When you’re just starting your day, your priorities likely include some order of: have coffee, eat breakfast, and brush your teeth. Arithmetic, on the other hand, is one of the last things you’d willingly insert into those top-of-the-morning rituals, but sometimes figuring out what to eat to nourish your body in a heart-healthy way can feel like working through a math equation.
Dr. Edward Fisher, MD Ph.D., who happens to be my dad and a preventative cardiologist and research scientist at NYU Langone Center for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease, tells Parade , “The biggest culprit in our diet for heart disease risk is saturated fat.”
You’ve likely heard about saturated fat before—we’re surrounded by it. According to the American Heart Association (AHA), “saturated fats are found in animal-based foods such as beef, pork, poultry, full-fat dairy products, eggs and tropical oils, such as coconut and palm. Because they are typically solid at room temperature, they are sometimes called ‘solid fats.’”
What do you do equipped with the information to limit saturated fat intake, though? What does this mean from a practical standpoint when you’re standing in front of your open fridge with a growling stomach on a hectic weekday morning?
Related: 'I'm a Cardiologist, and This Is What a Typical Day of Heart-Healthy Eating Looks Like for Me'
The One Simple Breakfast Hack My Cardiologist Dad Swears By
To feel good about your breakfast choices and avoid poring over nutrition labels day after day, consider making some easy food and ingredient swaps that you can consistently integrate into your breakfasts.
To reduce how much saturated fat he consumes at breakfast, my dad is always making heart-healthy substitutions, trading full-fat dairy for low-fat, ditching butter-packed bagels and pastries for rice cakes, and choosing lean cuts of meat over fatty ones.
Following suit, my husband and I often opt for olive or avocado oil over butter and other cooking oils in recipes, or we try to avoid the need for either butter or oil altogether by poaching, boiling, or dry-frying our eggs. When we’re eating out, we try to avoid fried foods, which are often cooked in oils high in saturated and trans fats (also called partially hydrogenated oils).
Related: If You Eat This for Dinner, You'll Keep Burning Calories All Night Long
What To Keep In Mind When Opting for a Heart-Healthy Diet
The AHA encourages you to look at the big picture when it comes to your daily nutrition, too, not exclusively zeroing in on one aspect of a nutrition label. The latest dietary guidelines from 2021 recommend eating more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, in general, to maintain a healthy “eating pattern.” Look out for sweetened drinks, like milks, coffees and teas, which typically use syrup or another form of added sugar and make it hard for you to monitor your sugar intake, and opt for minimally processed foods instead of ultra-processed whenever possible.
Related: The Best Time of Day To Take Your Blood Pressure Meds To Lower Your Heart Attack Risk, According to Cardiologists
As with most health concerns, there are several considerations involved in improving your cardiovascular functions, but one step you can start taking first thing tomorrow is making a few simple swaps to reduce the saturated fat in your diet, just like Dr. Dad.
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Sources:
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