DietandNutritiontoPromoteCirculatoryHealth1

DietandNutritiontoPromoteCirculatorySystemHealth
KyndalMorais
AmericanCanyonHighSchool


DietandNutritiontoPromoteCirculatoryHealth2

DietandNutritiontoPromoteCirculatorySystemHealth

Thecirculatorysystemisaveryintricateorgansystemwhichisresponsiblefor
thetransportationofnecessarynutrientsandothermaterialsthatyourbodyneedsto
functionproperly.Whilethemainandmostimportantorganistheheart,thecirculatory
systemconsistsofthreeessentialcomponents:theheart,blood,andbloodvessels
(HillendaleHealth,n.d.).Theheart,amuscularorgan,rhythmicallypumpsblood
throughelectricalimpulsesaroundacomplexnetworkofbloodvesselsextendingto
everypartofthebody.Bloodcarriestheoxygenandnutrientsneededtofuelthe
activitiesofthebodystissuesandorgans,aswellasitplaysavitalroleinremovingthe
wasteproductsofthebody.However,whathappenswhenthecirculatorysystemofa
personisnotkepthealthy?Multitudesdetrimentalconsequencessuchasheartdisease
andcancercouldoccurandpotentiallyleadtolifethreateninghealthissues.Maintaining
ahealthydietandeducatingyourselfonpropernutritionisessentialinkeepingyour
circulatorysystemhealthinthebestcondition.


DietandNutritiontoPromoteCirculatoryHealth3

DietandNutritiontoPromoteCirculatorySystemHealth

ThemostironicthatthediseasethatisresponsibleformostAmericandeathsis
oneofthemostpreventable.Thechancesofavoidingcardiovasculardiseasecanbe
greatlyincreaseandevenreversedbymakinghealthylifestylechoices(NaturalHealth
School,n.d.).Lifestylechoicesregardingexercisingdaily
,
managingstress
,
smoking
,
weightmanagement
,
andbloodpressuremanagementarealldirectlyrelatedto
cardiovascularhealth.However,dietandnutritionisaleadingfactorinboostingyour
circulatorysystemhealth.Consuminghealthyfoodsforthecirculatorysystemcanhelp
boostthehealthofyourcrucialcirculatorysystem(RyanDevon,2014)
.
Whatexactlycananunhealthycirculatorysystemreferto?Thiscanreferto
illnessesinthecirculatorysystem,suchascardiovasculardisease.Cardiovascular
diseasecanrefertodifferentheartorbloodvesselproblems.Thetermisoftenusedto
describethedamageinyourheartorbloodvesselsbyatherosclerosis,whichisa
buildupoffattyplaquesinyourarteries(MayoClinic,2014).Mayoclinicstatesthat
plaquebuildupthickensandstiffensarterywalls,whichcaninhibitbloodflowthrough
yourarteriestoyourorgansandtissues.Atherosclerosisisalsothemostcommon
causeofcardiovasculardisease.Itcanbecausedbypreventablehealthissues
effectingcirculatorysystemhealth,suchasanunhealthydiet.
Inordertomaintainahealthycirculatorysystemandpreventatherosclerosisand
otherheartproblems,Americanneedtoworkonmaintainingabalancedandhealthy


DietandNutritiontoPromoteCirculatoryHealth4

diet.Inordertodoso,individualsshouldbecuttingbackonsaturatedfatsandanimal
productsandeatingmorefibrousfoods(NaturalHealthSchool,n.d.).Thissource
claimsthatthereisanindisputablecorrelationbetweenahighfat,lowfiberdiet,which
isatypicalAmericandiet,andheartdisease.Thiscanbeproventrue,becausethe
JournalofNutritionstatesthatcurrentfiberintakesinAmericaarealarminglylow,as
90%ofadultsandchildrenfallshortofmeetingtheirdailyfiberrecommendations.The
InstituteofMedicinestatesthatmostAmericansneedtomeetthefiberrecommendation
of1938g/d.However,meanintakesoffiberrangefrom10to18g/dforindividualsat
aroundtheageof2yearsold,indicatingthatmostAmericansneedtodoubletheir
consumptiontomeettheInstituteofMedicinesfiberrecommendation.Thistranslatesto
90%ofadultsandchildrenwithfiberintakesbelowthedailyrecommendedamount,
whentheamountoffiberassociatedtoreducetheriskofcardiovasculardiseaseis14
g/1000kcal,whichexplainsthecorrelationbetweenheartdisease,andahighfat,low
fiberdiet(TheJournalofNutrition,2012).
Fiber,whichcanbeclassifiedassolubleandinsoluble,hasmanyeffectsthat
beneficialforcirculatorysystemwellness.Focusingmainlyon,solublefiber,thistypeof
fiberarebeneficialtothecirculatorysystembecauseitdissolvesinwatertoforma
gellikematerial.Thiscanhelplowerbloodcholesterolandglucoselevelsbothofwhich
arecanbeleadingfactorsfromanunhealthycirculatorysystem.Solublefiberisfound
foodssuchasinoats,peas,beans,apples,citrusfruits,carrots,barleyandpsyllium,
whichshouldbeimplementedineveryonesdiet(MayoClinic,2012).


DietandNutritiontoPromoteCirculatoryHealth5

Fiberclearlyisbeneficialtooneshealth,sofactthatAmericanshaveadietthat
consistsoflessfibrousfoodsandsaturatedfilledfoodsindeedexplainswhysomany
individualsfacedeathduetocirculatorysystemproblemssuchasheartdisease.Foods
suchasmayonnaise,butter,andsourcreamsarefoodaswellasfattycutsof
meatsarefoodsthatarehighinthesaturatedfats,whichleadingtoplaquebuildupin
arteries,oratherosclerosisasstatedearlier,whichhappensintheabsenceoffibrous
foods.Inordertopromotehealthycirculatorysystemhealth,saturatedfatsshouldbe
limitedto5percentorlessofyourtotalcalories.Americansshouldinsteadreplace
foodsthatarehighlysaturatedwithfoodsandproductssuchasvegetablebasedoils,
particularlyoliveandcanolaoil.Bothofthesecontaingoodamountsofhearthealthy
monounsaturatedfats,andbyswappinginleanpoultry,fishandbeansforhigherfat
meats.
Highlevelsofsaltcanleadtoverydetrimentalhealthillnesses.Dietarysodiumis
knowntoincreasebloodpressure,whichisastrongriskfactorforcardiovascular
diseases.TheaverageAmericanconsumesanaveragetakein3,400milligramsof
sodiumeachday,whichisathirdmorethanthedailyrecommendedlimitof2,300mg
(about1teaspoonsalt)andmorethandoublethe1,500mgsuggestionforadultsage
51andolderandforanyonewhoissaltsensitive.Cuttingyoursodiumintakecanhelp
lowerhighbloodpressureandalsoreduceyourriskofdevelopingheartrelated
diseasesorillnesses(EatingWell,2014).Topromoteabetterdietandtocutbackon
foodsthatarehighinsodium,thesourceEatingWellstatesthatasimplewaytocut
backontheamountofsaltintakeistonotaddexcesssodiumifyoucannottasteit.


DietandNutritiontoPromoteCirculatoryHealth6

Inadditiontotheeffectsofhighsaltintakeandhowitcanleadtocirculatory
problems,nitratepreservativescanalsonegativelyaffectyourcirculatorysystemhealth.
Foodmanufacturersusepreservatives,suchasantioxidantandantimicrobial
chemicals,tosustainthefreshnessofproductsandpreventthegrowthofpathological
microorganisms.Somepreservatives,whichisalsofoundinprocessedandanimal
products,canpromoteatherosclerosisandreduceglucosetolerance,effectswhich
couldincreaseriskofheartdisease(HarvardSchoolofPublicHealth,2010).

Preservativessuchasnitratesandnitritesareusedtoenhancethecolorand
extendtheshelflifeofprocessedmeats.However,thesepreservativescannegatively
impactyourcirculatorysystemhealthinawaythatdoesnotresultincancer.Livestrong
statesthatoncenitratesandnitritesareingested,nitratesareconvertedtonitritesthat
mayreactwithhemoglobin.Hemoglobinisasubstancethatcarriesoxygeninredblood
cells.Oncehemoglobinreactswithnitrites,thereactionproducesaproductcalled
methemoglobin,whichisasubstancethatpreventsoxygenfrombeingtransportedin
redbloodcells(Livestrong.com,2013).Thiscanleadtoanunhealthycirculatory
system,specificallyaconditioncalledhypoxemia,whichdescribesalowerthannormal
levelofoxygeninyourblood.
Keepingabalanceddietwillreducefatintakeandprovidethecirculatorysystem
withnutrientsthatfightagainstcardiovascularproblems.Overall,Americansshouldbe
eatingamorebalanceddiet.Fruitsandvegetablescontainanumberofnutrientsthat


DietandNutritiontoPromoteCirculatoryHealth7

promotethehealthofthecirculatorysystem(HarvardSchoolofPublicHealth,n.d.),so
thehighertheaveragedailyintakeoffruitsandvegetables,thelowerthechancesof
developingcirculatorysystemproblems.Inadditiontothis,Americansneedtoreduce
theamountofprocessedfoodstheytakeinbecauseoftheexcessamountof
preservativesandsodium,andincreasetheirfiberintake.Ifwedothis,healthydietand
nutritionforthecirculatorysystemcanbeattained.


DietandNutritiontoPromoteCirculatoryHealth8

References
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WhatCanWeDotoPreventorReverseHeartDisease?(n.d.).
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Devon,R.(2014,February9).FoodsfortheCirculatorySystem.
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Avoidthesefoodsforahealthierheart.(2011,December13).
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VegetablesandFruit(n.d).
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HeartDisease.(2014,July9).
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Dietaryfiber:Essentialforahealthydiet.(2012,November13).
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FillingAmericasFiberIntakeGap:SummaryofaRoundtabletoProbeRealistic
SolutionswithaFocusonGrainBasedFoods.(2012,May30).
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Eatingprocessedmeats,butnotunprocessedredmeats,mayraiseriskofheart
diseaseanddiabetes.(2010,May17).
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CanPreservativesCauseDisease?(2013,Oct.9).Livestrong.com.Retrieved
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