Heart Month, February 2007 Senior Information Eating for a Healthy Heart Along with lifestyle changes, like quitting smoking and exercising regularly, you can reduce your risk of heart disease by making simple changes in your dietary habits. Understanding how certain food substanceslike saturated fats and cholesterolaffect blood "fats" and heart health, can help you modify your diet and eat for a healthy heart. LipidsBlood "Fats" When the fat levels in a person's blood rise excessively, he or she is at risk for developing coronary artery disease. Two kinds of fat that are closely watched are cholesterol and triglycerides. Cholesterol and triglycerides are found in the blood in a complex substance known as lipoprotein. Lipo means fat, so a lipoprotein is a combination of fat and protein. "Good" and "Bad" Cholesterol Most of the cholesterol in your blood is found in low-density lipoproteins, or LDLs. LDLs are known as "bad" cholesterol because excessive amounts of these promote the formation of fatty plaque on arterial walls. High-density lipoproteins, or HDLs, are known as "good" cholesterol because high levels of HDL are associated with low risk of heart disease. Foods That Affect Lipids Research has shown that foods can affect your blood lipid levels. Since there are several kinds of fats in food, you can design an eating pattern to reduce those kinds of fat that raise blood lipids and to increase your use of those fats that lower blood lipid levels. Keep in mind that your total fat intake should not exceed 30% of your daily calories. Saturated fats tend to increase blood lipids and are found mostly in animal products. These fats remain solid at room temperature. Two vegetable oils, palm and coconut oil, are also high in saturated fats. To reduce the amount of saturated fat in your diet, cut back on animal fats, lard, butter and cheese. Polyunsaturated fats such as soy, corn, safflower, and sunflower oils reduce blood cholesterol levels, but reduce the levels of "good" HDL cholesterol while lowering "bad" LDL cholesterol. These fats remain liquid at room temperature. Try to use monounsaturated fats such as canola, peanut or olive oil. Monounsaturated fats reduce "bad" LDL cholesterol levels without endangering levels of "good" HDL cholesterol. Cholesterol is a fat-like substance found only in animal products. Most animal products contain about 30 milligrams of cholesterol per ounce, except organ meats and eggs, which are higher. Most Americans consume 400-500 mg. cholesterol per day. Common sources include lean and fat meat, poultry, cheese and butterfat The average, healthy person should try to eat no more than 300 mg. of cholesterol daily. LDL deposits cholesterol on arterial walls while HDL transports cholesterol put of the arteries. 1990 PARLAY INTERNATIONAL 38