5 Favorites your Heart will Love

With love in the air and your heart at the focus of all this love, we want to share with you five of our favorite foods that can contribute to your heart health. Every food we eat can either increase or decrease our risk of heart disease. Obesity, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and high cholesterol are all risk factors for heart disease and our diet can be an important tool to make a positive impact toward a healthier heart.

The Mayo Clinic offers tips to boost your heart health and many of them are about the foods we choose to eat. So, we want to encourage you to give these foods a try during Heart Health Month—from Oatmeal to Olive Oil, we think you will love these staples. 

Organic Streaker Rolled Oats

Waking up to a hot bowl of oats, which are full of omega-3 fatty acids, folate, and potassium. This fiber-rich superfood can lower levels of LDL, or bad cholesterol and help keep arteries clear. Three or more servings of whole grains per day can decrease your risk of heart disease by over 20%. That is a big deal.

Our Organic Streaker Rolled Oats are an excellent source of thiamine, iron, dietary fiber, and protein. Oats possess beta-glucan, a soluble fiber that is especially valuable in reducing cholesterol. Beta-glucans also aid in the support of the immune system and can help regulate blood sugar.

Organic Streaker Oats are a special oat variety—grown in Malin, Oregon by Tally Ho Farms and developed for its naked (hull-less) characteristics.

Enjoy our Organic Streaker Rolled Oats in baked goods, granolas, hot & cold cereals, pancakes or anywhere oats are called for.

Olive oil

Olive oil, rich in monounsaturated fats, lowers bad LDL cholesterol and reduces your risk of developing heart disease. Studies from have shown that while men in Crete had a predisposition for high cholesterol levels, relatively few died of heart disease because their diet focused on heart-healthy fats found in olive oil. Olive oil also helps with giving antioxidants that can protect red blood cells from damage – as well as having strong anti-inflammatory properties.

We love our Organic Cold-Pressed Extra Virgin Olive Oil made from Arbequina olives grown by Polit Farms in California. Arbequina Olive Oil has a piquant and robust 'green' flavor. The spiciness in Olive Oil is a result of anti-oxidants.

This Gold Medal Award Winning Olive Oil is perfect for salad dressing, bean dishes, hearty soups, baked potatoes, vegetables, antipasti and boldly-flavored recipes. Perfect for grilling and drizzling over foods just before serving.

All kinds of Nuts

Almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, pecans and macadamia nuts are all full of omega-3 fatty acids and mono- and polyunsaturated fats. These nuts also increase fiber in the diet. The American Heart Association recommends eating about four servings of unsalted nuts a week. Choose Awakend (sprouted), raw or dry-roasted nuts rather than nuts cooked in oil. A serving is a small handful (1.5 ounces) of whole nuts or 2 tablespoons of nut butter. Do note that you could cancel out the heart-healthy benefits of nuts if they're covered with chocolate, sugar or salt.

Add nuts to your favorite salad, vegetable dish, dessert, or serve with fruit.

Legumes

Fiber-rich foods like pintos, black beans, garbanzo and lentils are a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids, calcium, plus they can reduce both total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol. They are also a great source of vegetable protein and help reduce the spike in blood sugar that occurs after eating a meal, which may help reduce the risk of diabetes and weight gain.

We get our Organic Black Beans from Oregon and Washington.

Flaxseed

Flaxseeds are an excellent source of omega-3 essential fatty acids, a very good source of dietary fiber, vitamin B1, and copper, and they are a good source of the minerals including magnesium, phosphorus, and selenium. With so much fiber and Omega-3 fats packed in each tiny seed, adding flax seeds to your diet promotes lower cholesterol, and a lower risk of heart attack and heart disease. These seeds can also improve digestive function.

Sprinkle ground flaxseeds onto your hot or cold cereal or granolas, or add to breakfast shakes and smoothies, with yogurt, fruit, & nuts.