A top heart doctor has revealed the five foods and drinks that are good for your health, despite being maligned for years.
Dr Evan Levine, a cardiologist at Mt Sinai Hospital in New York, said eggs have also been given a bad rap for their yolks, which have long been believed to contain high amounts of ‘bad’ LDL cholesterol that raises heart disease risk.
Eating them, doctors thought, would raise blood cholesterol levels. But more research has shown that, actually, for most people, the cholesterol in eggs has little effect on blood cholesterol levels.
Instead, factors like saturated and trans fats in the diet play a more significant role in heart disease risk.
Shrimp and pork, Dr Levine added, are healthy protein alternatives to red meat despite doctors’ warnings about their cholesterol and saturated fat contents, respectively.
And avocados similarly slammed for being high in fat, are full of healthy monosaturated fat that can lower LDL cholesterol.
Coffee, maligned by some in the medical community for years due to caffeine’s ability to increase a person’s blood pressure and heart rate temporarily, posing a risk for someone with pre-existing high blood pressure.
‘But actually,’ Dr Levine said, ‘all have been found not to be true.’
Cardiologists have long warned against cholesterol-rich and saturated fat foods but may have targeted the wrong ones. Dr Evan Levine of Mt Sinai Hospital highlighted five foods once discouraged for heart health
Coffee has long been criticized for temporarily raising blood pressure and heart rate, but research shows no significant link between coffee consumption and long-term hypertension risk
Shifts in thinking about foods – which are harmful and which are good – are due to evolving research surrounding fats and fat intake, particularly saturated fats, the growing emphasis on whole foods, understanding of the impact of ultra-processed foods, and the rise in more personalized diet and nutrition plans.
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Further, scientists have since collected decades-long study findings about the complex relationship between nutrition and heart disease, along with a laundry list of other health problems affecting every organ.
Doctors have vacillated more on coffee than on any other beverage over the past six decades.
Evidence pointing to its benefits and risks continues to pile up, causing people to wonder whether their daily cup could be putting their heart at risk.
The caffeine in coffee has been found to have a minimal effect on blood pressure. In 2022, researchers in Korea reviewed 13 long-term studies with nearly 315,000 people and found no significant connection between coffee intake and high blood pressure risk overall.
Dr Levine said: ‘Even the American Heart Association says it’s heart healthy. Just don’t add sugar and cream.’
A black cup of coffee contains just a few calories and none of the added fat from cream or whole milk. Dairy, especially full-fat dairy, contains high amounts of saturated fat known to raise LDL cholesterol in the blood, which is linked to both heart disease and stroke.
For this reason, Dr Levine recommends holding the butter and the salt when making your morning eggs.
Nutrition science has changed in recent years as more experts and scientists acknowledge that blood cholesterol levels are mostly determined by the amount of fats and carbohydrates in the diet, not by dietary cholesterol such as that found in eggs
Eggs cooked in olive or avocado oil are ‘loaded with nutrients, unsaturated fatty acids, and can actually increase your HDL [good] cholesterol.’
The cholesterol in the yolks, he added, has little to no impact on the cholesterol in the bloodstream.
‘That was the fear for years,’ he said. ‘But guess what… It’s the stupid saturated fat that your liver takes up and makes cholesterol that causes your cholesterol to go up. Eating cholesterol may even reduce your liver from making it.’
Cholesterol worries have also kept doctors from endorsing shellfish, especially shrimp, for years.
While high in cholesterol, shellfish like shrimp, lobster, and crab do not have the same impact on blood cholesterol levels as foods high in saturated fats, like red meat or processed foods.
For most people, dietary cholesterol—such as that found in seafood and eggs — has a minimal effect on raising blood cholesterol compared to the amount of saturated and trans fats in their diet.
Pork is another healthy protein source often outshined by chicken. Leaner cuts like pork tenderloin and loin chops are relatively low in fat and can be part of a heart-healthy diet when consumed a few times per week.
Eating a pork tenderloin is nothing like eating bacon or sausage, which are processed with preservatives and sky-high amounts of added sodium.
Eating just one avocado a week cut the risk of heart disease by up to a fifth in a study of more than 100,000 people (stock)
And unlike beef, which has a slightly higher saturated fat content, unprocessed pork is a healthy low-fat protein.
Avocado has also been maligned for its fat content, ‘but it contains lots of dietary fiber and what kind of fat? Unsaturated fats, especially the real healthy stuff, the monosaturated fats.’
A study published in 2022 in the Journal of the American Heart Association followed more than 110,000 people for 30 years and found that eating at least one whole avocado each week reduced heart disease risk by 16 percent compared to those who did not eat any avocado.
The risk of coronary heart disease, a condition caused by the narrowing of arteries due to plaque build-up, was 21 percent lower in those who ate at least one avocado weekly than those who ate none.
Dr Levine said: ‘Replacing animal products like butter, cheese, or bacon with avocado – makes sense – is associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease.
‘On top of an egg, on top of anything, a salad, a piece of chicken or pork, sounds good to me.’