Nutrition after a heart attack

A heart attack is an acute violation of cardiac circulation. Because of this violation, the myocardium remains without nutrition, so it dies or necrotic. Therefore, it is very important for patients who have had a heart attack to eat right. About what you can eat after myocardial infarction - we will tell further. But first you need to figure out what a diet for a heart attack is.

What is a diet for a heart attack, why should it be followed

This is a diet that is designed specifically for a patient who has had a myocardial infarction.

Diet after a heart attack helps to solve several basic problems. With its help, the patient:

• starts the process of tissue repair after ischemia;
• gets rid of necrotic products;
• reduces the load on the CCC;
• normalizes metabolism;
• controls the work of the intestines and the entire gastrointestinal tract;
• restores the integrity of damaged tissues.

Remember: the diet is developed for a specific patient. Therefore, it is better to ask your doctor about what you can eat after a heart attack.

What is the peculiarity of the diet for myocardial infarction

The peculiarity of nutrition for such patients is that they should eat light food, but with a sufficient amount of energy necessary to restore destroyed tissues. In the acute and subacute period, the patient is placed in a medical facility. There he must comply with bed rest, so the diet is based on the level of physical activity of the patient.

In general, the food of a patient who has had a myocardial infarction should:

• be light in composition;
• have a high energy value.

At the same time, the patient must also comply with special requirements. For example, he must:

• eat often, but in small portions;
• eat foods rich in potassium, magnesium;
• exclude from food all foods that cause gas formation in him. He will have to give up lamb and mushrooms. Therefore, if he wonders if it is possible to eat mushrooms after a heart attack, then the answer to this question is no;  
• drink no more than 0.5 liters per day;
• completely abandon highly salted foods;
• give preference to protein foods;
• completely abandon strong black tea, other drinks that contain caffeine;
• eat more foods that loosen the stool.

In addition, a patient who wonders if it is possible to eat fat after a heart attack will also have to refuse it. It negatively affects the work of the digestive tract, so it is better to exclude it during the recovery period.

The main goal of dietary nutrition is to completely eliminate the load on the esophagus, diaphragm, stomach, and other structures adjacent to the heart.

Only such nutrition will help the patient increase blood pressure, get rid of excess weight. These factors lead to myocardial infarction.

Does dietary nutrition depend on the gender of the patient

Doctors answer this question in the affirmative. They note that nutrition for men and women who have had a myocardial infarction is completely different. This is due to the nutritional activity that a particular person requires.

Remember: men need to consume more high-calorie foods, unlike women.

Moreover, the diet menu for a heart attack and after a heart attack for men should contain:

• 90 grams of proteins;
• 60 grams of fat;
• 400 grams of carbohydrates.

In general, the calorie content of his diet should be at least 2300 kcal. Therefore, dietary nutrition after a heart attack for them is based on the rejection of foods that increase the amount of cholesterol in the blood.

The menu after a heart attack for a woman is somewhat more modest. It must contain:

• 80 grams of proteins;
• 70 grams of fat;
• 30 grams of carbohydrates.

Moreover, the calorie content for women should be 2200 kcal. Their diet after a massive heart attack is to lower blood glucose levels.

Remember: the gender of the patient must be taken into account when developing the menu.

If this factor is not taken into account, then an overabundance or lack of nutrients may occur in the body. But only an experienced specialist can correctly develop a menu and answer the question of what you can eat after myocardial infarction.

What is included in the menu of men who have had a myocardial infarction

The dietary menu of a man who has had a myocardial infarction is to reduce the amount of fat in his diet after a heart attack.

Therefore, the first 2 weeks after the illness, he is recommended to completely abandon meat. It is it that gives a strong load on the digestive tract, takes a lot of energy during digestion.

Patients in the acute period need to monitor their diet especially carefully. They are encouraged to eat food steamed, boiled in vegetable broth or grated into a fine gruel.

They are recommended to eat:

• low-fat decoctions;
• cereals from different cereals;
• vegetable puree;
• fish. It is she who is considered dietary.

It is recommended to drink food with compotes cooked from dried fruits, rosehip broth, and various fruit drinks.

Remember: patients will have to completely refuse salt. Calories per day should be 1100-1300 kcal.

After 2-4 weeks, the patient can eat lean meat stew. Moreover, the food is no longer required to be crushed.

Additionally, he can eat raw vegetables, berries. You can eat no more than 3 grams of salt per day. Now the calorie content per day should be 1600-1800 kcal.

After 4 weeks, the diet becomes less strict.

Now the patient can eat:

• boiled meat;
• ham;
• soups cooked on a secondary broth;
• fresh vegetables;
• butter, but not more than 50 grams per day. You can add it to side dishes;
• lightly dried bread, crackers.

Dried fruits contribute to the fastest healing of the myocardium. The patient can eat dried apricots, prunes, dates, apples. You can also make compote from them.

How to develop a menu for women who have had a heart attack

Women who have had this disease are advised to reduce the amount of low-density cholesterol in the blood. Remember: it is very high in trans fats.

Therefore, a diet after a heart attack for women should be based on a complete rejection of:

• margarine;
• confectionery;
• pork, lamb;
• dairy products with a lot of fat.

Women are advised to give preference to:

• vegetable oil;
• fish;
• poultry, exclusively white meat;
• vegetables, fruits. They have a lot of fiber, pectins, vitamins, minerals. They help to adjust the patient's stool.  

It is also desirable for the patient to drink more fermented milk products, eat cereals with the addition of a small amount of vegetable oil. But if she replaces sweets with honey, and wonders if it is possible to eat honey after a myocardial infarction, then only a doctor can answer this question.

At the same time, nutrition after a heart attack for women is based on a complete rejection of sweets. But if a woman replaces it with honey, then only a nutritionist can answer her question about how much honey to eat after a heart attack.  

From drinks, it is advisable for them to give preference to carrot juice with the addition of olive oil. A more extended list of products that are included in the diet after myocardial infarction for women is on a specialized website.

What foods are prohibited for all patients

All people who have had a myocardial infarction are advised to refuse:

• fatty and fried foods;
• smoked products;
• marinades, sauces;
• spices;
• cheese;
• egg yolk;
• coarse fiber;
• canned foods;
• tomatoes, ketchup;
• sorrel, radish;
• currant, wild rose.
• soups cooked with meat. In food, it is desirable to use vegetable broth.

The lower products from the list contain oxalic acid, which also negatively affects the myocardium.

Most of the products described in the list are completely prohibited for people who have had a myocardial infarction. Therefore, before eating, they should study in advance the answer to the question of what to eat after a heart attack.

And many patients often ask why mushrooms should not be eaten after a heart attack. But the answer to this question is still better to ask your doctor. In some cases, doctors allow the patient to eat certain foods that were originally forbidden to him.

What products are allowed for patients

Useful products after a heart attack are:

• cereals, pasta;
• low-fat dairy products;
• low fat fish
• egg whites;
• lean rabbit meat, chicken;
• vegetables;
• juices, fruit drinks, green, white tea;
• fruits, berries;
• nuts. They can have snacks. It is desirable to give preference to a walnut. It contains a lot of iodine, which normalizes the functioning of the thyroid gland. But in the first 2 months it is recommended to refuse it.

Remember: fruits and vegetables are first cooked, and then the patient can eat them raw. So you can eat carrots, turnips, pumpkins. And if the patient is wondering if it is possible to eat mushrooms after myocardial infarction, then this question is better to ask your doctor.

But when answering the patient's question about whether it is possible to eat honey after a heart attack, doctors answer positively. This product is approved for people who have had a heart attack, because. it contains a lot of useful vitamins, microelements.

Diets, with what number are assigned

Initially, the patient is assigned table No. 10I. Then he is transferred to anti-cholesterol nutrition after a heart attack, and then to table No. 10. And so the patient will have to eat all his life. Therefore, he may not even think about how to eat after a myocardial infarction.

Sample menu for a patient who has had a heart attack

The patient should eat 5 times a day. Therefore, his menu for every day after a heart attack will consist of:

• 2 breakfasts;
• lunch;
• supper;
• afternoon tea.

Within 1 7 days the patient can eat:

For breakfast:

• skim cheese;
• mashed oatmeal boiled in water;
• weak tea with milk.

For a second breakfast, it is advisable to eat vegetable puree.

For lunch, the patient can eat mashed potatoes with boiled cod, chopped broccoli.

For an afternoon snack, he can treat himself to grated cottage cheese, boiled grated carrots, rosehip broth.

For dinner, he has the right to eat buckwheat porridge boiled in water, drink tea with a slice of lemon.

Remember: before the morning meal and after the evening meal, the patient should drink a glass of rosehip decoction.

After 2-3 weeks, the patient's menu becomes more diverse.

Now for breakfast he can eat:

• steamed protein omelet with a slice of slightly stale bread;
• semolina porridge with fruit puree;
• rosehip decoction.

For a second breakfast, he can eat cottage cheese and drink tea with the addition of a spoonful of honey.

For lunch, he can treat himself to:

• soup on a secondary broth. It can also be soup cooked in vegetable broth;
• steam cutlet made from chicken breast;
• compote made from dried fruits.

For an afternoon snack, he can eat boiled carrots, grated. To it, he can add raisins, vegetable oil. You can drink the dish with tea.

For dinner, he can please himself:

• biscuits or steam cutlets;
• well-chopped stewed green beans;
• tea with lemon.

At the last stage of healing, the patient's menu becomes even more diverse, so more and more often he thinks about what to eat after a heart attack.

For breakfast, he can now treat himself to:

• steam omelet;
• rice porridge cooked in milk;
• weak coffee with the addition of milk.

For a second breakfast, he can eat cauliflower, drink a decoction of wild rose.

For lunch, the patient can eat:

• soup cooked on the second broth;
• stewed veal with the addition of mashed potatoes. But it is better to ask the doctor in advance about whether it is possible to eat mashed potatoes after a heart attack, because. a physician may ban this product.

You can drink the dish with tea with the addition of a slice of lemon.

For an afternoon snack, he is allowed to eat fruit salad, drink compote made from dried apricots and apples. And if he thinks about what fruits you can after a heart attack, then this information can be clarified with your doctor.

For dinner, the patient has the right to treat himself to stewed beets, a steam cutlet made from turkey, chicken, and weak tea.

2 hours before bedtime, he can drink a glass of fat-free kefir.

How to eat a patient in an acute period

At this time, the patient is in the intensive care unit. Therefore, on the first day, he should not even think about what he can eat after a massive heart attack.

And then they give him low-fat foods, give him plenty of fluids to drink. All food is carefully crushed, because. the patient is still unable to chew.

Additionally, he is given special vitamins, trace elements that are good for the heart. It's potassium and magnesium.

Moreover, if the patient lives, for example, in Ukraine, and wonders if it is possible to eat boiled lard after a heart attack, then it is strictly forbidden to do this in the acute period.

Basic rules for cooking

In order not to wonder what to eat after a heart attack, and so that the food only benefits the patient, it is important that it is properly prepared.

The food requirements are as follows:

• in the most acute period, the patient is given only steam and boiled dishes. At the same time, it is desirable to grind them very much;
• in the acute period, the patient is given only finely ground products;
• in the last period of rehabilitation, he should be given not very crushed foods.

Remember: the patient should be given warm food. Its temperature should be 50 degrees. Cold food can lead to spasms in the esophagus and injury.

How much to diet

Some patients wonder how many months to be on a diet after a heart attack. A patient who has had a heart attack is recommended to follow a diet for 8 weeks.

This is how much is required for the normal recovery of the body. In general, it is desirable to observe it for the rest of your life. This will help reduce the risk of a recurrence of a heart attack.

What happens if a person does not follow a diet

If a person has had a heart attack, then he definitely needs to follow a diet, and the doctor will tell you what you can eat after a heart attack.

If he does not do this, then he may have very dangerous consequences.

For example, a patient may:

• increase the healing period;
• myocardial recurrence occurs;
• ischemia occurs. Moreover, it appears in a damaged place, and such a phenomenon is very dangerous;

And the patient's vessels may become clogged with plaques and deposits formed due to fatty foods. And this can lead to a narrowing of their lumen, the appearance of myocardial ruptures.

To summarize: now we know what myocardial infarction is and what nutrition should be like after a heart attack. All patients understood that diet after myocardial infarction is really important. But it is not advisable to develop it yourself. This can lead to an exacerbation of symptoms that have already appeared, a deterioration in the general health of the patient. And joking with the heart is dangerous.