The World Health Day passed with a few sundry events but generally unnoticed. This despite the fact that a good many hearts are ticking away to serious heart diseases as well. And all due to stress, pollution, smoking, bad eating habits, obesity and so on, as medical experts around the world over point out. Report: Ratna Shukla and Prionka Jha

The famous age-old proverb “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach” is unfortunately leading to serious health problems. For many, a sumptuous, sizzling meal could be more damaging to the heart than the pleasure derived from eating it.
So much so that a popular advertising campaign, a couple of years back, depicted a scene where the wife was shocked and surprised by a heart attack which occurred to her husband at their daughter’s birthday party. The advertisement was a major hit as it reflected how stress has permeated in our lives due to rapidly changing lifestyles and attitudes. Most of us aren’t so very conscious of this…..The general thinking is that ‘this can never happen to me’. Why Indians are more prone to heart attacks?
Experts believe that the Indians—especially the upper and the middle class segments of the population—are very prone to heart-related diseases. There could be many reasons, but perhaps the most important one is the Indian food habits. The traditional Indian diet comprises mainly of carbohydrates, some fats and small amounts of proteins. Dr Upendra Kaul, Director, Interventional Cardiology of Batra Hospital & Medical Research, New Delhi informs, “Whether living in their own country or in their newly adopted countries, Indians have much higher incidence of coronary artery disease (CAD) as compared to all other ethnic group studied because of the syndrome of insulin-resistance, and high levels of lipoprotein.” Even Sanjeev Kapoor of the Khana Khazana fame said, “The popular belief of tasty food amongst the masses is that it should be rich in ghee, malai or butter.”
Several basic eating habits amongst the various communities of Indians are medically incorrect. As a result, the risk of heart diseases remain high that can cause excess of cholesterol, which narrows and obstructs the coronary artery from performing its function of supplying blood to the heart muscle. Additional salt normally consumed with the food--in the form of chutneys and pickles --increase the blood pressure leading to a heart attack. The fact remains that milk and its by-products when used as a cooking medium—which is an important medium of cooking in India-- amounts to more saturated fats than beef, mutton and pork. Dr Kaul further points out that butter, coconut oil, palm oil contains only 2%-3% of myristic acid, is one of the most powerful cholesterol raising saturated fatty acids.
Secret to a healthy heart
Vegetable oils low in saturated fats but high in mono-or poly- unsaturated fats like that of soyabean, corn, sunflower or safflower should be used. The intake of salt should be 1-1 ½ gms per day. It would be wise to go easy on amount of carbohydrates in the form of rice, chappatis, white bread, potato, yam, sweet fruits like banana, mango. Intake of sugar should also be decreased. Caffeine in the form of tea, coffee, soft drinks should be avoided. Foods rich in potassium such as peas, cabbages, cucumbers, wheat germ, orange, lemon should be consumed as potassium has been found to reduce blood pressure. Onions and garlic are good, as they are blood thinners and counteract blood changes due to fat, and lower the cholesterol. Plenty of fruits, vegetables and fibres along with fish, chicken can be taken. Red meat should be avoided by heart patients. Miscellaneous food items like soyabean, pineapple, amla, lemon, carrot alfalfa, tulsi, mint tea, wheat grass juice, oats, sprouts, lettuce, spinach and yogurt is considered very good for heart.