The American Heart Association® Diet and Lifestyle Recommendations

The American Heart Association® Diet and Lifestyle Recommendations
A healthy diet and lifestyle are your best weapons to fight cardiovascular disease. It’s not as hard as you may think! Remember, it’s the overall pattern of your choices that counts.

Make these simple steps part of your life for long-term benefits to your health and your heart.

Eat a Wide Variety of Foods
This chart shows the suggested number of servings from each food group based on a daily intake of 1,600 or 2,000 calories. There is a right number of calories for you, depending on your age, physical activity level and whether you are trying to lose, gain or maintain your weight. If you need fewer calories than shown below, decrease the number of servings and increase the servings if you need more calories.

FOOD TYPE: Grains
At least half of your servings should be whole grain
1,600 CALORIES
6 servings per day
2,000 CALORIES
7-8 servings per day
SAMPLE SERVING SIZES
- 1 slice bread
- 1 oz. dry cereal (check nutrition label for cup measurements of different products)
- ½ cup cooked rice, pasta or cereal (about the size of a baseball)

FOOD TYPE: Vegetables
Eat a variety of colors and types
1,600 CALORIES
3-4 servings per day
2,000 CALORIES
4-5 servings per day
SAMPLE SERVING SIZES
1 cup raw leafy vegetables (about the size of a small fist)
- ½ cup cut-up raw or cooked vegetables
- ½ cup vegetable juice

FOOD TYPE: Fruits
Eat a variety of colors and types
1,600 CALORIES
4 servings per day
2,000 CALORIES
4-5 serving per day
SAMPLE SERVING SIZES
1 medium fruit (about the size of a baseball)
- ¼ cup dried fruit
- ½ cup fresh, frozen or canned fruit
- ½ cup fruit juice

FOOD TYPE: Fat-free or Low-fat Dairy Products
1,600 CALORIES
2-3 servings per day
2,000 CALORIES
2-3 servings per day
SAMPLE SERVING SIZES
- 1 cup fat-free or low-fat milk
- 1 cup fat-free or low-fat yogurt
- 1½ oz. fat-free or low-fat cheese (about the size of 6 stacked dice)

FOOD TYPE: Lean meats, poultry and seafood
1,600 CALORIES
3, 6 oz. (cooked) per day
2,000 CALORIES
2-3 servings per day
SAMPLE SERVING SIZES
3 oz. cooked meat is about the size of a computer mouse
- 3 oz. grilled fish is about the size of a checkbook

FOOD TYPE: Fats and oils
Use liquid vegetable oil and soft margarines most often
1,600 CALORIES
2 servings per day
2,000 CALORIES
2-3 servings per day
SAMPLE SERVING SIZES
- 1 tsp. soft margarine
- 1 Tbsp. mayonnaise
- 1 tsp. vegetable oil
- 1 Tbsp. regular or 2 Tbsp. low-fat salad dressing (fat-free dressing does not count as a serving)

FOOD TYPE: Nuts, seeds and legumes
1,600 CALORIES
3-4 servings per week
2,000 CALORIES
4-5 servings per week
SAMPLE SERVING SIZES
- 1⁄3 cup or 1½ oz. nuts
- 2 Tbsp. peanut butter
- 2 Tbsp. or ½ oz. seeds
- ½ cup dry beans or peas

FOOD TYPE: Sweets and added sugars
1,600 CALORIES
0 servings per week
2,000 CALORIES
5 or fewer servings per week
SAMPLE SERVING SIZES
- 1 Tbsp. sugar
- 1 Tbsp. jelly or jam
- ½ cup sorbet and ices
- 1 cup lemonade

Eat Less of the Nutrient-Poor Foods
It’s not a good idea to use your daily allotment of calories on a few high-calorie foods and beverages that don’t provide the nutrients your body needs. Follow these recommendations as you develop an overall healthy eating plan.
Limit how much saturated fat, trans fat and cholesterol you eat. These fats are usually found in meat and dairy foods and products that are commercially baked and fried. Cutting back on these foods can reduce your risk for cardiovascular disease by lowering “bad” LDL cholesterol in your blood.

Choose Lean Meats and Poultry Without Skin and Prepare Them without Added Saturated and Trans Fat.
• Cuts of red meat and pork labeled “loin” and “round” usually have the least amount of fat.
• Remove all visible fat from meat and poultry before cooking.
• Remove skin from poultry before eating.
• Choose white meat most often when eating poultry.
• Grill, bake or broil meats and poultry.
• Cut back on processed meats that are high in saturated fat and sodium.
Select fat-free, 1% fat, and low-fat dairy products.
• Minimize your intake of whole-fat dairy products such as butter and whole milk or full-fat dairy products (yogurt, cheeses).
• If you drink whole or 2% milk, or use full-fat dairy products, gradually switch to fat-free, low-fat or reduced-fat dairy products.
Cut back on foods containing partially hydrogenated vegetable oils to reduce trans fat in your diet.
• Use liquid vegetable oils and soft margarines in place of hard margarine or shortening.
• Limit cakes, cookies, crackers, pastries, pies, muffins, doughnuts and French fries made with partially hydrogenated or saturated fats.
Cut back on foods high in dietary cholesterol.
• Try to eat less than 300 mg of cholesterol each day.
• Some commonly eaten cholesterol-containing foods include eggs (about 200 mg per yolk), shellfish (50 to100 mg per ½cup), “organ” meats such as liver (375 mg per 3 oz.), and whole milk (30 mg per cup).

Cut Back on Beverages and Foods with Added Sugars.
Many snack foods and beverages have added sugar. Cut back on added sugars to lower your total calorie intake. These foods tend to be low in vitamins and minerals and the calories add up quickly. Also, drinking calorie-containing beverages may not make you feel full. This could tempt you to eat and drink more than you need and gain weight.
• Examples of added sugars are sucrose, glucose, fructose maltose, dextrose, corn syrups, high-fructose corn syrup, concentrated fruit juice and honey.
• Read the ingredient list. Choose items that don’t have added sugars in their first four listed ingredients.

Choose and Prepare Foods with Little or No Salt.
Foods low in salt lower your risk for high blood pressure and may help you control it.
• Compare the sodium content of similar products (for example, different brands of tomato sauce) and choose
the products with less sodium.
• Choose frozen foods, soups, cereals, baked goods and other processed foods that are labeled “reduced-sodium.”
• Limit high-sodium condiments and foods such as soy sauce, steak sauce, Worcestershire sauce, flavored seasoning salts, pickles and olives.
• Replace salt with herbs and spices or some of the salt-free seasoning mixes. Use lemon juice, citrus zest or hot chiles to add flavor.
• Try rinsing certain foods, such as canned tuna and salmon, feta cheese and capers, to remove some of the sodium.
• Aim to eat less than 2,300 mg of salt per day. Some people — African Americans, middle-aged and older adults, and people with high blood pressure — need less than 1,500 mg per day.

The American Heart Association does not endorse or promote the companies or products whose advertisements appear in this publication.