A healthy heart diet for hypertension includes:
- Control calories:
- Eat just enough calories to achieve and maintain a healthy weight.
- Eat quality fats:
- Use virgin olive oil and other unsaturated, low-cholesterol fats.
- Eat the right amount of fats, carbohydrates and protein:
- Limit your fat intake to 20 or 30 percent, but don't substitute simple carbohydrates for fat.
- Less than 7% of the day's total calories from saturated fat.
- Up to 10% of the day's total calories from polyunsaturated fat.
- Up to 20% of the day's total calories from monounsaturated fat
- Avoid fad diets:
- Eat a well-rounded diet instead.
- Eat small, frequent meals.
- Avoid large and heavy meals.
- Limit cholesterol in diet:
- To less than 200 milligrams a day.
- Limit iron intake:
- Eat enough dietary fiber:
- Eat plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables
- Eat more soy
- Reduce salt in your diet
- Optimal: no more than 1,500 milligrams per day.
- Check with your doctor about supplementing your diet with B vitamins:
