one green planet
one green planet

As Hippocrates once said, “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.”

His words still ring true some 2,500 years since. With a varied, balanced diet of whole foods, including fruits and vegetables, you can maintain optimal heart health. Being mindful of what’s on your plate and getting regular exercise may help prevent a future centered around prescription medication for all your ailments. It might also help reduce some medications already filling your bathroom cabinet.

This Valentine’s Day, while you shower your loved ones with affection, don’t forget about yourself or your heart. Your ticker deserves some loving, heart-boosting foods for the hard work it does every day!

Remember, though, not one food can miraculously promote heart health. It is the combination of many heart-healthy foods that can change your life. So, in honor of “the day of love” and the CDC’s American Heart Month, here are five plant-based foods to help you love your heart this Valentine’s Day:

1. Nuts

Think of almonds, pistachios, peanuts, and walnuts! Nuts are great sources of “good fats,” Vitamin E, omega-3 fatty acids, and fiber. They can help reduce cholesterol levels, excess body fat, blood sugar, and blood pressure.

Surprise your loved ones with breakfast in bed; try making these Apple-Almond Butter Pancakes or some Pumpkin Nut Muffins. Cozy up by the fireside and enjoy some Apple Sandwiches with Almond Butter. Here’s a 5-minute Raw Vegan Chocolate and Peanut Butter Fudge that you and your special someone can indulge in. How about enjoying those sweets with a cup of Peanut Milk, Almond Milk, or Homemade Hazelnut Cashew Milk?

You can go nutty for these dishes: Street Pad Thai or Minced Tempeh Salad with Lemongrass, Sesame, and Cashews.

Here are even more reasons to eat almonds and walnuts!

2. Oats

A diet high in soluble fiber can help you stay fuller longer and reduce cholesterol levels. These include rolled and steel cut oats. Oatmeal also contains calcium, omega-3 fatty acids, folate, and potassium. There are lots of low-calorie oatmeal recipes to try, including this Slow Cooker Vegan Vanilla Fig Oatmeal Topped with Baklava Filling or this Pomegranate Oatmeal Burst. Try some Quinoa, Apricot, and Oat Muffin Clusters to curb your afternoon hunger pangs or these Coconut Oatmeal Cookies. Think oatmeal is just for breakfast? Try this Mushroom Steel Cut Oatmeal Risotto for dinner.

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3. Beans

Beans are a staple in plant-based diets. They provide plant protein, fiber, calcium, folate, omega-3 fatty acids, magnesium, and potassium.

“Like all foods that contain a lot of soluble fiber, beans help bind cholesterol and keep it from being absorbed in the gut,” said Philip Ades, M.D., author of the EatingWell for a Healthy Heart Cookbook, via Eating Well.

Tired of the ole’ beans and rice? How about eating a hearty vegan Black Bean Burger? Or warm up with a bowl of Chipotle Sweet Potato and Black Bean Chili.

4. Tomatoes

Tomatoes are chock full of lycopene, which helps in disease prevention. When shopping for tomatoes, don’t look past orange-colored tomatoes for their deep red counterparts. It turns out that the lycopene from these less red tomatoes “may actually be better absorbed than the lycopene from red tomatoes.” Don’t shy away from those orange ones!

In addition to this benefit, tomatoes are excellent sources of fiber, antioxidants, Vitamin C, and potassium. What’s more, “the natural gel found in tomato seeds can help maintain a healthy blood circulation by preventing blood from clotting,” according to the Telegraph.

Add some tomatoes into your diet with this Focaccia with Roma Tomatoes and Onions or Raw Tomato Red Pepper Soup. How about an appetizer like these Cheezy Roasted Tomatoes and a savory side like this Skillet Asparagus & Tomato Medley.

5. Apples

As the old adage suggests, “an apple a day keeps the doctor away.” The saying is definitely based on truth. Apples are full of antioxidants like Vitamin C and soluble fiber.

Plus, studies “suggest that the strong antioxidant flavonoid compounds found in apples—quercetin, epicatechin, epigallocatechin, kaempferol, and other polysyllabic wonders—play a key role by preventing “bad” LDL cholesterol from oxidizing and triggering a series of events that result in the buildup of plaque in arteries, as well as inhibiting inflammation,” according to Eating Well.

This year-round fruit is great in sweet desserts like these Vegan Caramel Apples, Pear Apple Pie, or Apple-Of-My-Eye Pie for your darling. Can’t get enough of apples? Check out these 24 Awesome Apple-Based Vegan Recipes.

These foods are just a start to the many plant-based wonder foods that will keep your heart healthy for this Valentine’s Day — and many, many more to come!

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Learn How to Cook Plant-Based Meals at Home

Reducing your meat intake and eating more plant-based foods is known to help with chronic inflammation, heart health, mental wellbeing, fitness goals, nutritional needs, allergies, gut health, and more! Unfortunately, dairy consumption also has been linked to many health problems, including acne, hormonal imbalance, cancer, prostate cancer, and has many side effects. 

For those interested in eating more plant-based, we highly recommend purchasing one of our many plant-based cookbooks or downloading the Food Monster App which has thousands of delicious recipes making it the largest vegan recipe resource to help reduce your environmental footprint, save animals and get healthy! And, while you are at it, we encourage you to also learn about the environmental and health benefits of a plant-based diet.

Here are some resources to get you started:

Easy Ways to Help the Planet:

  • Eat Less Meat: Download Food Monster, the largest plant-based Recipe app on the App Store, to help reduce your environmental footprint, save animals and get healthy. You can also buy a hard or soft copy of our favorite vegan cookbooks.
  • Reduce Your Fast Fashion Footprint: Take initiative by standing up against fast fashion Pollution and supporting sustainable and circular brands like Tiny Rescue that raise awareness around important issues through recycled zero-waste clothing designed to be returned and remade over and over again.
  • Support Independent Media: Being publicly funded gives us a greater chance to continue providing you with high-quality content. Please consider supporting us by donating!
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  • Stay Informed: Keep up with the latest news and important stories involving animals, the environment, sustainable living, food, health, and human interest topics by subscribing to our newsletter!
  • Do What You Can: Reduce waste, plant trees, eat local, travel responsibly, reuse stuff, say no to single-use plastics, recycle, vote smart, switch to cold water laundry, divest from fossil fuels, save water, shop wisely, Donate if you can, grow your food, volunteer, conserve energy, compost, and don’t forget about the microplastics and microbeads lurking in common household and personal care products!

 

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