Heart Attack Recovery
Hi, everyone. I came here for a little help with a health issue...
Today my dad went to the hospital because he was having a heart attack--his second in nine days. As you can imagine, it's been scary, especially because I was the one to drive him there both times. Luckily, he recovered well from the first one for a week, and he looks good now, too. Thanks to modern surgery, they got his pipes flowing again.
The confusing bit is that he's generally a healthy guy, and he's paid particular to staying healthy and warding of heart problems for as long as I can remember. But his dad died of a heart attack when my dad was 19, and we can't help but place a lot of blame on genetics, which means I have to be careful! I have a renewed sense of confidence in my decision to go vegan, but I just want to know a little bit about diet and heart health--both to keep me healthy and free of heart problems in the future and to help my dad with his recovery.
So what is there to know about diet and heart health? What kinds of things should I be doing to ensure a life free of heart disease, and how can I help my dad recover quickly? He was thrilled that I was cooking vegan dinners all last week (how many people can say their dads are thrilled with vegan dinners?), but I wanted to know if there was more I should know?
Thanks and stay healthy!
-Andy
Wow! Sorry to hear about your Dad, but it is great that he is doing better and happy with the healthy eating. I'm not really sure on specifics for heart health, but I'm sure the closer you stay to whole natural foods will help. Does your Dad get to meet with a dietician to ask what nutrients/vitamins he should be sure to get plenty of? Other than that; I would recommend a day at your local library just reseaching as much as you can. Good luck to you and your Dad.
eating 3rd edition is an awesome dvd off amazon... stop eating animal products and switch to a diet of healthy vegan whole foods (not meat subs and all that crap)
books specifically geared towards a healthy (vegan) diet to reduce risk/reversing heart disease:
http://www.amazon.com/Prevent-Reverse-Disease-Caldwell-Esselstyn/dp/1583332723
http://www.amazon.com/Ornishs-Program-Reversing-Heart-Disease/dp/0804110387/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1283050375&sr=1-1
http://www.amazon.com/Spectrum-Scientifically-Proven-Program-Better/dp/0345496310/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1283050375&sr=1-2
i'm not sure if any of these have specific recommendations for a recovery diet though, though i believe there have been specific plant-based diet plans for such a reason. generally a post-illness or post-surgery diet is higher in (quality) protein than a regular diet, but other than that? dunno.
there is some evidence that CoQ10 is beneficial. and L-carnitine may reduce angina, but as far as heart attack occurrence and recurrence, the jury's still out on that one.
Glad to hear your dad is recovering.
Please for the love of God if you think your dad or whoever is have a possible heart attack call 911. when I read you drove him I think i had a small heart attack. Paramedics can start treatments and ultimately get him to a cath lab much faster.
Heart attacks are generally caused by the build up of cholesterol. Plant based products do not have cholesterol so your certainly off to a great start.
to lower cholesterol your looking for good fats. try to avoid trans and saturated fats.
examples of good foods are: and handful of nuts like almonds, oatmeal, olive oil (when cooking food try putting oil on the food not on the pan because if you cook the oil too much it creates free radicals and those suck.)
look for food high in antioxidants like: blueberries or dark chocolate (60% or higher)
You've probably heard this about 900 times, but moderate exercise is another important factor. Also keeping stress under control can play a roll. yoga is great for exercise and and stress. I don't personally do yoga but I've read studies about it really helping with stress.
well hopefully that wasn't all just me babbling and actually contained something constructive. Best of luck