Lower Your Risk of Coronary Heart Disease With Two Food Groups

Certain food can put us at a lower risk of contracting diseases

Before I had my recent operation, I decided to try a little experiment.

My intention was to fill my body with as many antioxidants as possible one month before my procedure, so I could recover faster and heal my body from the inflammation that was to take place.

I also had the intention to rid my body of toxins (anesthetic) which causes a lot of side effects after the procedure.

The operation was intense; I had endometriosis removed, then a hysterectomy.

I didn’t think my chances of recovering were going to be that great — therefore, I was willing to wait it out at home and work as much as I could.

Although I haven’t got specific research to back up my experiment, I can confidently say that I did the right things — both from a nutrition and exercise standpoint.

Undoubtedly those steps aided my body to recover sooner and get back to my usual self a lot more rapidly than I had anticipated.

I do not think I was lucky, but I did one thing that most people don’t think about. And that is to prepare your body daily with an shield against environmental and health pitfalls.

That is where exercise and proper nutrition come in.

Therefore, it was no surprise when I came across this information I’d like to share with you.

A study published in the American Journal of Medicine looked at the effects of all dietary antioxidants on myocardial infarction.

32,561 Swedish women aged between 49 and 83 were followed from September 1997 to December 2007.

First, all women completed a food-frequency questionnaire, asking to rate on average how often they consumed particular types of food and beverages during the last year.

Investigators then calculated the estimation of total antioxidant capacity from a database measuring the oxygen radical absorption capacity of the most common foods in the US.

Women were then placed in five groups of full antioxidant capacity through diet.

During this study, 1,114 women suffered a myocardial infarction.

Women with the highest total antioxidant capacity had a 20% lower risk as they consumed almost 7 servings per day of fruit and veggies.

This was nearly three times more than the women with the least antioxidant capacity. They, on average, consumed 2.4 servings per day.

Lead investigator Alicja Wolk mentions that trial testing of high doses of antioxidant supplements has failed to benefit coronary heart disease.

However, in one study, higher morality was reported! (Please find the added reference in this study.)

Wolk says: “In contrast to supplements of single antioxidants, the dietary total antioxidant capacity reflects all present antioxidants, including thousands of compounds, all of them in doses present in our usual diet, and even considers their synergistic effects.”

Key takeaways

It’s imperative to keep a watchful eye on all these so-called “antioxidant supplements” currently on the market.

Is there a need for them? Probably, but you can get everything you need through a diet high in fruit and vegetables — as this study clearly states.

You can lower your risk of Coronary heart disease by adding an array of fruit and vegetables — without the need to spend a lot of money on expensive pie in the sky supplements.

Although my own journey isn’t related to this study, If it worked for my recovery from surgery, you can clearly see just how beneficial antioxidants are for our health and well-being.

Here’s how you can add more antioxidants to your diet:

One: Put an array of snap-frozen fruits and vegetables in a blender. Eat the pulp too, for the fibre

Two: Eat more vegetables daily — keep them seasonal

Three: snack on vegetables and fruit more often

Four: Add berries to your oats and into salads

There are many ways you can integrate different fruits and vegetables within snacks and meals. The only limitation is creativity.

Please do go ahead and read the full report, which is located via this link.

Total Antioxidant Capacity from Diet and Risk of Myocardial Infarction: A Prospective Cohort of Women.

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