I don’t know if any of caught the CNN program, The Last Heart Attack the other night, but if you didn’t, it was really interesting stuff. The gist of the program, which was led by CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta, was that heart attacks are preventable. Regardless of genetics, people can keep themselves safe from heart attacks through exercise and eating right.
I generally think I eat well and that between my good eating habits and exercise, I am fairly safe from ever having to worry about a heart attack. This program, however, definitely made me think that maybe there is even more I could be doing.
The show’s suggestion for heart attack proofing your life–no meat, no eggs, no dairy, no added oils.
Wow. That’s really strict. Here’s how I score on those accords:
- No meat–I could happily eliminate meat from my life. I don’t eat much of it to begin with, so this wouldn’t be a big sacrifice. They suggest taking this all the way to fish, even. Their motto: Nothing with a mother and nothing with a face.
- No eggs–Again, not a big part of my diet, but I do eat them here and there.
- No dairy–This, for me, would be really, really tough. I love yogurts and cheeses and would definitely miss them. My kids would have a huge gap in their diets here if we were to eliminate dairy items.
- No added oils–I’d have to read labels even more closely for this. Plus, I do cook with olive oil all the time. Another tough one.
Right now I can say I can’t imagine embracing all of these guidelines. I’ve always been a big believer in moderation, as well as a believer in lots of plant-based foods. I think I do pretty well, but clearly, there are areas for improvement. Like any change that’s going to stick, I need to start with small changes and work my way up. I’ll keep you posted on how well I do.
Do you think it’s necessary to go this far to ensure heart health?
epic fail. seriously though, I eat "pretty well". I would starve if I couldn't eat these things!
Interested in people that can pull it off though.
Sanjay would not approve. I love eggs, dairy, meat and oil. I would actually rather keep eating this stuff in moderation and die a couple years early.
Interesting that he has not addressed more and more research pointing to grains as major villains in heart disease and diabetes.
I would score very poorly but my body tells me that what I am doing is actually working. I eat meat in moderation, lots of veggies, practically no grains, very little dairy (mostly yogurt), and working on eliminating additional fats like olive oil.
I feel much better on this diet than on that which eliminated meat in favor of (whole grain) carbs. I think this is what our pre-ancestors used to live on.
Just my 3 cents.
Since I have an egg for breakfast nearly every morning, I guess I fall under complete and total failure.
I don't know of anyone in my extended family who has ever had a heart attack, so I guess I'm relying on my gene pool to protect me.
Before reading this, I would have said I eat pretty healthy though…
I'm with you. Moderation is key. I suppose if I had a serious history of heart problems in my family, I might be more open to cutting out those items. But that's not the case. Cheers!
I *could* do such a diet no problem.
What the heck is wrong with fish? I thought omega-3 was GOOD for heart health.
Stupid drs sending stupid mixed messages all the time. Sounds more like the show was mixing vegan philosophy (another subject) with heart health.
Anybody remember margarine?
I think small amounts of *natural foods* are always ok.
I think it can have a face but it should not come from a factory and it should be raised and grown in a way as close to nature as possible.
i.e. true free range eggs
grass fed beef
etc.
This is the same philosophy given in the "Forks Over Knives" movie.
I would like to know specifics on my olive oil is now bad. And are avocados still OK?
I would have trouble with eggs because they are in so many baked goods, I mean heck what if you have some bread at a restaurant? It's really hard to control that.
Holly–Yes, the doc they quoted frequently was a big part of the Forks over Knives movie. It's all interesting to me!
Interesting conclusion – it makes me wonder how they explain Fixx dying even though he was fit and "healthy." I've always heard it was a genetic thing.
My family would starve to death under those guidelines. I could live without eggs, but the rest of it isn't going anywhere from my diet…and I do have reason to worry about heart health. My dad died from a heart attack at age 58, and he lived longer than either his father or his brother.
I exercise, I try to eat fairly well, and I'll let the chips fall as they may until the doctor gives me an immediate reason to worry.
I think that is way too extreme. I'm all for heavy on the exercise and very clean eating but the no dairy, no eggs (in my case just egg whites), no cheese, no meat (not even fish), would leave me with nothing. I have to wonder how much better your chances of not having a heart attack are by eating this way and is it worth the misery? I'll stick with my cheese, eggs, yogurt, and tuna. I figure every race I do is a stress test anyway and so far, no chest pain to speak of.
No, I love chicken and tuna. Forget it. Where is your necessary protein coming from?
Absurd. The reason people don't stick to 'diets' is because they are too extreme and to me this is extreme.
Yes I am a vegetarian who doesn't eat fish, but I cook with olive oil, safflower oil, canola oil, coconut oil, peanut oil, sesame oil….
I don't drink milk from an animal but I have greek yogurt every now and again (eliminating it wouldn't be hard) and I eat vegan cheese (not ALL the time) but eggs I eat.
The egg is 60 calories and it is loaded with good stuff for you.
I am not a big believer in the eliminate all things until you are just sucking on air. It is all about moderation and making sure that you get your full scale of macronutrients in your diet on a balanced daily diet and not going over board.
I am a vegetarian so I could do the no meat. But everything else kind of surprises me. What about Omega 3 and 6 fatty acids and the B vitamins you would be missing? Plus, a life without ice cream?? Guess I am going to die!
I came back again to read more of the comments on this post and saw you made the switch to WP!
Great job. Blog looks swell!
I think you will enjoy the platform. I certainly am
Holly recently posted..Celebrating National Yoga Month
Weird, I commented and came back to see what others thought and my comment is not here.
Anyway, I got a chance to see the show on a rerun. I was incensed after reading your post, but after seeing the show, I am not.
I still strongly disagree with the premise of eliminating all of those foods though.
I really think the downfall of the American diet is in the carbs and crap we eat.
Yes I guess if you take out all oils you can’t have chips/cake/fast food, etc. But you could still load up on sugar and die an untimely death from diabetes.
I take everything Dean Ornish says with a grain of salt after his fat-free initiative back in the 80s. Since then Americans are more obese than ever.
Oooooh! you know I am loving this! No meat, eggs or dairy encouraged on national television!? I couldn’t be happier to read this! Obviously I agree 100% with these guidelines (mostly for ethical reasons) and I am so grateful that professionals are finally embracing these ideas. Have you seen Forks Over Knives or are you familiar with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine? PCRM is a great resource for this type of info and FOK is a great film that goes in depth about The China Study and the benefits of a plant-based diet. We bought it and own it, so if you want to borrow it I can always mail it to you.
Kate @ Run with Kate recently posted..Gratitude for Friendship