How do you follow a Healthy Heart Diet?

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Fresh fruit and vegetables are a rich source of antioxidants, nutrients that help prevent the build-up of plaque in your arteries. Aim to eat a rainbow of different fruit and vegetables every week, from yellow peppers and oranges to purple sprouting broccoli and red apples.

Another family of antioxidants, known as bioflavonoids, are found in tea, red wine, apple skins and oranges, among other foods.
Folic acid, a type of B vitamin, is also important for a healthy heart. Sources of folic acid include green leafy vegetables, whole grain cereals, pulses and eggs.

Learn which fats are good and bad for your heart. The two main types of 'bad' fat are saturated fats found mainly in animal products such as red meat and butter and the trans-fats found in processed food like margarine, pastry and biscuits.
'Good' fats are omega 3 fatty acids found in oily fish and omega 6 fats that appear mainly in olives, nuts, seeds and some vegetables and grains.

Keep an eye too on how much salt you consume. Use herbs like basil and garlic to flavour food instead of salt and butter. Processed food like ready meals are often packed full of salt too so get into the habit of checking labels. Many supermarkets now use a traffic light labelling system to tell you whether foods have high, medium or low levels of fat, calories, salt and sugar.
Starchy carbohydrates such as wholemeal pasta, brown bread and brown rice are also good for your heart and help you stay slim too.