A Healthy Heart: How to Keep Your Heart Happy & Healthy

Let's have a heart-to-heart about your heart. Because we love you with all our hearts, we want to raise awareness about cardiovascular health and the importance of exercising the most vital muscle in your body. To start, we'll provide you with information about what a healthy heart looks like, how you can keep your cholesterol levels low, and keep your heart healthy through your lifestyle.

What is a healthy heart?

Did you know that your heart will beat about 2.5 billion times throughout your life? Every second of your heartbeat is spent supplying your body with fuel (oxygen, hormones, essential compounds and cells) and clearing out waste products from your metabolism [1]. Ensuring that your heart is healthy essentially ensures that you live a healthy (and hopefully longer) life. So how can you achieve this?

Simply put, a healthy heart is an active heart. Living an active lifestyle already puts your heart in a pretty good place. Plus, managing your risks for heart disease — an umbrella term for various heart conditions — is vital to living a long, healthy life.

One of these heart diseases includes coronary artery disease (CAD), which is the most common type of heart disease in the United States [2]. One result of CAD is coronary heart disease (CHD), which is the leading cause of heart attacks and deaths worldwide [3]. It is caused by plaque buildup on the walls of the arteries that supply blood to your heart and other parts of your body. This plaque is made of deposits of cholesterol and other substances in the artery, such as trans fats and saturated fats. Read more about the difference between these below. As plaque builds up, it causes those arteries to narrow over time, which can eventually block blood flow and bring further complications. [2]

So… the takeaway? Keep those unwanted fats away and lead an active lifestyle. While we’re not a gym (yet 😉) and can’t help with the latter, we can share some insights on how to keep your cholesterol level down, and our Plenny meals can play a big part in that. Read on!

Fats

Understanding fats is vital to understanding cardiovascular health. While fats generally get a bad rap (sometimes deservedly so), there are good ones too!

Unsaturated fats are “healthy fats” as they help lower cholesterol levels. They come in two main forms; polyunsaturated (omega-3 and omega-6) and monounsaturated (most vegetable oils). Compared to saturated fats, which are solid at room temperature, unsaturated fats are liquid at room temperature. This is also a pretty good way to tell them apart when you’re in doubt. [10]

Saturated fats, on the other hand, are considered the “bad fats” as they have been linked to an increase in cholesterol levels in our blood. These are found primarily in animal products, with the exception of coconut oil, palm oil, and some types of margarine. [11]

Trans fats are a type of saturated fat, they are either naturally occurring (in dairy and meat products) or artificially created by adding hydrogen to liquid vegetable oils to make them more solid. These trans fats are bad for our health, as they increase our bad cholesterol levels and decrease our good cholesterol levels. [12] What's the difference? Well, read on!

What is cholesterol?

Cholesterol is a type of lipid (a compound that is insoluble in water) that forms:

• Bile acids, these are critical for your digestion as they absorb dietary fat and fat-soluble vitamins.
• Steroid compounds, such as estrogen.
• Cell membranes.

Because it is so necessary, your liver produces cholesterol and even adjusts the amounts it creates based on your typical diet. Cholesterol also comes from the foods we eat, particularly animal products. Additionally, there are different types of cholesterol: the two most common are low-density lipoproteins (LDL) and high-density lipoproteins (HDL). Since LDL transports cholesterol from the liver to all cells in the body, it is considered the “bad cholesterol,” as it increases plaque buildup in the arteries. HDL, the “good cholesterol,” transports cholesterol from cells back to the liver for recycling or removal, reducing plaque buildup. Maintaining the right cholesterol levels ensures a healthy lifestyle. [4]

To keep those levels within healthy ranges, here are some dietary tips you can follow.

Foods that lower cholesterol

There are specific nutrients and foods that can lower cholesterol. These include omega-6 and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, fiber, phytosterols, and nuts [4].

Below is a list of foods that contain these nutrients and have otherwise been shown to reduce LDL cholesterol levels.

1. Oats 🌾

Oats are a great source of fiber, and fiber may benefit cardiovascular health by lowering cholesterol or influencing blood glucose [4]. Additionally, the nutrients that high-fiber foods provide may also benefit your heart health. For example, oats also contain protein (more than other grains) and vitamins and minerals, such as manganese, phosphorus, copper, vitamin B1, and more [9]. Other high-fiber foods include barley, other whole grains, and beans which have also been shown to lower cholesterol.

2. Fruits and vegetables rich in fiber 🍇🍆

As mentioned above, fiber has been shown to lower cholesterol. There are fruits and vegetables that are higher in fiber than others, and if lowering your cholesterol is your priority, you may want to substitute other fruits and vegetables for these. Some examples of fibrous fruits are apples, grapes, citrus fruits, and berries. All of these are high in pectin, which is a type of soluble fiber) [5].

3. Soybeans

Soy is suspected to have a good impact on our heart health: scientific studies have shown that consuming 25 grams of soy protein per day can reduce LDL cholesterol (the bad kind!) by 5 to 6% [5].

4. Omega 3

Omega-3 lowers LDL cholesterol levels [5]. Most often, it is found in fatty fish 🐟 . Opting for fish instead of red meat or chicken will also limit your intake of meat-derived saturated fats, which increase LDL cholesterol levels. To be even more environmentally friendly, you can opt for plant-based sources of omega-3s, such as ahiflower, evening primrose oil, algae oils, flax seeds, or chia seeds.

5. Vegetable oils

Vegetable oils, such as sunflower oil, can help lower LDL cholesterol. Use them in moderation! Or as long as you're using them to replace fats from animal products, which increase LDL cholesterol, that's fine. [5]

6. Seeds

Seeds are packed with healthy nutrients that can benefit your cardiovascular health. For example, flax seeds contain omega-3s, fiber, and phytoestrogens, which are good for your heart. [6]

7. Nuts 🥜

In short, you'll find plenty of fiber, phytosterols, protein, certain vitamins and minerals [4]. Studies have indicated that eating about 57 grams of nuts, which is equivalent to 56 large peanuts a day can reduce LDL by up to 5% [5]. That's crazy.

8. Dark chocolate and wine 🍷😉

Yes, you read that right. You don't have to give up your favorites to lower your cholesterol, but do consume both in moderation (i.e. don't go crazy with the cocoa).

Alcoholic beverages have been associated with beneficial effects on heart health because they can increase protein production in the liver, which promotes the transport of HDL from the liver to the bloodstream and back, collecting cholesterol from your body on its journey to be recycled or disposed of in the liver, like a tiny garbage collector. [4]

High percentages of cocoa are especially good for your cardiovascular health due to the increased fiber and protein and decreased sugar (mostly in low-cocoa, high-milk chocolates). Again, reducing the amount of animal products (i.e. milk) will help keep LDL cholesterol levels low. [5] Opt for dark chocolate options with a cocoa content of 75% or higher.

Other things you can do for your heart

Now that we've covered some of the nutritional tips, let's quickly summarize some methods you can implement in your life to help your cardiovascular health.

1. Exercise and move more.
   While a few workouts per week would be ideal for people, not everyone has or creates time for that. An easy way to fit exercise into your everyday life is to make smaller changes, such as taking the stairs instead of the elevator, walking instead of driving, etc. Any exercise where you breathe a lot is good for your heart, as it conditions it. Your heart is a muscle, and like other muscles, you can strengthen it by exercising it.
2. Try not to stress and do more of what you love.
   Not stressing out is something that Bob Marley has been the biggest proponent of, but realistically we all experience higher levels of stress from time to time. Reducing that stress will reduce the strain on your heart and benefit your cardiovascular health as your blood pressure and heart rate will remain under control [7]. Deep breathing can help you relax if you are stressed, which is why meditation is so beneficial for us. Plus, doing more of what you love ties into this. As long as you find time to be happy and relaxed, you are likely to keep your heart happy.
3. Quit smoking.
   Quitting smoking can be very difficult, but your heart will thank you. We're sure you've heard enough reasons why it's bad for you, but stopping (or at least cutting back!) will reduce your risks of heart disease. [8]
4. Wash your hands!
   Washing your hands several times a day is a great way to protect your health and, with it, your heart. Infections can be hard on the heart and are easily avoided by keeping your hands clean.
5. Achieve and maintain your ideal weight.
   Of course, there is no perfect weight that everyone should reach, but finding the weight that you feel most comfortable and healthy at will be beneficial for you. Maintaining that weight class can reduce your risk of heart disease and other health problems [8]. If you need help with this, you can check out our weight loss and weight gain guides.

Our nutritious meals are an easy step toward a healthier, plant-based diet—your heart might just end up thanking you for it.

How we can help you

Chances are, if you're reading this blog, you've probably already heard about what Jimmy Joy does. Our shakes and bars contain many of the ingredients we review; our Plenny Shake Active and Plenny Bar are rich in fiber-packed oat flour, soy derivatives, sunflower oil, and flaxseed. Best of all, they're 100% vegan, meaning they don't contain any unwanted trans fats or LDL cholesterol from animal products. Plus, they're packed with all kinds of healthy vitamins and minerals.

Our nutritious meals are an easy step toward a healthier, more plant-based diet, and your heart may end up thanking you for it.

Sources

[1] Harvard Health (2020). Heart Health.
[2] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2019). Heart Disease Facts.
[3] Oregon State University (2020). Coronary Heart Disease.
[4] Oregon State University (2020). Cholesterol.
[5] Harvard Health (2019). 11 foods that lower cholesterol.
[6] Cleveland Clinic (2019). 12 Heart-Health Foods to Work Into Your Diet.
[7] UCI Health (2017). 7 powerful ways you can strengthen your heart.
[8] Heart Foundation (n.d.). Keep your heart healthy .
[9] Healthline (2019). Oats 101: Nutritional Facts.
[10] Dieticians Association of Australia (2020). The ins and outs of unsaturated fats.
[11] Dieticians Association of Australia (2020). Where do I find saturated fats in food.
[12] American Heart Association (2020). Trans Fats.