-Secrets to a healthy heart

Preventing heart problems is getting easier. A few ideas to help you , help your heart:

1. Eating fish can lower your heart rate.   A new Harvard Medical School study found that people who ate five or more servings per month of fish such as tuna or salmon averaged 3.2 fewer beats per minute than those who ate less than one serving per month.   The researchers credit the omega-3 fatty acids in fish.  
2. Researchers say low-fat dairy is the right choice, because it's lower in saturated fat.   Studies proved that those who consumed more than three daily servings of milk, yogurt, or cheese had systolic blood pressure almost four points lower than those who ate only half a serving daily.
3. A recent study found that pomegranate juice reduced the rate of cholesterol plaque buildup in mice by 30 percent.   There are plenty of ways to get pomegranate in your diet.   Over 130 new pomegranate products were introduced in 2006.
4. Women who sleep less than 5 hours each night have a 30 percent higher risk of heart disease than those getting 8 hours, according to a Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.   Too little sleep may wreak havoc with your hormones, blood sugar, and blood pressure.
5. Researcher David Anderson, PhD, says shallow breathing may delay your body's excretion of salt, a high-blood-pressure trigger.   So you can lower your blood pressure by taking 10 breaths per minute for 15 minutes a day.

Need a little help keeping your servings in check?   Here are a few "visual" comparisons that may help.

1. Cellphone=1 (6 oz.) serving of yogurt
2. Checkbook=1 (3 oz.) serving of grilled fish
3. Gift card=1 serving of vegetables
4. Sunglasses=1 sandwich or taco (5 inches long or less)
5. Box of Altoids=1 (1 oz.) serving of almonds or walnuts

Low-fat foods:   Not always low-calorie?

Foods contain different combinations of calorie-containing nutrients.   Carbohydrates and protein provide 4 calories per gram.   Alcohol provides about 7 calories per gram.   Fat provides 9 calories per gram. Nutrients that remain in foods where   the fat has been removed, still contribute calories.   If you're trying to lose weight, check food labels closely for total calorie content, not just the fat content.   A calorie comparison:

Chocolate chip cookie, regular    Fat 3 grams, Calories 49

Chocolate chip cookie, reduced-fat    Fat 2 grams, Calories 45

Pretzels, regular    About 18 tiny twists    Fat 2 grams, Calories 228

Pretzels, fat-free    About 18 tiny twists    Fat 0 grams, Calories 214

Wheat crackers, regular    15 crackers    Fat 6 grams, Calories 135

Wheat crackers, reduced-fat   15 crackers    Fat 4 grams, Calories 128

A simple sandwich becomes something more with a little imagination.

¼ cup tub-style fat-free cream cheese

4 (10-inch) fat-free flour tortillas

4 curly leaf lettuce leaves

1 cup shredded red cabbage

½ cup chopped tomato

¼ cup (1 oz.) crumbled blue cheese

2 tbls. finely diced red onion

Spread 1 tbls. cream cheese over each tortilla; top each with a lettuce leaf.   Divide sprouts and remaining ingredients evenly among tortillas; roll up.   Cut each diagonally.   Yield:   4 servings.   Cal. 183, Fat 2.3 grams, Pro. 7 grams, Carb. 34 grams

Apple   72 calories

Banana 90 calories

Wheat thins small pack 86 calories

Hand-full of Carrots 50 calories

South Beach Peanut Butter Cookies   100 calories