Heart of Hearts
From Heart Health Month to Valentine’s Day, it’s all about hearts in February. And by association, that includes Almond Day, celebrated each year on February 16. Did you know that the Almond Board just commemorated 25 years of nutrition research? It all began with this study on heart health.
Statistics from the American Heart Association show that heart disease remains the #1 cause of death in the US, and unfortunately, continues to rise year over year. Eating a healthy diet is a key part of Life’s Simple 7, AHA’s recommended approaches for staying heart healthy. Along with eating a healthy diet, keeping a healthy weight, learning about cholesterol, not smoking or using smokeless tobacco, being physically active, keeping blood pressure healthy, and learning about blood sugar and diabetes mellitus are part of Life’s Simple 7 plan.
As a nutrition expert, you play a huge role in helping people achieve – and maintain – good cardiovascular health. Despite the dire statistics on heart disease, there is some good news: according to AHA, a large proportion of cardiovascular disease is attributable to dietary risks. And, data from AHA’s Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics—2020 Update noted improvement in the mean AHA healthy diet score. The proportion with a poor diet decreased from 64.7% to 58.3% for African Americans, from 66.0% to 57.5% for Mexican Americans, and from 54.0% to 45.9% for non-Hispanic whites. These positive diet score changes were largely attributed to increased consumption of whole grains, nuts (such as almonds), seeds and legumes, as well as decreased consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, according to the Update.
Read on for ways to help celebrate heart health this month and educate your clients and patients. You’ll find a savory snack mix recipe that’s worth celebrating, heart health and snack handouts to download, and a summary of a recent study that investigated the effect of almonds on markers of vascular health. Happy Heart Health Month!