Introduction
There are three main things that will contribute to better heart health: giving up smoking, exercise and eating a healthy diet. For most of us, none of these are easy to do. To be successful, you have to create an image of yourself ad a healthy individual, someone who takes care of him or her self. Living a healthy life is a lifelong commitment, not a fast fix. Poor heart health can mean trouble with other areas as well. New studies show that smoking more than 20 cigarettes a day or being overweight can lead to an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of dementia. Here are some tips and information that may help you to eat better. These may not help you to lose weight, but you will be learning a healthier lifestyle. For significant weight loss, you cannot go back to your old habits that led to your health problems in the first place. As you get used to a healthier lifestyle, you won’t miss the old you.
Cooking Oils and Fats
Some fat is good in your diet, too much and the wrong kind, is not good. When you cook, avoid using oils, lard and butter whenever you can. If you use a nonstick pan and cooking spray, you will need little or no oil. If you do use oil to cook with, use olive oil (which is good for you in reasonable amounts) or canola oil. (Don’t use olive oil in baking because of its flavor). Avoid using lard or shortening – there is nothing good for you here. If you use butter or margarine, switch to something like Take Control or Benecol (both work to lower your cholesterol), or Brummel and Brown. Liquid margarine is better than stick margarine, which has transfat in it. Transfat will be discussed later. However, these do not work in baking, use only a spread or vegetables.
Select lean cuts of meat or trim off as much fat as possible before cooking. Always remove chicken skin before cooking or at least don’t eat it. If you cook ground meat, always drain and rinse it to get rid of extra fat. Eat more fish and I don’t mean fried fish. We eat fish or seafood at least once a week and there are many easy and nutritious ways to prepare it.
Look for fat substitutes for baking in the grocery. You can usually substitute up to 1/3 of these products for the fat in the recipe. One product I have used and like is Lighter Bake but I have been unable to find it recently. Read the label of these products as some contain a lot of sugar. If you can’t find a commercial substitute, use apple sauce; once again, use up to 1/3 in place of the fat in a recipe. You and your family will never notice the difference.
Let’s face it – non-fat dairy products don’t taste good and don’t work as well in cooking. You can switch to a reduced fat cheese or sour cream and use far less than the recipe calls for. While not as good on baked potatoes, non-fat plain yogurt is a good substitute for sour cream in cooking. It has a better taste than non-fat sour cream, so you get all the benefits of a dairy product without the fat. Watch the dressings you put on salads as many are loaded with fat. Once again, most non-fat dressings don’t taste good, so skip these. Remember to use a lot less – don’t drown your salad.
Eat Less
Americans have become accustomed to eating large quantities of food, much more than we really need to survive. Work had at cutting back on the amount of food you eat, if you have been eating too much for your age, height and activity level. This cannot be stressed enough. Even if you lose weight, you can not go back to your usual way of eating or the weight will all come back, and then some. Before getting that second serving or snack, wait ten minutes and see if you really want it then. Drink water or tea to fill you up.
If you drink soda, try to drink only one or two cans a day, not the 32-oz. Big Gulp, or even better, switch to diet drinks. Don’t get the super size of anything, or the double hamburger with extra cheese. Be very careful at all you can eat buffets. Avoid these places if you can’t resist the temptation to make several trips and pile your plate high. Split dessert with someone rather than eat the entire portion. Often my family of four splits ONE dessert. (Of course, the kids are only 6 and 9, but everyone is satisfied).
Watch snacking between meals. A snack should be a small portion to keep your energy level and keep you from getting too hungry between meals, not a small dinner or something to pass the time when you are bored. Make a distinction between TREATS and SNACKS. A treat is something sweet like cookies or something that is not good for you like chips and should not be eaten often. A snack is something nutritious that helps you eat a healthy diet, like nuts or fruit. Be careful not to eat too much while watching TV.
When cooking, add less sugar and cheese to foods. I have found I can reduce the amount of cheese and sugar in recipes by at least 1/3 with no difference in taste. Many of us eat too much sugar on a daily basis. Try cutting back slowly to control that sweet tooth. Add one spoonful of sugar to coffee or tea instead of two and get a regular size candy bar instead of the king size. Use ½ of a slice of cheese on your sandwich, not a whole slice.
Working at changing your bad habits slowly can have better success than quitting cold turkey as it gives you time to adjust to changes. My wife quit drinking Mountain Dew by gradually reducing the amount until she was drinking less than half of a 16 oz bottle daily. She avoided the caffeine headaches by drinking plain tea and it only took about 2 months. Now she rarely has a soda and drinks water or tea.
Eat Fruits and Vegetables
Many people come nowhere near eating enough fruits and vegetables each day. Some people don’t like fruits and vegetables, but I always believe that it is more of a problem of how they are cooked or served and sometimes where they are bought. Homegrown fruits and vegetables usually taste better than those from the grocery because grocery vegetables and fruits are raised to have a long shelf life in the grocery, not good taste. Sometimes frozen vegetables have better taste than canned.
Experiment with how you cook vegetables. If you have always cooked vegetables into submission, as my sister calls it, or until they are mushy, try shortening the cooking time and leave the vegetables crisper and with brighter color. Some people find they like vegetables raw better. My children don’t like cooked carrots or broccoli but will eat a ton raw. I have even seen children eat raw okra and asparagus, so take a tip from the kids! It takes longer to digest raw or slightly cooked fruits and vegetables so you feel full longer and get more fiber as well. Often I slice up several kinds of fruit to serve with dinner, like grapes, bananas, and strawberries. Without dressing, this is healthy and quick. I always have raw baby carrots and some kind of fruit on hand for snacking. There is nothing wrong with serving raw carrots as a side dish with dinner and it is certainly easy to fix. If you really don’t like vegetables, hide them in meat loaf, spaghetti sauce or chili. You can puree vegetables in a blender and add them to things and never notice a difference in taste.
Try stir-frying green beans in olive oil till lightly browned then add garlic, salt and pepper as usual. Cook frozen spinach in a small amount of water with a cube of chicken bullion until heated through (they should remain bright green). Then drain well; add Bannerol or liquid margarine and a little salt and pepper. Cut up several vegetables like sweet potatoes, carrots, onions, and squash. Toss with olive oil, basil, salt and pepper. Bake in oven at 375 till slightly brown and tender, 30 to 45 minutes depending on size and quantity of veggies. Serve cottage cheese with mangoes or peaches or bake an apple for dinner.
