Your heart beats around 100,000 times a day and continuously pumps about 5 litres (8 pints) of blood around your body.1 Being part of the circulatory system, the heart also helps deliver oxygen and nutrients to all parts of your body to help organs and muscles work properly.2

The British Heart Foundation estimates that over 8 million people in the UK are living with cardiovascular disease (heart or circulatory disease) and it causes around a quarter of all deaths; that's more than 170,000 deaths each year.3 So how do we keep our hearts healthy and keep them performing as effectively as they should?

We offer our top tips for a healthy heart by focussing on which foods can help, which exercises we should be doing and what lifestyle factors can affect your heart health.

Heart-healthy foods

Eating a balanced and varied diet is key for heart health – this doesn’t mean having a complete strict diet overhaul, instead it’s about simple swaps, being mindful of the higher in fat foods and enjoying a variety.

As the British Heart Foundation explains:

“There are foods we need to eat more of, like fruit and vegetables, and others we need to eat less of, which are foods high in saturated fat, sugar and salt. It's all about getting the right balance. It’s about making small, long-term changes and enjoying the food you eat.”4

What does an unhealthy diet look like?

There are certain foods that can lead to high cholesterol and high blood pressure, which both contribute to poor heart health. High cholesterol means arteries are clogged up and there’s a reduction in blood flow around the body and to the heart. Whereas high blood pressure means an extra strain on our hearts.

Foods high in fat and containing the unhealthy type of cholesterol include:

  • Full fat dairy foods such as milk, cheese, yoghurt and cream.
  • Animal fats, such as butter, ghee, margarines and spreads such as lard, suet and dripping. 
  • Fatty meat and processed meat products such as sausages.5 
  • Fried foods.
  • Cakes and biscuits.

>Read more about cholesterol and how to help lower it

High blood pressure can be the result of foods high in salt, which increases the risk of heart attacks and strokes. Adults should have no more than 6g of salt a day (around 1 level teaspoon).6

Foods high in salt include:

  • anchovies,
  • bacon,
  • cheese,
  • gravy granules/stock cubes,
  • ham and salami,
  • salted and dry roasted nuts,
  • smoked fish and meat,
  • soy sauce and yeast extract.

Knowing which foods contain higher quantities of fat and salt means we can be mindful of our choices and eat these in moderation. There are also some easy swaps to be made to help achieve a balanced diet:

Easy food swaps

  • An easy switch to start off with – is looking at the oils and spreads you use in your cooking. Use unsaturated oils such as olive, rapeseed and avocado rather than saturated fats like butter or lard.7
  • Butter and cheese – swap with products based on vegetable and plant oil, such as olive oil, and for cheese try reduced fat versions.
  • Whole milk – swap for low-fat milk to help reduce your saturated fat intake.
  • Fatty meats – choose leaner cuts and remove the skin and any visible fat. For mince, choose the lowest fat percentage.
  • Frying foods with additional oils or fat – switch to grilling instead where adding oil isn’t needed and the excess fat typically drips away.
  • Sugary snacks such as cake, chocolate or biscuits – are there lower sugar versions that you could try? For example, our avocado, banana and walnut bread can help satisfy sweet cravings, as the sweetness comes from the banana. Or if you can’t resist chocolate, you can still enjoy a little bit as part of a healthy diet, as it’s about moderation, but perhaps a couple of squares rather than a whole bar. If you struggle to stop at two squares, dark chocolate might be a good option – as it has a richer flavour.8

A general rule for maintaining heart health is ensure you are prioritising fibrous foods such as fresh fruit, vegetables and whole grains.9

>Read more on how to get your 5-a-day into your diet

Exercises for a healthy heart

No matter your age, exercise is important for overall health, both physical and mental. It can help reduce your risk of major illnesses, such as coronary heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and cancer, and lower your risk of early death by up to 30%.10

Getting active can also help improve your sleep, reduce stress levels and help control your weight. For your heart, it can boost circulation and reduce blood pressure – so how much should we be doing and what type of exercises can help our heart best?

How much exercise should we be doing?

Adults should try to be active every day and aim to undertake at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity (any activity that gets your heart rate up slightly, to where you can still hold a conversation, but you can’t sing ) and spread out over a week through a variety of activities.10

Or if you prefer higher intensity activities, where even talking is a challenge, 75 minutes a week is recommended.

What type of exercise is best for heart health?

Any form of exercise is beneficial to your body and it’s about finding something you enjoy, as you’re more likely to stick to it. However, the British Heart Foundation recommends these specific forms of exercise to help improve your heart health:

  • Aerobic exercise – moving your body in a way that makes you warm and slightly out of breath like when walking, cycling, doing housework or gardening. Over time, this type of exercise helps your heart and circulatory system to work better, lowering blood pressure and improving cholesterol levels.
  • Balance and flexibility exercise – for example yoga, tai chi and Pilates where we hold our bodies in less stable positions. These exercises make sure our muscles do not get too tight and keep us flexible.
  • Resistance exercise – lifting weights or using resistance bands and cables to strengthen your muscles. The stronger your muscles are, the harder they can work which takes the strain off your heart, making it easier to do everyday tasks.11

>Read more on finding what is right for you, in our article: Steps to becoming active – your way

Lifestyle factors

There are certain lifestyle factors that can be harmful to our overall health and more specifically our hearts.

Smoking

Like high cholesterol, smoking causes a clog in your arteries, resulting in a reduction of space for blood to flow properly. Smoking can also affect your heart and blood vessels by:

  • increasing your risk of blood clots,
  • causing an instant rise to your heart rate,
  • raising your blood pressure,
  • reducing the amount of oxygen delivered to the rest of your body.12

These changes in your body mean your blood can’t flow around your body easily and your heart has to work harder, which can cause blood clots to form; all of which increase your chances of a heart attack or a stroke.

“As soon as you stop smoking, your risk of heart disease and many other health problems starts to fall. After one year, your risk of heart disease and heart attacks will be halved. After 15 years, it will be similar to someone who has never smoked.”13

Alcohol

The recommended amount of alcohol is 14 units per week, if you’re regularly going over this amount then it can cause:

  • abnormal heart rhythms,
  • damage to your heart muscle,
  • diseases such as stroke, liver problems, vascular dementia and some cancers,
  • high blood pressure,
  • weight gain from the calories in alcohol and unhealthy food choices when drinking.14

If you’re worried about your alcohol consumption, then some simple quick tips to help you cut down include:

  • Setting yourself a goal to have some alcohol-free days or weeks, or to stop altogether. 
  • Be mindful of the size of the glass or opt for smaller measures when out.
  • Avoid drinking at home, as pouring your own measures can result in more being consumed than if you were out.

>Read more of our tips and how alcohol can affect your health in our article: How much is too much alcohol?

If you want to stop smoking, are concerned about your weight or you’re worried about your health in general, reach out to your GP for some guidance. It’s never too late to swap to healthier habits and start a new health journey.

References

  1. How your heart works – British Heart Foundation
  2. The power of a healthy cardiovascular system for your heart – The Heart Research Institute
  3. UK Cardiovascular Disease Factsheet – British Heart Foundation 
  4. Healthy eating – British Heart Foundation
  5. High cholesterol food – Heart UK
  6. Salt in your diet – NHS
  7. How to improve heart health – BBC Good food
  8. Heart healthy snacking – Heart UK 
  9. 8 Ways to Look After Your Heart Health – St John Ambulance
  10. Benefits of exercise – NHS
  11. Types of exercise – British Heart Foundation
  12. What does smoking do to my heart and circulatory system? – British Heart Foundation
  13. Smoking – Heart UK
  14. Alcohol – British Heart Foundation