Legumes, Nuts, Fruits, Whole Grains and Functional Botanicals Pump Up Heart-Health Appeal
Teasing out the nutrition factors that influence heart health is challenging, because the task is complicated by the modern trend toward obesity and sedentary lifestyle
According to the Centers for Disease Control, about one in four deaths in the US is attributable to heart disease. That’s more than 600,000 people every year. But even if the results aren’t initially fatal, heart disease is life changing. Nearly three- quarters of a million people per year have a heart attack due to coronary heart disease (CHD), the most dominant form of heart ailment.
CHD results from a narrowing of the arteries that feed the heart due to a buildup of atherosclerotic plaque. Plaque buildup is sinister, beginning without symptoms. Its progression continues until an individual experiences a noticeable decrease in performance capacity due to fatigue, as well as pain resulting from a reduction of blood flow to the heart.