How to eat your heart out and lower your heart disease risk

Every day your heart makes enough energy to drive a truck 20 miles. To do this, your heart needs a little help from you. Just like a well-running automobile, your heart needs fuel to keep it chugging along.

The good news is the fuel your heart needs isn’t necessarily boring or tasteless. The key is to select foods that taste great and reduce major heart disease risk factors. You can lower your risk simply by fueling your heart with foods that keep your blood pressure and cholesterol at healthy levels.

By choosing the right nutritious foods that not only lower your heart disease risk but are delicious too, you can eat your heart out and enjoy every minute of it. Here are some of the yummy snacks the experts at Life Line Screening, a preventative health organization, recommend:

Sushi
Fish is a fantastic source of heart-healthy omega-3’s, and sushi is loaded with them. Plus if you skip the tempura and spicy mayo, sushi is a tasty, low-calorie choice for your heart.

Eggs
Even though eggs have gotten a pretty bad reputation over the years for their cholesterol, they also contain a great deal of health-boosting nutrients like protein, vitamins B12 and D and folate. With so many options for preparing eggs, you can enjoy the variety that comes with this food.

Healthy ravioli
It’s true that basic ravioli might not be the best food for your heart. Whole-grain ravioli, on the other hand, is a great substitute. Top this ravioli with ingredients like olive oil, artichokes and tomatoes and you have yourself a nutrient-packed meal that’s great for your heart.

Pizza
This one may be hard to believe but depending on which toppings you choose, pizza can be good for your heart. Instead of ordering or making one piled high with extra cheese and pepperoni, select toppings like artichokes, mushrooms, onions, bell peppers or tomatoes. These cholesterol-reducing, low calorie extras are the perfect alternative.

Strawberries
This sweet, juicy fruit is a great source of vitamin C, a nutrient good for your health. These red berries are considered a superfood linked to improved memory and heart health. They can even reduce blood pressure, one of the major risk factors for heart disease.

The Centers for Disease Control state that almost half of all Americans have one of the top three risk factors for heart disease which include high blood pressure, high LDL (bad) cholesterol and smoking. Reducing two out of three of these risk factors is simple because they can both be influenced by your diet.

Identifying other risks of heart disease is another smart way to keep your heart at its peak of health. Health screenings are a great option for this if you’re really looking for proactive ways to stay on top of your health.

While keeping all of these things in mind, the opportunity for a strong heart isn’t far-fetched. Pile your plate with heart-strengthening foods like those listed above and your heart can keep pumping energy through your body for years to come.