A newsletter for the students, faculty and staff of the Collin County Community College District. Published monthly. For information or submissions, call 972.599.3142. Cougar News welcomes student and faculty submissions. Next deadline: March 10. All submissions are due by 5 p.m. on the due date. Photos cannot be returned. Text should be emailed to mrobinson@ccccd.edu or sent on disk. Please submit copy that is proofed, edited and saved in Word format. Cougar News staff: Lisa Vasquez, director; Mark Robinson, editor; Marcy Cadena-Smith, contributor; Sydney Portilla-Diggs, campus correspondent; Stephanie Hall, student correspondent; Jennifer Brooks, student correspondent; Mae Nguyen, special contributor; Siulan Thomas, special contributor; Amy Lenhart, special contributor; Nick Young, photographer; layout by public relations.
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Be heart healthy all year round
The staggering numbers speak for themselves on the importance of a healthy heart: Heart disease and stroke—the principal components of cardiovascular disease—are the first and third leading causes of death for both men and women in the United States, accounting for nearly 40 percent of all deaths.
More than 927,000 Americans die of cardiovascular disease each year, which amounts to one death every 34 seconds. Although these largely preventable conditions are more common among people aged 65 years or older, the number of sudden deaths from heart disease among people aged 15–34 has increased.
In addition, more than 70 million Americans (more than one-fourth of the population) live with a cardiovascular disease. Coronary heart disease is a leading cause of premature, permanent disability in the U.S. workforce. Stroke alone accounts for disability among more than one million Americans.
Cardiovascular disease is mostly preventable, so take charge of your heart. One of the most common ways to take charge of your health is to have a healthy diet. Why should I try to have a healthy diet? Having a healthy diet is one of the most important things you can do to help your overall health. Along with physical activity, your diet is the key factor that affects your weight.
Being overweight or obese increases your risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, breathing problems, arthritis, gall bladder disease, sleep apnea, osteoarthritis, and some cancers. Having a healthy diet is sometimes easier said than done. It is tempting to eat less healthy foods because they might be easier to get or prepare, or they satisfy a craving. Between family and work or school, you are probably balancing a hundred things at once.
Taking time to buy the ingredients for and cooking a healthy meal sometimes falls last on your list. But you should know that it isn't hard to make simple changes to improve your diet. And you can make sense of the mounds of nutrition information out there. A little learning and planning can help you find a diet to fit your lifestyle, and maybe you can have some fun in the process! Focus on fruits. Eat a variety of fruits – whether fresh, frozen, canned or dried – rather than fruit juice for most of your fruit choices.
Vary your veggies. Eat more dark green veggies, such as broccoli, kale, and other dark leafy greens. Get your calcium-rich foods. Get three cups of low-fat or fat-free milk every day. If you are unable to consume milk, choose lactose-free milk products and/or calcium-fortified foods and beverages.
Make half your grains whole. Eat at least three ounces of whole-grain cereals, breads, crackers, rice, or pasta every day. One ounce is about one slice of bread, one cup of breakfast cereal, or 1/2 cup of cooked rice or pasta.
Go lean with protein. Choose lean meats and poultry. Bake it, broil it, or grill it. And vary your protein choices – with more fish, beans, peas, nuts and seeds. Know the limits on fats, salt and sugars. Read the Nutrition Facts label on foods. Look for foods low in saturated fats and trans fats. Trans fat can be found in vegetable shortenings, some margarines, crackers, cookies, snack foods, and other foods made with or fried in partially hydrogenated oils.
Chose and prepare foods and beverages with a little salt (sodium) and/or sugars (caloric sweeteners). Dining Out: How can I follow a healthy diet if I eat out a lot? More than ever, Americans are eating commercially processed foods. The convenience of dining out and no cleaning has made it a stable way of life for most people.
According to Meal Consumption Behavior — 2000, a recent report by the National Restaurant Association, the typical American age eight and older consumes an average of 4.2 commercially prepared meals per week. That figure translates to more than one billion commercially prepared meals consumed per week and 53.5 billion per year.
But is it healthy? It can be. The American Heart Association gives these tips for a healthy diet, even when you aren't cooking at home: Ask the server to make substitutions, like having steamed vegetables instead of fries. Pick lean meat, fish, or skinless chicken.
Make sure your entrée is broiled, baked, grilled, steamed, or poached instead of fried. Ask for baked, boiled, or roasted potatoes instead of fried. Order lots of vegetable side dishes and ask that any sauces or butter be left off. Ask for low-calorie salad dressing or a lemon to squeeze on your salad instead of dressing. Order fresh fruit or fruit sorbet in place of cake, pie, or ice cream desserts.
Recommendations of sources to go for more information about eating healthy and preventing heart disease are: Suggested Websites
www.mypyramid.gov
Weight-control Information Network
http://win.niddk.nih.gov/
The National Women’s Health Information Center
www.4woman.gov/
American Heart Association
www.americanheart.org
Mayo Clinic: Food & Nutrition
www.mayoclinic.com/health/healthy-diet/NU00190
National Cancer Institute: Eat 5 to 9 a Day
www.5aday.gov
Books can be transferred between campuses.
If you have any questions, please contact the library at 972.548.6860 or cpclibrary@ccccd.edu or visit the Consumer Health Information Center.
[PRINTER FRIENDLY VERSION]
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