vegetables like okra and eggplant also provide good amounts of viscous fiber. Pooled clinical trial data from 10 observational studies reveal that for every 10g/d increment in energy adjusted fiber intake, coronary events decrease by 14% and coronary deaths by 27%. Plants are also rich in healthy ingredients including several phytochemicals, the vitamin folate and the electrolyte potassium.

Eat a variety of whole grains. Foods rich in whole grains include breakfast cereals made with e25% whole grain or bran by weight, dark bread, popcorn, cooked oatmeal, wheat germ, brown rice, and bulgur, kasha, and couscous. And decrease the intake of refined grains. Foods rich in refined grains include included breakfast cereals made with <25% whole grain or bran by weight, white bread and rolls, muffins, cakes, cookies, white rice, pancakes, waffles, pasta, and pizza. "I don't understand why asking people to eat a well-balanced vegetarian diet is considered drastic, while it is medically conservative to cut people open and put them on cholesterol-lowering drugs for the rest of their lives." Dean Ornish, MD.

Control your caloric intake. According to data from the UN Food and Agricultural Organization, the western diet that the Americans eat averages 3,770 calories a day, while the eastern diet in India averages 2,440 calories. Keeping your body mass index below 25 kg/m2 is beneficial. This was best exemplified by the economic crisis of 1988-2000 in Cuba, when the decrease in per capita food intake was accompanied by a drop in diabetes by 51%, heart disease by 35% and stroke by 20%. This study was published in the September 19, 2007 issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology.

Add a Mediterranean flavor to your diet. A large study evaluating adherence to the Mediterranean diet in the US population found that mortality from cardiovascular decreased by about 20%. This study involving 214,284 men and 166,012 women, was reported in the December 10/24, 2007 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine. So add olive oil, nuts and herbs to your cooking. Mediterranean herbs such as rosemary, basil, bay leaves, thyme, saffron, oregano, or coriander not only add flavor and decrease the need for salt in your meals, but also add heart healthy minerals and vitamins. And have a drink of red wine with food. Moderate drinking is heart healthy, and should be limited to not more than two drinks in men and one drink in women. Above this, drinking alcohol becomes a health hazard.

Limit salt consumption to less than a teaspoon a day. In a study from Brigham and Women's Hospital, and published online in the British Medical Journal, people who were pre-hypertensive, reduction in salt intake by 25%-35%, reduced their risk of cardiovascular event over the subsequent 10-15 years by 25%-30%. "It is postulated that 150,000 lives could be saved in the U.S. annually if everyone cut their sodium consumption in half. Unfortunately, most Americans get their salt from processed and restaurant foods." As a result, the American Medical Association has called for a minimum 50% reduction in sodium in processed foods, fast foods and non-fast-food restaurant meals over the next 10 years.

The benefits of a prudent heart healthy diet were well summed up in a report by Franco and colleagues in a 2004 issue of the British Medical Journal . These authors postulate that theoretically one can cut the cardiovascular risk by almost 76% by ingesting a meal which includes 400 gms of fruits and vegetables (21% reduction), 114 g of fish four times a week (14% reduction), 150 ml of wine a day (32% reduction), 2.7% of garlic per day (25% reduction), 100 gm of dark chocolate (21% reduction) and 68g of almonds per day (12.5% reduction). They also postulated an increase in life span in people over the age of 50.

So it is never late to change to a heart healthy diet. "When I was 88 years old, I gave up meat entirely and switched to a plant-foods diet following a slight stroke. During the following months, I not only lost 50 pounds but also gained strength in my legs and picked up stamina. Now, at 93, I'm on the same plant-based diet, and I still don't eat any meat or dairy products. I either swim, walk or paddle a canoe daily and I feel the best I've felt since my heart problems began." Benjamin Spock, M.D. (1903-1998). Changing to a more prudent diet even after years of consuming heart unhealthy western foods can bring about beneficial changes. Besides improving your cardiovascular health, you will also benefit from a significant reduction in chronic diseases like diabetes mellitus, osteoporosis and cancer. And if you give up smoking and combine the prudent diet with moderate to vigorous physical activity like brisk walking, biking, swimming or gardening at least 30 minutes each day, your health benefits will further increase



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