What Matters Most For Your Heart?

Eat More (Of This) For Lower Blood Pressure

Heart disease remains the world’s #1 killer. We’d say “and in the US, it’s no different”, but in fact, the US is #1 country for heart disease. So, it’s worse and perhaps some extra care is in order.

But how?

What matters the most

Is it salt? Salt plays a part, but it’s not even close to the top problem:

Hypertension: Factors Far More Relevant Than Salt

Is it saturated fat? Saturated fat from certain sources plays more of a role than salt, but other sources may not be so much of an issue:

Can Saturated Fats Be Heart-Healthy?

Is it red meat? Red meat is not great for the heart (or for almost anything else, except perhaps anemia):

The Whys and Hows of Cutting Meats Out Of Your Diet

…but it’s still not the top dietary factor.

The thing many don’t eat

All the above are foodstuffs that a person wanting a healthier heart and cardiovascular system in general might (reasonably and usually correctly) want to cut down, but there’s one thing that most people need more of:

Why You’re Probably Not Getting Enough Fiber (And How To Fix It)

And this is especially true for heart health:

❝Dietary fiber has emerged as a crucial yet underappreciated part of hypertension management.

Our comprehensive analysis emphasizes the evidence supporting the effectiveness of dietary fiber in lowering blood pressure and reducing the risk of cardiovascular events.❞

~ Dr. Francine Marques

Specifically, she and her team found:

• Each additional 5g of fiber per day reduces blood pressure by 2.8/2.1 (systolic/diastolic, in mmHG)
• Dietary fiber works in several ways to improve cardiovascular health, including via gut bacteria, improved lipids profiles, and anti-inflammatory effects
• Most people are still only getting a small fraction (¼ to ⅓) of the recommended daily amount of fiber. To realize how bad that is, imagine if you consumed only ¼ of the recommended daily amount of calories every day!

You can read more about it here:

Dietary fiber critical in managing hypertension, international study finds

That’s a pop-science article, but it’s still very informative. If you prefer to read the scientific paper itself (or perhaps as well), you can find it below

Recommendations for the Use of Dietary Fiber to Improve Blood Pressure Control

Want more from your fiber?

Here’s yet another way fiber improves cardiometabolic health, hot off the academic press (the study was published just a couple of weeks ago):

How might fiber lower diabetes risk? Your gut could hold the clues

this pop-science article was based on this scientific paper

Gut Microbiota and Blood Metabolites Related to Fiber Intake and Type 2 Diabetes

Take care!