5 Delicious Dinner Ideas for a Heart-Friendly Meal

The number of cases of young adults suffering from heart trouble has seen a sharp rise in the last few years, and this trend only goes to indicate how much we are lacking in terms of taking good care of our heart. Our lifestyle habits, stress, anxiety and a bad diet can often affect our heart health. While a bad diet can put your heart at risk, a good diet can help in protecting your heart.

According to Bangalore-based nutritionist Dr. Anju Sood, "For a meal to be heart-friendly one must ensure three factors. First, the ingredients used should have a low glycemic index. Second, it should be low on saturated and trans fats and thirdly, it should have decent amount of protein." You can start by making small tweaks to your daily diet like cutting down on processed junk, taking whole grain, or replacing red meat with fish and chicken. Macrobiotic Nutritionist and Health Practitioner Shilpa Arora suggests a few options that you can try for a heart-healthy dinner.

1.Vegetable Broth Hot soups and broths for dinner are perfect to enjoy the nippy weather. Take a break from the greasy and fattening food you have been feasting on. Quick and easy to make, you can hardly go wrong with a vegetable broth. Throw in some heart -friendly veggies like beans, carrots and leafy vegetables and make your way to a stronger heart.

2. Fish with veggies Fish boasts of abundant amounts of omega 3 fatty acids that are great for your heart. It is also a rich source of protein that helps in strengthening the heart muscles.

3.Oats Chilla

 Chilla a pancake-like dish and when made with oats it can do wonders for your heart health. Oats are known to contain a type of fiber that helps to bind bile acids and expel them from the body. These bile acids are made from cholesterol. A diet that includes oats is effective in lowering high cholesterol levels in our body.

4.Falafel with hummusThis middle-eastern delight is a great option for a heart-friendly dinner. Falafel is made with chickpeas and according to the book 'Healing Foods' by DK Publishing, the fibre in chickpeas can help reduce levels of "unhealthy"(LDL) cholesterol in the body.

5.Sprouts saladSprouts are the best news for your heart according to Shilpa. Sprouts are packed with omega-3 fatty acids that help in boosting good cholesterol (HDL) levels and reduce the amount of harmful cholesterol in your blood vessels and arteries. Omega-3 fatty acids are also anti-inflammatory in nature, so they help in reducing the excessive stress on your cardiovascular system. You can spruce it up the salad with veggies like cucumber and tomatoes to make the meal more wholesome.

Load up on these heart-healthy dinners and keep your heart hale and hearty.