Eat your way to a healthy heart

If someone told you that you could eat your way to a healthy heart, would you believe them? Well, you should, because it’s true!

And the impact of food can be dramatic. A recent study showed that nearly 50% of all deaths due to heart disease, stroke and diabetes can be attributed to diet – not to a lack of medications – but to the wrong foods.  So eating right is not just a good idea, it’s critical to healthy longevity.

Which is why we wanted to remind you what’s so special about Step One Foods.  They’re formulated in a very specific way to make sure it’s easy to incorporate four key nutrients – in clinically meaningful amounts - into your diet:

Plant sterols

Avid readers of this blog know that we’re big on eating plants and we really believe you should be too. Plant sterols can be found naturally in many grains, nuts, seeds, veggies and fruits and they have powerful cholesterol lowering properties.  

Omega-3 fatty acids

Omega-3’s are the good kind of fat. These fatty acids are essential to your health and are found in fish like tuna, salmon and halibut – as well as in nuts and seeds, like walnuts, flax and chia.  In addition to helping lower blood pressure and cholesterol, Omega-3’s also play a vital role in maintaining brain health.

Antioxidants

Found naturally in vegetables, fruits, coffee and wait for it… chocolate and wine, antioxidants help prevent and stop cell damage. This simply means that antioxidants work to fight off substances that harm your body. By incorporating these into your diet, you’re helping your body fight off disease and chronic ailments.

Whole Food Fiber

This plant based nutrient is found in beans and grains, as well as fruits and vegetables, and helps keep food moving through your body. Fiber also aids in regulating blood sugar levels and lowering cholesterol.

Together, these four nutrients are key to keeping the main drivers of heart disease – diabetes, high-blood pressure and high cholesterol - at bay. 

And the data is clear:  when you increase your intake of these nutrients, while limiting your intake of foods that are high in added sugars and animal fat, you can make more of an impact on your heart health than you could with any preventative medications!

The importance of food in determining health is starting to gain real traction in the medical community and in the media. Step One Founder and Chief Medical Officer, Elizabeth Klodas, MD recently stopped by KARE 11 studios for their heart health segment to shed more light on the importance of nutrition. Check it out here.