I did a reply this morning to a post, but forgot to mention, what a wonderful forum this is for us who have had various forms of heart treatment/surgery. It is so focused on the one subject of heart, that we can all learn from other people's views and history, so I will carry on reading and learning from all the posts on here. In the meantime, I am tweaking my diet even though we ate healthily, we are going that one step better. I have changed the butter to VITALIFE, Greek Style yoghurt to 0% fat yoghurt called SKYR, I now use DEcaffinated Coffee. I was happy with my Warburton sliced wholemeal APART from the salt level of .95% per 100 g.
Comments and advice would be welcome
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frenchman96
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My Dear Frenchman 96,
Look how much you and your wife has gone through, and how amazing it is that you are now home recuperating.
Take each little change you make at a time, your team will tell you were your main problem was { cholesterol, birth defect etc } and just remember how fantastic you have lived your life to get to this stage of it.
I totally understand the weeping part and it could be down to the medication that you are on { which it was in my case } you need to ask your team about it.
The weeping feelings could also be down to the sheer shock that both your body and mind has gone through, there is of course help for this as well , this is from someone that cried his eyes out to an animated snowman melting the other night !
Only change your grocery’s for ones that you both equally like as close to its replacement, some you won’t even notice the change but others will be completely horrible.
I have always worked on the basis that if I couldn’t find a decent replacement for the original I would live without. You’ll be surprised how quick your taste buds can change.
Hello, There are many different opinions about diet and the best thing is to do your own research, as I'm sure you know. The one certain thing is that the thinking on saturated fat has changed and it is no longer thought to be linked to heart disease (rather the reverse). My own approach is becoming more standard: plenty of good fats (dairy from grass-fed cows), good quality meat from grass-fed cows, plenty of fruit and vegetables, as little sugar and refined food as possible (certainly nothing from white flour) and above all no seed oils such as sunflower, which are highly inflammatory to the heart. Olive oil is best. I feel fine and take no drugs. Best of luck.
If you look closely you will see they are saying far less abut saturated fat and advocating the Mediterranean diet. General research will show you that advice on saturated fat has reversed. Hope all goes well with you.
A Mediterranean diet is still low in dairy foods, saturated fats & advocates low fat. I would say the best thing would be to speak to your medical team as to which diet it best for yourself.
I wish it was! I asked my cardiologist abut diet and he said "Don't eat too much fish and chips." That was it. Unfortunately the medical profession don't have time to keep up with the latest nutritional research.
An extract from the NHS link I posted clearly says the Mediterranean diet is high in unsaturated fats. I am confused though, you said the thinking on saturated fats has changed but then said the medical profession doesn't have time to keep up with the latest nutritional research, so who's thinking has changed?
A Mediterranean diet incorporates the traditional healthy living habits of people from countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea, including France, Greece, Italy and Spain.
The Mediterranean diet varies by country and region, so it has a range of definitions. But in general, it's high in vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts, beans, cereals, grains, fish, and unsaturated fats such as olive oil. It usually includes a low intake of meat and dairy foods.
Hi again,Perhaps I should have said 'most of the medical profession'. There are more than a few cardiologists and doctors who have written books on the issue: Dr Malcolm Kendrick and cardiologist Aseem Malhotra in the UK, Dr Paul Mason in Australia, Dr Barbara Roberts in the US. All recommended.
Thank you. I'm not a fan of Dr Kendrick or Dr Malholtra and neither it seems are the BHF or the British Diabetic Association, I'll stick with the BHF & NHS advice as per my husband's HF nurse & the various cardiologists we've spoken too. If your own cardiologist hasn't been helpful where diet is concerned I'd recommend having a chat with the BHF nurses, they're always very helpful.
Maholtra's views on diet and health have been criticized by the British Heart Foundation as "misleading and wrong", and his public questioning of the need ever to use statins has been condemned as a danger to public health. His "Pioppi diet" was named by the British Dietetic Association as one of the "top 5 worst celeb diets to avoid in 2018" During the COVID-19 pandemic Malhotra published a book called the "21 day Immunity plan" making claims that following this healthy diet program could quickly help people reduce their risk from the virus; critics point out that such claims are not backed by medical research evidence.
The 2014 BHF link does say reduce your saturated fat intake and replace it with unsaturated fat, and that advice has not changed. So I'm really confused as to who's changed their mind about saturated fats as the BHF or NHS advice hasn't changed.
' Eating a diet rich in fruit and vegetables, pulses, beans, wholegrains, unsaturated oils and fish means there is less room for the foods high in saturated fat and salt like fatty or processed meats and sweet treats'
This is from the article you have quoted and as it reads to me cut down on saturated fats.
Hello Frenchman, it seems you are doing pretty good anyway.
(I am sure you already know this, but always go for reduced sugar/salt options, for example no added sugar muesli) check the nutritional tables on products, remember frozen veg/tinned fruit is just as good as fresh.
If you are struggling for recipe ideas, try the BHF recipe finder (I use it all the time) and find they are easy to cook, tasty and not overly expensive.
Also if you are eating out, do check on the internet beforehand if they have nutritional details for their menu's, (I was shocked at what I was thought was healthy in fact wasn't).
Hi GuysThanks for all the replies, I see it has created friendly disagreements, nothing wrong with that, but I will close with my unqualified view, and my dietary decisions.
Firstly, at 80 and fit (until HA) I feel I have been doing something right, but I felt a little tweak would not do any harm, family history was the culprit.
BEFORE ATTACK. I have done a 30 min power(brisk) walk every morning for 20 years, I go for a "well man" check every year and Cholesterol is/was 3.5, BF was 135/75 (nearly always) and for 4 years, had an AAA (aorta aneurism check) which has been 3.3cm-3.2cm-3.5cm-3.5cm. I run upstairs, as it's easier since my new knee.
SINCE ATTACK ( oct 17 /21) all the above, but changed the butter to Vitalife, coffee to de-caff, yoghurt to o% fat and a few other things.
RE-ADVICE. the only advice I take notice of is NHS CHOICES, BHF, CARDIAC SUPPORT GROUP and outside of medical GOV.COM
To close, I went for my second cataract procedure today at 7.30 am, booked in, band on wrist, BP taken, and as I had taken a list of my 5 meds in with me, they said they could not proceed as my HA was not 3 months old, so it was cancelled.
Apology to Horner re Saturated fats...I had my first face to face with my GP since my HA last week and we were discussing diet. I told him I had taken notice about avoiding sats, but he said he had just returned from a meeting with other cardiologists (he is one too) and they are now placing sugar at top of the list to avoid. It sure is complicated. In my previous post, I mentioned only taking advice from certain sites, I did not mean Healthunblocked of course, I meant the internet.
Content on HealthUnlocked does not replace the relationship between you and doctors or other healthcare professionals nor the advice you receive from them.
Never delay seeking advice or dialling emergency services because of something that you have read on HealthUnlocked.
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