EAT ‘TILL
YOUR HEART’S CONTENT Stew Leonard’s Offers Suggestions for Heart-Healthy Eating |
| With the month of February being designated as “American Heart Month” and Valentine’s Day a heartbeat away, Stew Leonard’s has put together a “shopping list” of foods that are not only tasty, but have also been shown to be heart-healthy, too. |
| The statistics can be scary. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. One in four adult Americans has some form of cardiovascular disease, accounting for more than 45 percent of deaths annually in the United States. But many of these deaths are preventable by following a healthy lifestyle of avoiding tobacco smoke, getting regular exercise and a eating a well-balanced diet. Adding certain foods to your diet in place of others can reduce the risk of heart disease by helping to maintain a healthy weight and keep blood pressure and cholesterol levels in check. |
| “While we all have heard the message to limit fat in the diet, especially saturated fat, somewhere along the line, fat-free foods became associated with ‘taste-free’,” said Meghan Flynn, a registered dietitian at Stew Leonard’s. “The good news is that the emphasis today on heart healthy eating is more about what types of food to add to the diet – such as fruits and vegetables, fish, nuts, and even an occasional glass of wine or chocolate. This is a much more positive message, and encourages consumers to think about what delicious foods they can add to that shopping cart.” |
| Stew Leonard’s Heart Healthy Shopping List |
| Bakery |
| The buzz in the bakery is all about whole grains. The recommended intake of fiber is 25 to 30 grams a day, yet most adults get only half that amount. To fill in the fiber gap, add some whole grain breads or bagels to your shopping cart, such as Stew Leonard’s Whole Wheat or Five-Grain varieties. The Five-Grain bread and bagels even contain flaxseed, which is loaded with omega-three fatty acids and vitamin E – that can help reduce plaque build-up in the arteries. |
| Homocysteine is an amino acid that is formed from the natural breakdown of protein. High levels of homocysteine in the blood can damage the inner lining of arteries and promote blood clots, increasing heart disease risk. Grains are a good source of folic acid, a B vitamin that helps reduce the level homocysteine in the body. The recommended daily value for folic acid is 400 micrograms (mcg). All wheat flour is fortified with folic acid, to add an estimated 100 micrograms per day to the average diet – another heart-healthy boost for bread! |
| Stew Leonard’s bakery is also known for their fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies, voted best-tasting cookie by Connecticut Magazine. A heart-smart shopping cart does not have to exclude chocolate as an occasional treat. Chocolate, especially dark chocolate, contains antioxidants, which can help prevent plaque build-up on arteries. Research has shown that chocolate may even thin blood similar to the way that aspirin does. |
| Dairy |
| High blood pressure is a major risk factor for heart disease. Getting the recommended amount of calcium, potassium and magnesium in the diet can help lower blood pressure. Low fat milk, cheese and yogurt are all rich in these minerals. The recommended number of servings for dairy foods is two to four a day. |
| Soy milk is another heart-healthy option. Soy foods contain beneficial protein -- 25 grams of soy protein per day may help reduce risk of heart disease. One serving of soy milk contains six or more grams of soy protein. |
| Stew Leonard’s has the largest in-store dairy plant in the country, packaging 90 half-gallon cartons per minute and over 10 million half-gallon cartons per year. The milk arrives fresh daily straight from our 2,000 acre dairy farm in Ellington, Connecticut. It is then pasteurized, homogenized and packaged in the Norwalk dairy plant, located right in the heart of our store. Even the soy milk is made on the premises. |
| Meat and Poultry |
| The American Heart Association recommends consumers look for meat with very little marbling, and to trim as much fat off the edges of beef, pork and lamb as possible. Stew Leonard’s expertly trained butchers will custom-cut meat to customers preferences. Other tips to look for when shopping in the meat department: |
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| Fish |
| The American Heart Association’s dietary guidelines recommend that adults eat at least two servings of fish per week. Studies have shown that eating fish two to four times a week lowered the risk of heart attack by 31 percent. Fish, especially “fatty” fish, such as mackerel, lake trout, herring, sardines, albacore tuna and salmon, are high in omega-3 fatty acids. These fatty acids make the blood less likely to form clots and also lower levels of triglyceride and LDL (the “bad”) cholesterol -- fatty substances in the blood that increase the risk of heart disease. Researchers found that people with the highest blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids in their blood were more than 80 percent less likely to die suddenly from heart disease. |
| At Stew Leonard’s, customers can be assured that the fish is fresh and sold at the best prices, because our fish arrives fresh daily from the Fulton Street fish market. In fact, we even smoke the salmon right in our store! There are tasty recipes for cooking fish available at www.stewleonards.com. |
| Produce |
| You can’t go wrong in the produce department. Fruits and vegetables are excellent sources of heart healthy nutrients such as fiber, potassium, folic acid, antioxidants and phytochemicals – naturally occurring chemicals in plants (phyto is the Greek word for plant) that contain protective, disease-preventing compounds. |
| Try to get at least five servings of fruits and vegetables a day. To pack the most nutritional punch, choose dark, leafy greens, orange and yellow fruits and vegetables and red and purple fruits. |
| Juice also counts as a serving of fruit, as long as it is 100% juice. Stew Leonard’s prepares fresh-squeezed orange juice every day in front of customers. Eating heart-healthy has never tasted so good. |
| Nuts |
| People who eat nuts at least twice a week reduce their risk from dying of heart disease by 30 percent. The monounsaturated fat in nuts, like the fat in olive oil and avocados, helps decrease low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, the “bad” kind, without lowering high-density lipoprotein, the good kind. Nuts are also rich in magnesium, potassium, and vitamin E, all of which have the ability to protect the heart, according to the researchers. Walnuts are an especially good source of omega-3 fatty acids. |
| To reap the benefits of nuts, eat about 1/3 cup a day (approximately one handful) as a snack or in-place of one-ounce of meat (from the recommended limit of 6-ounces per day). |
| About Stew Leonard’s |
| In addition to the headquarters store in Norwalk, Conn., Stew Leonard’s has stores in Danbury, Conn. and Yonkers, N.Y., with a fourth store planned for 2004. The company has received worldwide acclaim for excellence in customer service and quality and was named to FORTUNE magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For in America” list in 2002 and 2003. For more information, visit Stew Leonard’s website at www.stewleonards.com. |
