Tag: fibre

Healthy Tip: Cholesterol – Don’t Let it Scare you

Heart Research UK Healthy Heart Tip, written by the Health Promotion and Education Team at Heart Research UK

Healthy Heart Tip: Cholesterol – Don’t Let it Scare you

Cholesterol is a fatty substance found in our blood. There are two main types, LDL, sometimes termed ‘bad cholesterol’, and HDL, sometimes termed ‘good cholesterol’. 

We need some of both types to be healthy, but an incorrect balance can be harmful. Being told we have high cholesterol can be scary and leave us worried.

This Halloween we encourage you to become informed and take positive action to restore a healthy cholesterol balance, and to reduce the fear that goes hand in hand with a diagnosis:

Increase fibre intake

Fibre is a type of carbohydrate that comes from plants, and research tells us that those people who have more fibre in their diet have lower cholesterol.

Aim to eat fibre from a variety of different sources such as fruits, vegetables, wholegrain, nuts, seeds and pulses (lentils and beans).

Pumpkins are a great source of fibre, when you are carving your pumpkins this week why not use the flesh to make a fibre-rich pumpkin soup.

Exercise more

We should be aiming for at least 150 minutes of exercise per week.

Aerobic exercise such as running or cycling can help increase the levels of ‘good cholesterol’ in our blood.

Aiming for 30 minutes moderate physical activity, five times per week will help restore a healthy cholesterol balance, among many other health benefits.

Limit alcohol consumption

Alcohol can raise the levels of cholesterol in our blood. Cutting back on how much we consume can improve the health of our liver, meaning we can better remove bad cholesterol from our blood.

The good news is there are many alcohol-free alternatives available in the supermarkets and in pubs nowadays.

It is recommended that we limit our alcohol consumption to 14 units per week (about six pints of average strength beer or about five 250ml glasses of wine).

For more tips on how to stay healthy, sign up for our weekly healthy tips at www.heartresearch.org.uk/healthy-tips.

To help keep your heart healthy, why not try out some of our Healthy Heart recipes from our website: https://heartresearch.org.uk/heart-research-uk-recipes-2/.

Or have a look through our Healthy Heart cookbook filled with recipes from top chefs, celebrities and food bloggers:https://heartresearch.org.uk/heart-research-uk-cookbook/.

Healthy Heart Tip: Fibre – the lifesaving nutrient many of us lack

Heart Research UK Healthy Heart Tip, written by the Health Promotion and Education Team at Heart Research UK

It is well known that eating fibre can prevent constipation, but did you know it can also lower your risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and bowel cancer?

Dietary fibre can only be found in foods that come from plants, such as wholegrain cereals, wholemeal bread, wholemeal pasta, brown rice, fruit, vegetables, beans, and lentils.

Here we provide some tips to help you increase the amount of fibre in your diet:

  • Choose a variety

Obtaining fibre from a variety of food sources is a great way to ensure a healthy balanced diet. It is also important to make sure you are drinking enough fluid to help fibre function properly.

Obtaining fibre from a variety of food sources is a great way to ensure a healthy balanced diet. It is also important to make sure you are drinking enough fluid to help fibre function properly.

  • Opt for a high-fibre cereal

Look out for cereals that are labelled as “whole grain” or with “bran” or “fibre” in their name. Try to choose plain varieties with no added sugars.

  • Switch to wholemeal

Instead of white bread, white rice and white pasta, try switching to wholemeal or granary bread, brown rice and wholemeal pasta.

  • Eat your five a day

Frozen, dried and tinned fruit and vegetables all count towards this. Try eating apples and potatoes with their skins still on, to further increase fibre intake.

  • Add extra vegetables or pulses to your favourite meals

Beans, lentils and chickpeas can be added to your favourite meals like curries, bolognese, chilli, soups and stews, to bulk them out and add nutrients.

  • Snack wisely

Choose unsalted nuts and seeds, fresh fruit, vegetable sticks or oatcakes.

  • Opt for a high-fibre cereal

Choose unsalted nuts and seeds, fresh fruit, vegetable sticks or oatcakes.

Some people worry that if they increase their fibre intake it will cause them to suffer from flatulence (wind). To avoid this, you should gradually increase the amount of fibre in your diet to allow your body time to adjust. Good luck!

For more tips on how to stay healthy, sign up for our weekly healthy tips at www.heartresearch.org.uk/healthy-tips.

To help keep your heart healthy, why not try out some of our Healthy Heart recipes from our website: https://heartresearch.org.uk/heart-research-uk-recipes-2/.

Or have a look through our Healthy Heart cookbook filled with recipes from top chefs, celebrities and food bloggers:
https://heartresearch.org.uk/heart-research-uk-cookbook/.

Healthy Heart Tips: Insulin and our Hearts

Insulin is an important hormone that allows sugar to move from our blood, after digesting food, into our muscles and fat cells to be either burned or stored.

Diabetes, is the name we give to the disease related to problems with our insulin. Whilst some types of Diabetes are caused by factors out of our control, Type 2 Diabetes can usually be prevented in younger individuals by adopting a healthy lifestyle. What’s more, most of the lifestyle actions we can take to limit our diabetes risk will also help to improve our heart health!

With this in mind, here are some tips for doing just that:

Eat more Fibre

Fibre can not only help to reduce cholesterol levels but also helps to slow down how quickly our blood sugar levels increase. Try and swap white pasta and bread for wholegrain options, eat more fruit and vegetables, and snack on unsalted nuts and seeds.

Create Activity Opportunities

Staying active is one of the most effective ways to maintain our weight and lower blood pressure. Consider how you can incorporate a minimum of one ‘activity opportunity’ every day, whether it’s walking the dog, cleaning your house, or dusting off your old bike. Remember to keep it fresh and do something you enjoy!

Take the 5% Challenge

Reducing our bodyweight by more than 5% is an effective way to positively manage our future health, however any weight loss is beneficial, so start small and build on your success! Remember to set a goal over a realistic timeframe; 0.5-2lb per week is sustainable.

Know Your Numbers

Eating excessive amounts of sugar over many years can be harmful to our health. Try and opt for foods with less than 5g of sugar per 100g most of the time, and limit high sugar foods such as fizzy drinks and sweets to less than twice per week.

To help keep your heart healthy, why not try out some of our Healthy Heart recipes from our website: https://heartresearch.org.uk/heart-research-uk-recipes-2/

Or have a look through our Healthy Heart cookbook filled with recipes from top chefs, celebrities and food bloggers:

https://heartresearch.org.uk/heart-research-uk-cookbook/

Heart Research UK Healthy Heart Tip: Eat More Fibre

Heart Research UK Healthy Heart Tip, written by Dr Helen Flaherty, Head of Health Promotion at Heart Research UK

EAT MORE FIBRE

Dietary fibre comes from the plants we eat and it is an essential part of a healthy diet. It is well known that eating fibre can prevent constipation, but did you know it can also lower your risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and bowel cancer? Most of us do not eat enough fibre and this may be putting our health at risk.

Check out our tips below to help you increase the amount of fibre in your diet.

Which foods are high in fibre?

Dietary fibre can only be found in foods that come from plants, such as wholegrain cereals, wholemeal bread, wholemeal pasta, brown rice, fruit, vegetables, beans, and lentils.

Checking the labels on food products will show you how much fibre they contain. A product that is “high fibre” is one that has at least 6g of fibre per 100g. White bread, white pasta, white rice and non-wholegrain cereals are lower in fibre because the fibrous part of the plant (the bran) is removed during processing.

Reasons to eat more fibre

Fibre contains the parts of plants that are not absorbed by the body. When you eat plant foods, the fibre passes through your stomach and intestines relatively intact. This adds bulk to your stools and makes them easier to pass. By increasing the amount of fibre you eat, you can lower your risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and bowel cancer.

Fibre also helps to lower high blood cholesterol and high blood pressure to keep your heart healthy. Including plenty of fibre in your diet can also help you to achieve or maintain a healthy weight, which is important for good heart health.

Tips to increase your fibre intake

Obtaining fibre from a variety of food sources is a great way to ensure a healthy balanced diet. It is important to make sure you are drinking enough fluid as this will help the fibre to do its job.

– For snacks choose unsalted nuts and seeds, fresh fruit, vegetable sticks or oatcakes

– Opt for potatoes with their skins on, like jacket potato or boiled new potatoes

– Aim to have at least five portions of fruit and vegetables a day. Remember, frozen, dried and tinned fruit and vegetables count
towards your 5 a day. Choose tinned fruit in natural juice rather than syrup, which is high in sugar.

– Add extra vegetables or pulses, such as beans, lentils and chickpeas to your favourite meals like curries, bolognaise, chilli, soups and
stews. You can also try adding linseeds to yoghurts, soups or juices

– For breakfast why not choose a high-fibre cereal. Look out for cereals that are labelled as “whole grain” or with “bran” or “fibre” in their name. Try to choose plain varieties with no added sugars. You could also try porridge topped with some fruit

– Some people worry that if they increase their fibre intake it will cause them to suffer from flatulence (wind). To avoid this, you should gradually increase the amount of fibre in your diet to allow your body time to adjust

– Instead of white bread, white rice and white pasta, try switching to wholemeal or granary bread, brown rice and wholemeal pasta.

For more healthy tips, please visit heartresearch.org.uk