Healthy Diet: Fruits, Fish & Nuts Reduce Heart Attack Risks

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Diet rich in fruits, vegetables, nuts and fish reduce the risk of heart attack by one third in people aged over 40, says a recent study conducted in the UK. Fruits and vegetable diet, compared to traditional diet with high fat, salt and sugar content, reportedly had commendable impact in reducing heart attack or stroke risks reports a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

About 162 non-smoking people, both men and women aged between 40 and 70, were included in the study by the researchers. Blood pressure, artery health, and heart disease risk factors in all the participants were measured prior to the study. The participants were segregated into two separate groups in which one group had a diet suggested by the researchers and the other group had a traditional British diet, reports The Guardian.

The diet advised by the researchers included high amounts of fruits and vegetables, less salty and sugary foods, lower levels of animal fat, whole grains in the place of refined grains, and oily fish once a week. The traditional diet was rich in saturated fat, sugar and salt, oily fish and meat and less fibre containing foods that include fruits and vegetables. The healthy diet group was provided with cooking oil and spreads containing mono-unsaturated fatty acids and were also asked to replace cakes and biscuits with fruits and nuts by the researchers, according to The Mirror.

Upon consuming fibre rich, low fat nutritious diet, significant decrease in blood pressure, eight per cent fall in cholesterol levels, and reduction in heart rate of 1.8 beats per minute were recorded in the healthy diet group. The study findings suggests a significant decreased risk of heart diseases in people aged over 40 following low fat nutritious diet, says the researchers, notes the Guardian.

The findings are applicable to middle aged people without any existing health issues but with a potential risk of heart attacks and stroke, said Prof Tom Sanders of King's College London.

He also added: "We show that adherence to current dietary guidelines which advocate a change in dietary pattern from the traditional British diet (high in saturated fat, salt and sugar, low in fibre, oily fish and fruit and vegetables) would substantially lower that risk", said the Mirror.

Dr Alison Tedstone, chief nutritionist at Public Health England, said: "PHE has always recommended a balanced diet that is low in saturated fat, salt and sugar and includes oily fish and five portions of fruit and vegetables a day as part of a healthy lifestyle that includes keeping active and not smoking" said the guardian.