Diet and nutrition Archive

Even if you can't, you can still substantially reduce your risk of heart attack and stroke through lifestyle changes and certain medications.

In your 20s, maybe you sometimes chose fast-food burgers and fries over healthier foods. Perhaps in the decades that followed you pursued a series of fad diets, questionable lifestyle choices, and too many days when you skipped your workout in favor of the couch.

You're now repenting for the sins of the past, but the question is, can you undo the damage? Can you unclog clogged arteries (otherwise known as atherosclerosis) and reduce your risk of heart disease in the process?

Research we're watching

 Image: © Lilechka75/Thinkstock

If you’re like most Americans, you aren’t eating enough fruits and vegetables, according to the CDC. A study published in the CDC’s Nov. 17, 2017, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report shows only about one in 10 adults meets federal recommendations, which call for most women to eat 1.5 cups of fruit and between 2 and 2.5 cups of vegetables each day.

"In 2015, just 9% of adults met the intake recommendations for vegetables, ranging from 6% in West Virginia to 12% in Alaska. Only 12% of adults met the recommendations for fruit, ranging from 7% in West Virginia to 16% in Washington, D.C.," reported the CDC.

You might be surprised to learn that what you eat affects your ability to move.

• The nutrients in the food you eat help your body build bone, power muscle, repair and replace tissues, and keep your brain active and your heart pumping.
• Your diet also influences your chances of developing chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and osteoporosis — all of which can compromise your well-being and hinder your ability to live an active and independent life.
• Eating the right foods is important, but so are how much you eat and how well you balance the calories you take in with those you burn off. Simply being overweight can make it more difficult to move easily in your day-to-day activities.

Keys to healthy eating

There is no shortage of diet books and healthy eating plans that claim to help you slim down and live a longer and healthier life. But healthy eating is surprisingly simple.

Add these simple changes to your list of New Year's resolutions.

Diet plays a huge role in the health of your heart. Yet for many people, healthy eating is a challenge. Perhaps the biggest problem is the easy access to cheap, highly processed, unhealthy junk food. But conflicting and confusing nutrition advice from popular books, blogs, and other sources is a close second. And chances are your doctor has neither the time nor the training to give you sound nutrition advice.

"People also think that changing their diet requires a major overhaul," says Dr. JoAnn Manson, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and chief of preventive medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital. "But the reality is that a few small changes can go a long way toward improving your eating habits," she says. See "Diet swaps for a healthier heart" for a summary of these suggestions, taken from a piece she coauthored in the Sept. 26, 2017, Journal of the American Medical Association.

Research we're watching

New research supports the old adage that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. A study of more than 4,000 middle-aged adults in Spain found that those who ate breakfast were less likely to have artery-clogging plaque (atherosclerosis) than those who avoided a morning meal.

On average, the participants ate just over 2,300 calories per day. Nearly 3% didn't eat breakfast, while about 27% ate a hearty breakfast and nearly 70% ate a skimpier breakfast. Researchers used ultrasound to check their arteries for early evidence of atherosclerosis, as they described in the October 2017 Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Research we're watching

You've heard of the Grammys and the Emmys, but how about the MilliGrammys? This satirical award is given by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) to the American restaurant foods that give you the biggest dose of sodium in one serving. On Oct. 11, 2017, the organization gave the award for Sodium Content in a Sandwich by a Chain Restaurant to Subway's Footlong Spicy Italian with Provolone and Mayo, with 3,380 milligrams (mg) of sodium, 1,080 mg more sodium than you're supposed to eat in an entire day. Most Sodium in a Single Menu Item went to P.F. Chang's Pad Thai with Shrimp (5,250 mg of sodium), and Chili's restaurant received a Lifetime Achievement Award for a trio of high-salt offerings, including the Beef Bacon Ranch Quesadilla (3,990 mg of sodium), Crispy Fiery Pepper Crispers (6,240 mg), and Texas Dry Rub Ribs (6,260 mg).

CSPI's goal is to raise awareness and get restaurants to curb high sodium levels in their food. To learn more about the awards, visit www.health.harvard.edu/mga.