Living with CHF: Diet Changes

People diagnosed with Congestive Heart Failure need to watch their diet. Cutting out fat and salt is difficult, but there are many ways to do so. Here are some tips from the American Heart Association:

1. Keep the saltshaker out of sight to avoid temptation.
2. Remove the skin from turkey and chicken to decrease the amount of fat intake.
3. Look at the amount of servings in something. This is very important. Oftentimes, a 16 oz. drink will have more than one serving.
4. Eat fresh fruit and vegetables instead of canned fruit and vegetables. Canned fruit and vegetables contain extra salt.
5. At restaurants, ask if they have low-fat or low-salt options.
6. Use polyunsaturated margarine or oil instead of butter.
7. Avoid fried foods. If you absolutely cannot give up your love for fried foods, at least use a nonstick frying pan so you do not need to add extra fat to your dish.
8. Drink skim milk and eat non-fat yogurt.