Doctors have traditionally said that it is important to be on a low fat diet to improve heart health. That approach has now been shown to be less useful than lowering carbohydrates. According to a study reported in The Nation Memo titled Low-Carb Eating May Be Best For Weight Loss, Heart Health a low carbohydrate (low carb) diet is a better way to reduce cardiac risk and improve overall health.
There have been many studies that showed that a low carb diet is an effective way to lose weight. The link between carbohydrates and heart disease has taken longer to document. The medical profession has now created another new set of conditions thought to lead to heart disease. This is called the metabolic syndrome. The Mayo Clinic defines the conditions that lump together to create the metabolic syndrome.
Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of conditions — increased blood pressure, a high blood sugar level, excess body fat around the waist and abnormal cholesterol levels — that occur together, increasing your risk of heart disease, stroke and diabetes.
The real solution to heart health extends beyond what you eat, even though that is important. The other key factors are regular exercise, adequate rest, and methods to reduce stress. It is also important that you minimize processed foods with high levels of sugar, trans fats, and artificial colors and sweeteners that upset the balance of the bacteria in your digestive system. There is documented research that puts much greater emphasis on the digestive system as having a major role in overall health. There is no easy path to heart health that avoids common sense decisions to keep your weight down, lose belly fat, and keep your blood pressure and blood sugar under control through diet and exercise.
