6 small changes for a heart-healthy diet


Regularly including the following foods and habits in your diet can help to keep your weight down and your cholesterol and blood pressure healthy.

Here are 6 small changes you can make to help you beat bad eating habits for good. To find out more, sign up to the British Heart Foundation's FREE magazine, Heart Matters.

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1. Eat breakfast

People who have breakfast tend to be slimmer than those who don’t. An oat-based choice like porridge contains soluble fibre, which can help to lower cholesterol, too.

2. Use oil, not butter

Replacing saturated fats like butter, lard and ghee with unsaturated oils like rapeseed, sunflower and olive oils, plus spreads that contain them, will help keep your cholesterol in check.

3. Go bananas

Swap your 11am biscuit for a piece of fruit, which will help you towards your 5-a-day. It’s also low in saturated fat and is a great source of fibre.

4. Check the small print

Make sure you understand nutritional information on food packaging with the help of our article about new food labels.

5. Feast on fish

Eating oily fish such as salmon, herring, mackerel, anchovies and sardines can help to protect your heart. Eat at least two portions of fish per week, of which one should be oily.

6. Vary your veg

Fruit and vegetables aren’t boring, but eating the same ones day in, day out, is! Experiment with different types and search for new recipes to keep meals interesting.

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Heart Matters is our award-winning FREE magazine to help you live with heart and circulatory diseases and their risk factors.

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