This article is from the WebMD Medical News Archive

5 Foods to Avoid for a Healthy Heart

By Carol Sorgen WebMD Medical News Reviewed By Louise Chang, MD Here is how you can be heart-healthy without totally giving up some of your favorite foods.

Part 1: 5 Superfoods for Your Heart

It's pretty much impossible to cut out all so-called unhealthy foods from your diet. Even the experts have been known to scarf down a Krispy Kreme doughnut now and then. But the important words there are now and then.

"It's not fair to ask anyone to avoid certain foods completely," says Lisa Hark, PhD, RD, co-author of Nutrition for Life. But foods that are high in saturated and/or hydrogenated fats, sodium, or simply have no nutritional value shouldn't be a regular staple of your diet.

Here are five foods nutrition experts suggest you start limiting for a more heart-healthy eating plan:

Cookies: Most cookies are a source of fat, sugar, and "big time" calories, says Peter Schulman, MD, a cardiologist at the University of Connecticut Health Center.

Cookies, and other sweet treats, such as pastries, cakes, and doughnuts, are made with hydrogenated oils, tropical oils -- such as coconut, palm, and palm kernel -- and shortening. "Read the ingredients," says Hark. The hydrogenation process, which turns oil into a more solid fat, results in trans fatty acids (or trans fats), which have been shown to increase the LDL, or "bad" cholesterol levels, and lower "good" HDL cholesterol. Diets high in these ingredients can raise the risk of heart disease.

Most packaged cookies and other sweet treats, such as pastries, cakes, and doughnuts, are made with hydrogenated oils, tropical oils -- such as coconut, palm, and palm kernel -- and shortening.

"Watch out for these foods," says Darwin Deen. "You can eat them from time to time, but they shouldn't be part of your routine."

Many labels already have the amount of trans fats listed on them; after January 2006, all foods will include this information on their Nutrition Facts label. According to Hark, your total fat intake should be 25%-35% of your total calories, with saturated fat making up less than 7% of the total calories.

"Desserts are a once-in-a-while treat," says Kathleen Zelman, MPH, RD, director of nutrition for the WebMD Weight Loss Clinic. "They shouldn't be a regular part of your diet." If you crave something sweet, Zelman suggests, suck on a piece of hard candy. That may satisfy your sweet tooth, without the extra calories and artery-clogging fats.

Ice Cream: You love it, but your heart doesn't, says Kim Seidl, MS, RD, LD, spokeswoman for the Physician's Committee for Responsible Medicine. Leading brands of gourmet ice cream pack about 300 calories and 20 grams of fat per half cup -- and be honest -- who actually eats only a half cup of ice cream?

Don't fool yourself into thinking that you can get away with a full-fat ice cream (or cream cheese or sour cream) because you're getting your calcium. Sorry, but you're taking in a lot of fat.

If you want to get your calcium in a tasty fashion, look to low-fat fruit yogurt, with 350 milligrams of calcium per serving; chocolate pudding (made with skim milk), 292 milligrams; low-fat ice cream, 180 milligrams; and frozen yogurt, 150 milligrams.

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