Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes Diet

It is recommended that persons who already have heart disease or are at a risk of developing it start this diet right away. As with any diet or lifestyle change, it 8is recommended that the dieter seek professional advice from their GP before making any drastic changes to their diet as this may cause additional stress to the body. The TLC is low in saturated fat and cholesterol diet. It is designed specifically to decrease the chance of heart disease, future heart attacks and complications.

 

The guidelines are relatively simple as there are only five rules to follow for the TLC diet:

•  Eat less than 7% of your total calories from saturated fat.
• No more than 35% of the daily calories should come from fat.
• Dietary cholesterol should be limited to 200mg a day.
• No more than 2400mg of sodium is to be consumed daily.
• People on the diet should consume only as many calories as are needed to maintain a healthy weight.

The main point of the TLC diet is to reduce the intake of saturated fats and the easiest way to do this is to reduce the intake of red meat and milk products. Instead of a 200g sirloin steak opt for the 200g tuna fillet. Both are red, can be eaten rare and taste great. Making choices like this one can go a long way to leading a heart healthy lifestyle. It is also important to cut the intake of cheese, as hard cheese is full of saturated fat. Opt instead for cottage cheese or low fat yoghurt instead of the cheddar or emmenthal.

TLC was not created as a weight loss diet and participants will only lose weight if they limit their calorie intake to less than what the body needs. However, it is proven to have cardiovascular benefits by helping lower blood pressure and the risk of heart disease.