The Heart of the Matter

Let’s talk about your heart health. You may have elevated blood pressure or cholesterol, or maybe heart disease runs in your family. Or perhaps you are in great heart-health. Whatever your circumstances, statistics show that every American may be at risk.

• 40% of all Americans die of heart attacks.

• 58% of deaths are related to cardiovascular disease.

• More than 1.3 million Americans will have a heart attack this year alone.

What’s most tragic about these facts is that nobody really has to die from a heart-or circulatory system-related death.

The heart is quite a remarkable machine. It weighs between 7 and 15 ounces (200 to 425 grams) and is a little larger than the size of your fist. By the end of a long life, a person's heart may have beat (expanded and contracted) more than 3.5 billion times. In fact, each day, the average heart beats 100,000 times, pumping about 2,000 gallons (7,571 liters) of blood.

Despite what many Americans are led to believe, we were not designed to gradually build plaque in our arteries, develop high blood pressure, and eventually suffer from heart disease and cardiovascular-related death. Our bodies, if allowed to reach their genetic potential, would live a healthy, longer life, free from common diseases such as heart disease.

So, why are so many of us being afflicted with heart disease? Our diet is a major culprit; much more so than age or genetics. Unhealthy, low-nutrient foods promote fatty deposits in our blood vessels that eventually lead to narrowing blood vessels and blood clots that cause strokes and heart attacks.

Heart disease can be relatively simple to prevent. Men and women who lead healthy lifestyles—including making healthier food choices (even if still eating an American-style diet), getting regular exercise, maintaining healthy weight, and choosing not to smoke or drink excessively – can significantly decrease their risk of heart disease.

Even if you already have high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or heart disease, you can reverse the damage. It doesn’t require expensive drugs and risky surgeries. It simply requires a diet with an abundance of nutrient dense foods.

The bottom line is that superior heart health lies in an abundance of micronutrients – which is the exact premise of the Heart Smart Gourmet program. Increasing your consumption of nutrient dense fruits and vegetables is key to disease resistance and reversal, and a long, happy, healthy life.

Your body is a miraculous self-healing machine when your nutritional needs are met. You can protect yourself not just from heart disease, but other diseases such as diabetes, cancer, strokes, and dementia. You can get healthier and healthier every day. 

With that said, I wish you continued good health!