Our heart is happy about a healthy diet. Experts recommend for a fit heart especially the Mediterranean cuisine. An unhealthy diet, on the other hand, can make your heart sick over the years. These three heart diseases are related to nutrition.
Being overweight favors atrial fibrillation
This is a serious cardiac arrhythmia. The recurring heart stuttering and racing heart rate is associated with an increased risk of stroke , sudden cardiac death and heart failure .
The disturbances in the electrical impulses of the heart are mostly due to inflammation and scarring in the heart muscle tissue. These can be caused not only by other (heart) diseases and hereditary factors, but are also favored by an unhealthy lifestyle.
A healthy diet is therefore considered an important pillar to prevent atrial fibrillation. A balanced diet with many fresh ingredients works against risk factors such as high blood pressure , obesity and diabetes. Studies have shown that severely overweight patients who have lost 10 to 15 kilograms, have significantly fewer atrial fibrillation than those who retained the extra pounds.
Coronary heart disease precedes the heart attack
Not only atrial fibrillation, but also heart disease such as coronary heart disease, short KHK, are favored by a wrong diet. CHD is a coronary artery disease that supplies the heart with oxygen and nutrients. In Germany, around 2.5 million women and 3.5 million men are affected.
First signs of CHD are deposits in the heart vessels, called plaques. Doctors speak of arteriosclerosis . Whether this leads to a heart attack in the further course depends on various factors. While age and genetic factors can not be influenced, a healthy lifestyle can help reduce the risk. A real danger to the heart are.
. overweight
. lack of exercise
. diabetes
. Dyslipidemia
. high blood pressure
. Smoke
. stress
An unhealthy diet with lots of fast food, plenty of fat , sugar and salt, lots of meat and little fruit and vegetables favors many of these risk factors – and ultimately, CHD. The coronary arteries are constantly exposed to damaging influences, they lose due to inflammatory reactions and arteriosclerotic deposits more and more flexibility and narrowing increasingly.
If the plaques rupture, not only are scars on the inner lining of the vessel formed. Even life-threatening clots can arise. If it comes to a vascular occlusion, the heart attack is the result. Heart muscle tissue dies because the heart can no longer be sufficiently supplied due to the blocked vessel.
Mediterranean cuisine protects the heart
A diet that is based on the Mediterranean cuisine helps to keep the heart healthy. Vegetables, lettuce, whole grains, fresh herbs, nuts and fruits protect the vessels and are important ingredients of Mediterranean cuisine. Meat, however, is rarely on the plate, more often fish.
Instead of butter, cream and other animal fats, the dishes are preferably refined with vegetable oils such as olive oil . Those who stop smoking offer their heart another important protection. Studies have also shown that anyone who has already suffered a heart attack can reduce the risk of re- infarction by up to 50 percent with Mediterranean cuisine .