This guide provides basic information to help you start or continue following
your heart failure diet. Planning what you eat and balancing your meals are
important ways to manage your health. Eating healthy often means making changes
in your current eating habits. A registered dietitian can provide in-depth
personalized nutrition education, tailor these general guidelines to meet your
needs, and help you begin a personal action plan.
Here are some basic guidelines that will help you get started. These
guidelines are explained in more detail inside this handout.
- Control the sodium in your diet. Decreasing the total amount of
sodium you consume to 2,000 mg (2 g) per day is one of the most
important ways to manage heart failure.
- Learn to read food labels. Use the label information on food
packages to help you to make the best low-sodium selections.
- Include high-fiber foods such as vegetables, cooked dried peas and
beans (legumes), whole-grain foods, bran, cereals, pasta, rice and fresh
fruit. Fiber is the indigestible part of plant food that helps move food
along the digestive tract, better controls blood glucose levels and may
reduce the level of cholesterol in the blood. Foods high in fiber
include natural antioxidants, which reduce the risk of cardiovascular
disease. The goal for everyone is to consume 25 to 35 grams of fiber per
day.
- Carefully follow your fluid management guidelines. Reduce your
fluid intake if you have advanced heart failure or if you become more
short of breath or notice swelling. General rule: limit fluids to 8 cups
or less per day (which is equal to 2 liters or less OR 64 ounces or
less), even if you feel thirsty. If you sweat a lot with vigorous
exercise, you may need to drink one cup of extra fluid. Your health care
provider will give you specific fluid guidelines that may be more or
less than 64 ounces per day.
- Maintain a healthy body weight. This includes losing weight if you
are overweight. Limit your total daily calories, follow a low-fat diet
and exercise regularly to achieve or maintain your ideal body weight.
Learning to read food labels
Food labels are standardized by the U.S. government's National Labeling and
Education Act (NLEA). Nutrition labels and an ingredient list are required
on most foods so you can make the best selection for a healthy lifestyle.
Review the food label below. If you do not know how much total sodium is
in this product, ask your dietitian, or health care provider, to show you how to
read food labels and apply the information to your personal needs.