Courtesy of Mayo Clinic

Although you might know that eating certain foods can increase your heart disease risk, changing your eating habits is often tough. Whether you have years of unhealthy eating under your belt or you simply want to fine-tune your diet, here are eight heart-healthy diet tips. Once you know which foods to eat more of and which foods to limit, you’ll be on your way toward a heart-healthy diet.

Control Your Portion Size

How much you eat is just as important as what you eat. Overloading your plate, taking seconds and eating until you feel stuffed can lead to eating more calories than you should. Portions served in restaurants are often more than anyone needs. Following a few simple tips to control food portion size can help you shape up your diet as well as your heart and waistline, such as small plate or bowl to help control your portions, eat more low-calorie, nutrient-rich foods, eat smaller amounts of high-calorie, high-sodium foods, such as refined, processed or fast foods.

Eat More Vegetables and Fruits

Vegetables and fruits are good sources of vitamins and minerals. Vegetables and fruits are also low in calories and rich in dietary fiber. Vegetables and fruits, like other plants or plant-based foods, contain substances that may help prevent cardiovascular disease. Eating more fruits and vegetables may help you cut back on higher calorie foods, such as meat, cheese and snack foods.

Limit or Reduce Salt

Eating too much salt can lead to high blood pressure, a risk factor for heart disease. Limiting salt (sodium) is an important part of a heart-healthy diet. The American Heart Association recommends that:

• Healthy adults have no more than 2,300 milligrams (mg) of sodium a day (about a teaspoon of salt)

• Most adults ideally have no more than 1,500 mg of sodium a day

Allow Yourself an Occasional Treat

Allow yourself an indulgence every now and then. A candy bar or handful of potato chips won’t derail your heart-healthy diet. But don’t let it turn into an excuse for giving up on your healthy-eating plan. If overindulgence is the exception, rather than the rule, you’ll balance things out over the long term. What’s important is that you eat healthy foods most of the time.