Feed your heart well with High Protein Low Fat Foods

What are the high protein low fat foods? What are the guidelines when shifting on foods high in protein and low in fat? How my heart is protected if I decide to follow a high protein low fat diet?

Get your answers here.

If you are obese, then you are susceptible of having myriad chronic diseases. Many diets recommended for weight loss have widely adopted the idea of implementing food high in protein and low in fat, which can effectively restrict your total calories intake plus reducing your risk of developing a coronary heart diseases.

The main problem in a high protein diet is its high content of saturated fats, because the major food sources of high protein foods are fat-rich animal dairy products. Recently, there are increased concerns about the effect of high protein diet on blood lipids, body composition, and the risk for cardiovascular diseases.

Therefore, the proper selection of high protein low fat foods is highly recommended. Sometimes, it is difficult to choose food high in protein and low in fat. The following tips will give you a hand:

Always try to read the nutritional labels carefully, and compare the nutritional information and calorie intake for the foods you intend to buy.

You can take your essential daily protein intake by eating high protein low fat foods outside meat group. For example, egg whites are rich in proteins with zero fats. Legumes, beans and textured vegetable proteins add a variety of high protein low fat sources to your table.

Pay attention to how you prepare your food; they can be easily turned unhealthy if fried or cooked with a lot of oils. According to AHA, the most healthy methods of cooking are: baking, boiling, cooking in the microwave, roasting (vegetables, lean cut meat, skinless poultry), grilling (seafood, vegetables and chicken), and steaming.

Use spices to add the desired flavors to your dishes, avoid adding fatty ingredients such as cream or cheese. Try to skip desserts; instead you can always eat fresh fruits.

How can you choose high protein low fat foods properly?

National Heart, Lung, and Blood institute makes this easier to you by dividing all types of foods into groups. Furthermore, within each group, there are important guidelines you’ll need to follow while deciding your menu of high protein low fat diet plan.

Food group	Guidelines
Meat, poultry, and fish	Choose leanest cuts of these high protein sources to keep your blood cholesterol low Limit your daily intake to < 6 oz. Chicken and turkey have minimum saturated fats, particularly when skinless. Limit both geese and ducks; they are rich in saturated fats even if their skin is removed. Most types of fish contain lower cholesterol than meat and poultry.
Meat substitutes	Dry peas, tofu, and beans are excellent protein sources, low in saturated fats and cholesterol, rich in fibers as well. Eggs (Yolk - Contains 213 mg each. Avoid eating >4 yolks per week.)
Milk, cheese, and yogurt group	Choose skimmed or 1% milk instead of 2% or full cream milk. Always search for types of cheese which contain 3 grams or less of cholesterol/oz. Try low or free fat yogurt.
Fats and oils	Replace saturated fats with unsaturated (mono or poly) fats; choose liquid vegetable oils (canola, olive, corn…etc.)
Fruits and vegetables	Generally, they have no cholesterol, low total fats, and rich in fibers, but they are poor protein sources. This can be solved by combining 2 types of protein plants (like corn and beans) to complete essential amino acids.

At the end I want to remind you that foods and diet cannot work alone properly. You should make some lifestyle changes to have your cholesterol levels under control.