7 Day Heart Healthy Meal Plan PDF (Free Download)

7 Day Heart Healthy Meal Plan PDF links of 1000 Kcal and 1500 Kcal/ day diet charts are given at the end. You can download and make changes by adding or removing calories as per your body requirements.

These diet charts focus mainly on low-sodium heart-healthy foods which may help in reducing the symptoms of congestion and heart failure.

It is essential to continue with your medicines and take the help of your cardiologist.

Heart Failure and Nutrition:

Heart failure is commonly referred to when the heart is not able to pump an adequate amount of blood resulting in congestion in the lungs.

This type of heart failure is also called congestive heart failure or the newer term, HFrEF (heart failure with reduced ejection fraction).

Most of these patients have difficulty in getting an adequate amount of air while lying down or during exercise.

It can be caused by a variety of reasons, including coronary artery disease, excessive blood pressure, and difficulties with the heart valves. 

Another commonly used term is HFpEF (heart failure with a preserved ejection fraction). This is a condition when the heart becomes stiff and can not accommodate blood.

This condition is more common, especially in diabetics, those with hypertension, and elderly people.

Proper medical treatment and dietary adjustments are critical in the management of heart failure and the improvement of quality of life.

A few dietary approaches to managing the symptoms of heart failure via dietary modifications include following the ADA and the DASH diets.

In this article, we’ll look at how a heart-healthy diet might help you manage your heart failure symptoms.

Although, the exact dietary regime depends on the patient’s condition and stage of the disease here is a sample food guide.

Why is it important to focus on diet with heart failure?

When your heart is failing, it will prioritize supplying blood to your most vital organ – your brain.

This implies that other organs will not receive as much blood as they require, preventing them from functioning properly.

The kidneys are the body’s natural filter. They remove extra vitamins, minerals, and moisture from the blood. With less blood going through the kidneys, less salt and fluid are filtered out.

Because you are already in danger of fluid buildup in your body, it is critical to keep track of how much fluid and salt you consume.

Foods to Avoid in Heart Failure

If you have heart failure, the most important task is to limit your sodium and fluid intake.

Sodium in Heart Failure

Reducing salt (sodium) intake is an important dietary therapy for those with heart failure.

Excess sodium consumption can cause fluid retention, elevated blood pressure, and more strain on the heart, worsening heart failure symptoms.

It is critical that you keep your sodium consumption to less than 2000 mg per day.

To achieve this target, you should aim for 300-500 mg of sodium every meal. This is done to avoid exacerbating the fluid buildup in your body.

Avoid Foods with High Sodium Content:

Here is a list of foods that contain extra salt and can be dangerous to a condition like heart failure.

Check on these foods in order to stay in the safe zones.

• Packaged foods
• Cheese
• Ham, bacon, and deli meats
• Pickles
• Some types of bread
• Chips and crackers
• Ketchup and other sauces
• Fast foods
• Canned foods

Do not consume these foods unless labeled as “low-sodium” or exclusively prepared at home.

Monitor Fluid Intake

It is critical to keep track of how much fluids you consume. Extra fluid that is not filtered out by the kidneys might accumulate throughout your body.

Fluid buildup in your lungs will make breathing more difficult. Edema is the accumulation of fluid in your legs and arms.

Edema causes you to feel “puffy” or swollen because fluid accumulates beneath your skin.

Edema can be highly uncomfortable, if not painful, thus it is crucial to attempt to avoid it.

Here are some ways to keep your daily water intake within 68 fluid ounces:

• Drink water only before or after meals.
• Instead of drinking a full glass at a time, try taking sips between meals.
• Avoid drinking through straws.
• Avoid foods that increase thirst such as salty or spicy foods.
• If you have a dry mouth, chew gum to avoid extra intake of water.

Avoid Foods High in Fluids

Here is a list of foods that have a high water content. Keep a check on these foods.

• Smoothies
• Puddings and ice cream
• Soups and stews
• Milkshakes
• Watermelon

It is not necessary to avoid these foods just look for your daily fluid ounces and consume these foods within the daily fluid limit.

7-Day Heart Healthy Meal Plan

Here is a 7-day meal plan of 1000 kcal per day for patients with heart failure.

You can play around with your calories, reducing and increasing your daily intake according to your body’s demands by simply skipping one of the mid-day snacks.

Summary of 7-Day Heart Healthy Meal Plan:

A link to the 1000 kcal per day 7 day heart healthy meal plan PDF version is here: Download 1000 kcal per day 7 day heart healthy meal plan PDF

7-Day Heart Healthy Meal Plan: 1500 Kcal per day:

Here is a day-wise meal plan for patients with heart failure. These daily meal plans have an estimated 1500 kcal per day.

You can easily modify these meal plans by simply skipping the snacks or reducing the quantity to half.

Summary of 7-Day Heart Healthy Meal Plan: 1500 Kcal per day

Here is a summary of a 7-day heart-healthy meal plan.

A link to the 1500 kcal per day 7 day heart healthy meal plan PDF version is here: Download 1500 kcal per day 7 day heart healthy meal plan PDF

The ADA recommends taking your meal in three portions comprising [Ref]:

• 50% Non-Starchy Vegetables
• 25% protein foods
• 25% Carbohydrates

You can manage your diabetes and heart disease following this simple “Diabetes Plate Method”