We have grown up listening to people saying that you are what you eat especially when they come across people who are fans of extremely gluttonous foods and they shouldn’t be consuming all that greasy food. However, not a lot of people fully understand the implications of that saying. What your tongue consumes on a regular basis will have a substantial effect on your state of health, particularly heart health.
Meals that are good for your heart are full of nutrients that will enable your heart to stay healthy. Such food decreases your blood triglycerides as well as improves your body’s LDL bad cholesterol by reducing your blood pressure, while enhancing your body’s sensitivity to insulin. Such foods also lessen the chance of heart disease. That said, there are also those foods that you might want to stay away from if you are trying to keep a healthy heart. They include:
Processed Deli Meats
According to experts, you should stay away from deli meats for a good number of reasons. Many people who are keen on watching diets and nutrition in general claim that even deli meats that have lower fat are still harmful as they contain some sodium nitrate which is known to promote internal inflammation of your body. This is the same inflammation that is known to cause atherosclerosis.
Hot Dogs
While hot dogs may be tasty, they are not good for your heart either for reasons that are the same as cold cuts. The level of fat saturation in hot dogs and sausages is rather high. That said, even options that claim to have low fat contain salt that could cause high blood pressure.
Rotisserie Chicken
Birds that are roasted in supermarkets are often packed with more saturated fats as well as sodium than the typical poultry products that are prepared in your kitchen at home. As such, although experts will not recommend that you completely stop eating chicken, they do recommend that you roast your very own at home. This is because while you are at home you have more control over the sodium amount you will be using.
Ketchup
Everyone knows that ketchup and a lot of other store-bought sauces are packed with extremely high levels of sugar and sodium. This is not good for your heart’s well-being. Ketchup contains so much sodium so you will be doing your body, especially your heart so much good by staying away from ketchup.
Barbecue Sauce
Barbecue sauce somehow falls under the same category as ketchup when it comes to just how bad it is for your body. As such, steer clear of it just to be on the safe side. If you can’t completely avoid it it’s actually best to just use less of it. Imagine this, just two tablespoons of this from a barbecue bottle is already filled with sodium about 310 milligrams.
Table Salt
70 percent of the total amount of sodium we take in is from the foods that we eat from restaurants or food that we buy in packages. 15 percent of this sodium occurs naturally in different ingredients. Nevertheless, the other 15% of sodium that we can control is solely from eating salt. To improve your heart health, go low on salt consumption.
Reduced-Fat Salad Dressings
Reduced fats salad dressing can also be categorized under harmful foods for your cardiac health. They contain hidden sugar and salts. According to experts, additional sugar is increased when they remove fats. This is how they are able to maintain the dressing’s taste.
Fat-Free Packaged Snacks
If there is something that’s worse than reduced fats it is eating anything that has zero fat. When you get packaged snacks that contain zero fats do not think you’re having a healthier alternative. People who are on a weight loss journey often think they are doing themselves justice by choosing zero fat but that isn’t the case because while you keep fat away, you just replace it with sugar in this case.
Fat-Free Peanut Butter
Whenever you want to eat peanut butter, ensure you choose a full-fat and all-natural solution. Go for a sugar-free type as this actually contributes to the health of your heart. That said, the fat-free and low-fat types contain so much sugar and typically, they have as many calories as the versions that contain full fat.
Sugary Cereals
This is also something else many people turn to while trying to avoid fats. However, some of these cereals do not offer you any nutritional value and instead just increase your sugar intake which is bad for you. So the next time you are out choosing cereals, be sure to check the nutritional value that particular cereal offers and stay away from those that add more than 8 grams to your body.
Flavored Milk Alternatives
Not all things that come with nut milk flavor are made in the same way. Whenever you set foot into a supermarket you find so many flavored or sweetened substitutes for milk. This can make it hard for you to choose the healthier option. According to nutrition experts it’s best to choose the unsweetened options to avoid excess sugars.
Fried Chicken
This is not just us saying the more fried foods you eat the less healthy you are. It is a fact that has come up as a result of several studies. When you eat a lot of fried foods, you are more likely to suffer from coronary artery issues. The oils that are used in preparation of such foods for example fried chicken are full of trans-fats that increase the level of bad cholesterol in your body.
French Fries
If you thought it’s only fried chicken that’s bad for your heart, you are wrong. Those delicious French fries are also not good for you. When you eat too many potatoes, you just increase your chances of getting type 2 diabetes. You could also end up getting hypertension. French fries will give your heart a serious punch and you really do not want that.
Potato Chips
The New York journal performed a medical study and found that eating too many potato chips actually leads to more weight gain compared to eating other foods out there. Potato chips are worse than red meat, than processed ones and even beat soft drinks in harming your health. Potato chips are very low in fiber and do not contain enough protein either. They are instead a leading source of sodium that is bad for your heart health.
Fruit Smoothies
A lot of people turn to smoothies thinking that they are healthy. However, fruit smoothies are not good for you because of the amount of sugar found in them. They are available in deceptive sizes that are very bad for your heart’s well being.
Green Juices
According to experts, the same can be said about green juices. While you may like to drink them, be mindful of the portions you take. Although it may look like that one bottle is meant for a single serving, this couldn’t be further from the truth as it may be suitable for about two or three actual servings.
Canned Soups
When you buy different canned foods, you need to realize that the sodium content in these foods actually differs. Neverthel.ess, for most canned soups, you will find about 500 milligrams or thereabout of sodium when you serve in each cup. As a result of this, you are likely to eat over a third of your actual sodium limit per day in just that single serving.
Canned Vegetables
This is not the case for all canned vegetables because some types work so well for your meals but there are those that are detrimental to your health. This is because they contain sodium in large amounts making them worse than snacks that have been highly processed.
Capers
Although capers come with no calories it’s easy for them to add the sodium levels of whatever you’re having them with. This is one of the products that are picked in salty brine so just a single tablespoon of this will contain about 400 milligrams of sodium.
Fruit Flavored Yogurt
In certain cases, it works best to go for the most boring options and in this case Greek yogurt will work better than any other fruit flavored yogurt. According to extensive research yogurts containing frit flavors can contain close to six teaspoons or even more of sugar for every serving you get. For the sake of your heart, it’s probably best to grab some Greek yogurt and then put in some frozen fruit instead.
Granola
For so many people, granola is a favorite especially in the mornings. That said, eating this will crank up those calories that you will have at breakfast time. This is especially if you fail to pay attention to your portions. A lot of granola products contain too much sugar and lack essential nutrients and fiber.
Fancy Coffee Drinks
You might not know this but you may be taking your entire sugar content of the day in just a single cup of your early morning coffee. Not shocked yet? Imagine this, when you get yourself blended Frappuccino in a large size, you take in more carbohydrates than what you would take if you were to have four and a half bread slices. With it you also get no nutritional value.