A healthy diet and healthy eating habits will help you attain a healthy weight and improve your heart health.
In addition to watching how much fluid and salt you take in, a healthy diet is also important for you to have a healthy heart.
Excess body weight adds strain to your heart. So, keep within your desirable body mass index (BMI), which is 18.5 – 22.9 for Asian adults. This is calculated as your weight in kilograms divided by the square of your height in metres.
| BMI (for adults) |
Risk of Heart Disease and Diabetes |
| 27.5 & above | High Risk |
| 23.0 - 27.4 | Moderate Risk |
| 18.5 - 22.9 | Low Risk (healthy range) |
| Less than 18.5 | Risk of nutritional deficiency diseases and osteoporosis |
Steps to a Healthy Diet
- Eat less fat
- o Take less fat in your diet to help reduce your cholesterol level as well as to help you maintain a healthy weight
- Choose the healthier types of fat (unsaturated fats such as olive oil, corn oil and sunflower oil instead of saturated such as coconut oil)
- Eat less cholesterol-rich food
- A diet that is high in cholesterol and high in fats, especially saturated fats, may increase blood cholesterol levels
- Avoid egg yolks, organ meats, seafood (e.g. squid) as they contain high amounts of dietary cholesterol
- Eat more fibre
- A high fibre diet (particularly soluble fibre) will improve your blood cholesterol level
- Good sources of fibre are vegetables, fruits and whole grains
- Eat less sugar
- A diet high in sugar can contribute to weight gain
- Speak to your dietitian about your dietary requirements and find out more about how you can keep to a healthy diet
Excessive weight loss may also be harmful in patients with heart failure. Do inform your case/care manager, nurse or doctor if you are losing weight drastically.
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