Simple Substitutions
by Dr. Marc Gillinov
Dr. Marc Gillinov is the Surgical Director of the Center for Atrial Fibrillation at Cleveland Clinic. He is honored to work with the nation’s number one heart team to improve the heart health of people from around the country and around the world.
Each year, more than half of Americans think about the coming year and make one or more New Year’s resolutions. The most common resolutions focus on health and weight loss. This makes sense; what you eat goes a long ways toward determining your health status. A healthy diet can prevent (and even treat) a wide variety of diseases, ranging from diabetes and high blood pressure to heart disease and some cancers.
Resolutions are often vague and hard to keep. Here we make it simple. We provide five simple substitutions—changes in your diet that will put you on the path to good health.
Drink water (instead of sugar-sweetened beverages).
Full-calorie sodas and other sugar-containing drinks hurt your health. They lead to obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease. Furthermore, most such drinks have no nutritional value. On the other hand, your body needs water. It is the simplest and healthiest drink around. And, it’s inexpensive. If you need a bit of flavor, you can add some lemon juice to the water. The next time you reach for a drink, go with water.
Substitute grilled chicken for hamburgers.
In today’s world, it’s hard to avoid the occasional trip to a fast food restaurant. A quick burger might satisfy your hunger, but your body doesn’t need all of the saturated fat that comes with the red meat. All fast food restaurants have grilled chicken sandwiches on the menu. Lower in calories and higher in nutritional value, a grilled chicken sandwich will take care of your hunger while helping you to cut unnecessary calories and limit saturated fats.
Substitute whole grain bread and pasta for white bread and pasta.
Unlike refined (white) grains, whole grain carbohydrates are rich in fiber. High fiber foods help to lower your LDL cholesterol (the “bad” cholesterol). In addition, when you eat high fiber carbohydrates, you will tend to feel full more quickly. This, of course, means that you are likely to take in fewer calories. Read labels to ensure that you see the words “whole grain.” Don’t be fooled by the color of breads and pastas, as the addition of molasses or brown sugar makes the food brown but does nothing to enhance its fiber content
Substitute Café Americano for latte and other elaborate coffee drinks.
If you drink coffee to get your day started, keep it simple. A cup of regular (or decaf) coffee with a packet of artificial sweetener and, if you wish, a bit of low-fat creamer will net you 20 to 40 calories. On the other hand, some of the fancier coffee drinks come in at 500 calories. Over time, a daily habit that includes such drinks is guaranteed to add to your waist line. And don’t worry about artificial sweeteners—they are safe.
Substitute herbs and spices for salt.
The average American consumes one and one-half to two times the daily recommended salt allowance. While we are no longer so certain that salt causes high blood pressure, we do know that those who already have high blood pressure should cut down on salt. Salt is everywhere, an ingredient in virtually all prepared foods; in fact, bread is our major dietary source of salt. To limit salt, eliminate the salt shaker. If you need a bit of extra flavor in your food, consider salt-free herb blends, pepper, tarragon or a variety of other herbs and spices.