Heart Healthy Snacks

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During American Heart Month in February, I’ve focused on posts that promote cardiovascular health. Heart Health Tips offers simple and yet important ways to take care of the heart. Lemon Blueberry Baked Oats provides an easy to prepare recipe featuring a food that supports heart health. And Eight Ways Kindness Boosts Health shows that practicing kindness is good for health, including the cardiovascular system.

Today’s post lists suggestions for heart healthy snacks. Doctors agree that a plant based lifestyle and the Mediterranean diet both support heart health. These diets…or a combination of the two…decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease and offer protection for the heart.

When thinking about the best heart healthy snacks, focus on these three vital factors: fiber, unsaturated fatty acids or omega-3s and antioxidants.

Heart Healthy Snacks title meme

Apples + Unsweetened Nut Butter

High fiber fruits like apples, paired with a no sugar added nut butter, checks all the boxes for heart friendly nutrients and antioxidants. Choose a red skinned apple for even more benefits and leave the peeling on.

Apples offer bioactive polyphenols and soluable fiber that’s proven to boost cardiovascular health. Skip nut butters loaded with sugar. Instead, choose a natural peanut butter, such as Crazy Richard’s. Or look for no sugar added almond or cashew butter.

Heart Healthy Snacks apples
Heart healthy snacks – apples with cashew butter

Hummus + Crunchy Veggies

Traditionally made from chickpeas, delicious creamy hummus provides antioxidants that protect the heart and blood vessels.

Create a snack or a meal from hummus and crunchy, fiber rich vegetables such as celery, carrots, red, orange, yellow or green sweet peppers and cucumbers. These veggies add vitamins A and C to the diet along with more antioxidants.

Heart Healthy Snacks hummus
Heart healthy snacks – hummus with crunchy veggies

Avocado Toast + Fruit

Considered a fruit, rather than a vegetable, avocadoes are a rich source of good-for-you fatty acids and anti-inflammatory compounds that help thin the blood naturally.

Top multi-grain, gluten free toast with sliced or mashed avocado. Eat along with fresh berries, apple or orange slices or chunks of melon. Berries are full of antioxidants and plant compounds that protect heart valves and ventricles and dissolve plaque within veins and arteries.

Heart Healthy Snacks avocado toast
Heart healthy snacks – avocado toast with fruit

Non GMO Popcorn + Turmeric

Popcorn is a fiber rich snack option. Just look for non GMO varieties to reduce the risk of inflammation. Create a healthy twist on this traditional snack by sprinkling on the powerful healing spice turmeric.

Due to its anti-inflammatory properties, turmeric’s curcumin protects the whole cardiovascular system. Plus it lowers bad cholesterol while raising the good.

Heart Healthy Snacks popcorn
Heart healthy snacks – non GMO popcorn and turmeric

Nuts or Seeds + Raisins or Dried Cranberries

Nuts and seeds contain fiber, omega-3s and antioxidants, making them excellent for heart health. Create your own trail mix by combining a variety of unsalted seeds such as pumpkin, sunflower, hemp or chia and nuts such as almonds or walnuts with unsweetened dried coconut, raisins or dried cranberries.

Raisins, which are dried grapes, provide iron and polyphenals that benefit the heart. Dried cranberries are high in antioxidants that heal cardiovascular disease and arteriosclerosis.

Heart Healthy Snacks nuts and raisins
Heart healthy snacks – nuts, seeds, raisins and dried cranberries

Frozen Banana Dessert

Also called Banana Nice Dream, create this snack using ripe, frozen bananas. Blend in a high speed blender until the frozen banana chunks become a smooth and creamy “ice cream”. Bananas offer fiber, antioxidants and nutrients that boost heart health.

Add frozen wild blueberries or frozen grapes to create fun variations of this yummy dessert. Or top the treat with fresh berries.

Heart Healthy Snacks banana nice dream
Heart healthy snacks – frozen banana dessert

Chia Pudding + Berries

Chia seeds are an excellent source of protein, vitamins E and B complex, and minerals such as calcium, magnesium, zinc and iron. They are higher in omega-3 fatty acids than any other food and especially beneficial for chronic inflammation and heart disease.

Chia pudding is so simple to make. Combine 1 cup dairy free milk, such as almond milk, with 1/4 cup of chia seeds in a mason jar or container with a lid. Cover and chill overnight in the refrigerator. Add berries, nuts or sliced fruit and enjoy.

Heart Healthy Snacks chia pudding
Heart healthy snacks – chia pudding with berries

Oatmeal + Fruit + Nuts

No longer just for breakfast, oatmeal is a fiber rich food long promoted for its heart health benefits. Oats lower bad cholesterol and protect the heart against oxidation.

Make overnight oats and enjoy for breakfast or for an anytime snack. Combine in a small mason jar:

  • 1/3 cup gluten free oats
  • 1/4 cup chopped nuts
  • 1/3 cup dairy free milk, such as almond or coconut milk
  • 1/3 cup dairy free plain yogurt, such as coconut milk yogurt
  • fresh fruit of choice…berries make an excellent addition
  • 1 tbsp chia seeds
  • add 1/4 tsp cinnamon if desired

Cover jar and place in the refrigerator the night before. Open and eat right from the jar the next morning.

Heart Healthy Snacks oatmeal
Heart healthy snacks – oatmeal

Sweet Potato Fries + Avocado Dip

This superfood offers an abundance of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants that nourish the body and protect the heart. Try sweet potatoes as a heart healthy snack by slicing them into a bowl and adding a small amount of olive oil,  a teaspoon of onion powder, a teaspoon of garlic powder, a teaspoon of paprika and dashes of sea salt and black pepper. Coat fries then place in a single layer on a parchment paper covered cookie sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 40 minutes, turning fries halfway through baking time.

Enjoy sweet potato fries with this easy avocado dip. Combine in a blender 1 ripe avocado, 2 garlic cloves, minced, 1/4 cup plain non dairy yogurt, 1 tablespoon lemon juice and sea salt and black pepper to taste. Blend until smooth and serve immediately.

Heart Healthy Snack sweet potato fries
Heart healthy snacks – sweet potato fries

Make Snacks Count

The next time you head to the kitchen, hungry for a snack, make the conscious choice to make the snack count. Rather than mindlessly eating, intentionally create snacks that boost heart health and contribute to overall wellness.

Did you discover a new snack to try?

Heart Healthy Snacks smoothie bowl
Heart healthy snack – bonus snack…smoothie bowl with fruit, nuts and chia seeds

Heart Healthy Amazon Finds:

 


 

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I am not a medical practitioner. I study health and wellness related topics and share experiences from my own personal healing journey.

 

9 thoughts on “Heart Healthy Snacks”

  1. Ooh these are all great healthy snack ideas. Hummus & veggies is such an easy one to put together too. Actually they all are, thanks for sharing these 💜🙌💜

  2. These are some delicious sounding snacks! I never even thought to sprinkle turmeric on popcorn! Will definitely give that a try!

  3. I’ve been wanting to try chia pudding but haven’t gotten up the nerve. Not sure if I can handle the texture. I think you’ve motivated me to fix it. What’s the worst that can happen?!

  4. I cannot eat grains or beans but I sure do love avocado. I will try them with some sweet potatoes soon.

  5. Fabulous healthy snacks! A few are new to us and we will give them a try. Thank you for sharing.

  6. Actually, this was quite helpful. I will often go hours without eating before I realize I am hungry and by then I’m usually ill and dizzy so don’t think well when it comes to food. Not being able to eat a lot I wonder about aimlessly – but these are great options to simply have ready for the days a head and easy to prepare. Thank you for sharing

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