Did you know that February is National Heart Month? There's no doubt that eating well has a positive effect on heart health. From juicy tomatoes to tart cherries, the right selection of whole, organic foods can help provide your body the nutrients it needs to prevent damage to the cells, promote healthy arteries, and improve your blood pressure(1).
Here are 6 of our favorite heart healthy foods to add to your diet this month (and every month!):
Apples
The pectin in apples provides 4 grams of LDL (bad) cholesterol-lowering fiber per serving (2).Tomatoes
Tomatoes are rich in lycopene and in vitamins C and K (2).Pomegranates
The powerful little seeds of the pomegranate are rich in Vitamin C and antioxidants (3).Cherries
The antioxidants in this sweet fruit have been known to aid in heart health (4).Red Peppers
These brightly-hued veggies are rich in Vitamin C and carotenoids (5).Beets
High in Vitamin C and folate, beets are packed with antioxidants and help fight against inflammation (6). Cheers, Sam Swensen & Suja Juice
SOURCES
- "SUPER FOODS FOR SUPER HEALTH : Simplebooklet.com." Simplebooklet.com. SImpleBooklet Incorporated, 1 Apr. 2015. http://simplebooklet.com//publish.php?wpKey=i875nkMI4mQgxpArH349l4#page=12
- "13 Foods That Lower Cholesterol & Prevent Heart Attacks." Bembu Essentials. Bembu Publishing, 4 Nov. 2014. https://healthwholeness.com/nutrition/foods-that-lower-cholesterol
- "Pomegranate Nutrition Facts and Health Benefits." Nutrition And You.com. 1993. http://www.nutrition-and-you.com/pomegranate.html.
- "Stone Fruits: Peaches, Nectarines, Plums, Apricots, and Cherries." Penn State Extension. 2015. http://extension.psu.edu/plants/gardening/fphg/stone.
- "The World's Heathiest Foods." Bell Peppers. The George Mateljan Foundation, 2015. Web. 29 Oct. 2015. http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?dbid=50&tname=foodspice
- Eat Your Beets - And Build A Better Brain. (2010, November 8). Retrieved August 7, 2015, from http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/206916.php
