Associates in Nutrition & Sports Specialty

Heart disease is the number one killer of Americans. In February, the American Heart Association recognizes American Heart Month as it focuses on raising awareness about the prevention of cardiovascular disease, including good nutrition. Adopting healthy eating habits is one way to reduce your risk of developing heart disease and stroke.

As you make daily food choices, base your eating pattern on these recommendations from the American Heart Association:

- Choose lean meats and poultry without skin and prepare them without added saturated and trans fat.

- Select fat-free, one percent fat or low-fat dairy products.

- Cut back on foods containing partially hydrogenated vegetable oils to reduce trans fat in your diet.

- Cut back on foods high in dietary cholesterol. Aim to eat less than 300 mg of cholesterol each day.

- Cut back on beverages and foods with added sugars.

- Choose and prepare foods with little or no salt. Aim to eat less than 2,300 mg of sodium per day. Anyone with hypertension, all middle-aged and older adults should consume no more than 1,500 mg of sodium per day.

- If you drink alcohol, drink in moderation. That means no more than one drink per day if you’re a woman and two drinks per day if you’re a man.

- Keep an eye on your portion sizes.

As part of a healthy diet, an adult consuming 2,000 calories daily should aim for:

- Fruits and vegetables: At least 41/2 cups a day

- Fish (preferably oily fish): At least two 31/2-ounce servings a week

- Fiber-rich whole grains: At least three 1-ounce-equivalent servings a day

- Sodium: Less than 1,500 mg a day

- Sugar-sweetened beverages: No more than 450 calories (36 ounces) a week

Other nutrition measures:

- Nuts, legumes and seeds: At least four servings a week

- Processed meats: No more than two servings a week

- Saturated fat: Less than 7 percent of total energy intake

Be sure to eat a wide variety of nutritious foods daily. As always, small changes in lifestyle can make a big difference in improving your overall health.

The health risks associated with smoking are well researched and documented. In fact, studies have linked smoking with some of the most serious health issues such as cancer, emphysema and heart disease. However, what many people don’t realize is that smoking leads to nutritional deficiencies that may contribute to these and other illnesses.

Smokers should be aware of the impact that cigarette smoking has on their body’s ability to digest and use food, use nutrients and support the body’s immune system. Smoking prevents absorption of vitamins and minerals, interfering with the body’s ability to use vital nutrients properly.

In addition, smoking has a significant effect on vitamins. For example, smoking interferes with your body’s ability to use nutrients and depletes the body of vitamin C, an antioxidant that protects the body from disease. The more people smoke, the more vitamin C they lose from tissue and blood. The damage done by smoking may not be reversed by just increasing vitamin C intake through diet alone, so a supplement may be needed.

In addition, research shows that vitamin E is more rapidly depleted in tissue concentration in smokers than in non-smokers. As a result, tissue, including lung tissue, is more vulnerable to toxins. Vitamin E is also believed to inhibit fatty deposits on the inner walls of the arteries. Loss of those fatty deposits due to smoking can also cause hardening of the arteries and impaired blood flow from the heart. All of these factors contribute to an increased risk of disease.

While supplements or antioxidants may not protect the body against the damage caused by smoking, they can help increase the nutrients that the body needs. In addition, smokers should increase their intake of antioxidants by eating more fruits and vegetables. In fact, smokers need to eat more healthy foods than non-smokers just to get the same nutrients. To help the body properly use these nutrients, smokers can drink green tea, eat fruit and vegetables, and take vitamin C and E supplements.

Many smokers do not want to quit due to the risk of gaining weight. However, the risks of smoking greatly “outweigh” the risk of weight gain. While you may be tempted to diet while smoking or trying to quit, you should increase your intake of healthy, vitamin-fortified foods, drink plenty of water and increase your physical activity. When dietary changes combined with regular exercise become part of your daily routine, weight can be more effectively managed. However it’s recommended that you begin your dietary and nutritional changes before you actually quit smoking. That way, you will already be on your way to feeling healthy and have your diet plan integrated into your lifestyle before you quit.

For those who quit smoking, exercise and healthy eating may actually become more manageable. When you stop the smoking habit, you can usually breathe easier and move more quickly.

- Elaine Hastings is a registered dietitian and owner of Associates in Nutrition in Florida. Contact her at AssociatesinNutrition.com or Elaine@eatrightRD.com.