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The Ultimate Heart Disease Diet Plan

Updated September 9, 2023

Heart disease is the leading cause of death for Americans. In fact, a person dies every 33 seconds from heart disease—and someone has a heart attack every 40 seconds.

With the standard American diet (SAD) being so prevalent, this problem is only going to get worse. This is truly a tragedy, as changing to a tasty heart disease diet is easy if you focus on plant-based foods.

Your heart is the center of everything. It’s what pumps blood, oxygen and nutrients throughout your entire body. It also gets rid of the carbon dioxide your body produces.

When you develop heart disease, also known as cardiovascular disease (CVD), blood flow begins to constrict. This is because plaque has built up in or around the arteries that your blood flows through. When the blood can’t flow, oxygen can’t get to your heart—which is what causes chest pain. It also means other parts of your body aren’t receiving sufficient oxygen either.

This leads to:

• Arrhythmia (heart rhythm being off-beat)
• Dizziness
• Fainting
• Fatigue
• Pain in the chest, back and/or shoulders
• Shortness of breath
• Swelling in legs and feet

Heart disease also puts you at a higher risk of developing:

• Depression
• Diabetes
• High blood pressure
• Kidney problems
• Obesity
• Stroke

Eventually, plaque can break off and block an artery which then causes a heart attack. Common signs of a heart attack include:

• Cold sweat
• Dizziness
• Lightheadedness
• Nausea
• Pain in the upper body (shoulders, neck, back, etc.)
• Pain or pressure/squeezing in the center or left side of the chest
• Shortness of breath
• Trouble breathing
• Unusual fatigue
• Vomiting

It’s difficult to recover from a heart attack, and it can take a long time to go back to the way you were living before. So instead of worrying about when you’re going to have a heart attack, help prevent one from happening by eating the right diet.

How Your Diet Heals—or Harms—Your Heart

Your diet impacts every aspect of your body, including your heart. Greasy, fat-filled, sugary processed foods create the plaque that constricts your arteries, reducing blood flow to the heart and causing the problems listed above.

Meanwhile, eating a healthy plant-based diet has been proven to improve heart health. A study found that those who ate a plant-based diet reduced the risks of cardiovascular death by 8.1%, and reduced the risk of developing heart disease by 10.2%. This is due to a higher intake of fiber, plant protein, antioxidants, and unsaturated fatty acids.

Also, the anti-inflammatory properties of plant-based foods have been shown to have cardioprotective properties.

Additionally, a different study showed how meat-based diets can affect your heart. The study compared people who consume a plant-based diet versus an animal-based diet. Compared to animal-based eaters, plant-based eaters had:

• 16% lower risk of having heart attacks, stroke and heart failure
• 32% lower risk of dying from a cardiovascular disease
• 25% lower risk of dying from any cause compared to those who ate the least amount of plant-based foods

Tasty Recipes for Heart Disease Prevention and Management

Now that you understand the importance of a healthy diet, it’s time to make it part of your everyday life. Whether you’re looking for a heart-healthy or post-heart attack diet, the delicious recipes listed below will help make your health journey a little easier (and more enjoyable).

Breakfast Recipes

Start off the day on a positive note with these breakfast recipes:

• Baked French Toast
• Baked Oatmeal with Apples and Raisins
• Breakfast Apple Rice
• Breakfast Bowls
• Breakfast Burritos
• Cinnamon Crunch Granola
• Fantastic Overnight Cereal
• Fluffy Pancakes
• Fruit and Oat Breakfast Bars
• Potato Hash
• Quick Steel-Cut Oats with Blueberry Topping
• Spinach Frittata
• Sunshine Fruit Salad
• Veggie Benedicts
• Waffles

Lunch/Dinner Recipes

Don’t worry about what’s for lunch or dinner with these recipes:

• African Yam Stew
• Asian Marinated Tofu
• Asparagus and Pea Salad
• Baked Mexican Pasta
• Baked Potato Skins
• BBK Soup
• Bean and Corn Enchiladas
• Beetroot Hummus Veggie Wraps
• Black Bean Chili
• Black Beans and Tomatoes
• Caramelized Onion and Pepper Quesadillas
• Carrot Loaf
• Cauliflower Cocktail
• Cheezy Baked Macaroni
• Chicago Diner Burger
• Confetti Rice Salad
• Curried Eggplant
• Deviled Beans and Greens
• Fresh Tomato Gazpacho
• Garden Vegetable Stew
• Hummus Wraps
• Lemon-Ginger Sweet Root Noodles
• McVeggie Burgers
• Peanutty Tofu Lettuce Cups
• Potato and Kale Soup
• Sparkling Jewel Salad
• Spinach, Fennel and Mango Salad
• Sweet Potato Tacos
• Texas Barbecue Wrap
• Yukon Stuffed Peppers
• Zucchini Corn Salad

Snack

If you’re hungry between meals, these are delicious (and healthy) snacks:

• Baked Potatoes
• Baked Yams
• Baked Kale Chips
• Baked Steak Fries
• Caramelized Onions
• Chubby Chips
• Mediterranean Mushrooms
• Tiffany’s Candied Walnuts
• Tortilla Chips

Dessert Recipes

For those who have a sweet tooth but still want to protect their heart, here are the recipes for you:

• Apple Crisp
• Banana Blueberry Bars
• Berry Sorbet
• Persimmon Bars
• Pumpkin Pie
• The World’s Healthiest Apple Pie

Dr. McDougall’s Heart Disease Diet Plan & Grocery List

A heart-healthy diet uses whole grains, vegetables, fruit, and legumes while consuming less meat and fewer processed foods. To make getting into the habit of healthy eating easier, we’ve created a heart disease diet plan for two weeks and a grocery list to follow.

2-Week Heart-Friendly Diet Plan

Heart-Friendly Grocery List

Separated into different categories, below is your heart disease diet shopping list for your next grocery shopping trip.

Fruit

Here’s a list of heart-friendly fruit:

• Apples
• Avocados
• Bananas
• Blueberries
• Cherries
• Grapefruit
• Grapes
• Kiwi
• Lemons
• Limes
• Melon
• Oranges
• Peaches
• Pears
• Plums
• Raspberries
• Strawberries

Veggies

One study showed that vegetables carry tremendous potential for preventing and treating heart disease through their vitamins, minerals, fibers, and protein.

• Arugula
• Asparagus
• Beets
• Broccoli
• Cabbage
• Carrots
• Cauliflower
• Celery
• Corn
• Cucumbers
• Edamame
• Kale
• Lettuce
• Onions
• Peppers
• Potatoes
• Spinach
• Squash
• Sweet potatoes
• Tomatoes
• Zucchini

Whole Grains

It’s been shown that eating more whole grain is tied to a lower risk of heart disease:

• Barley
• Brown rice
• Cornmeal
• Millet
• Oats
• Popcorn
• Quinoa
• Whole-grain bread
• Whole-grain flour
• Whole-grain pasta

Nuts/Seeds

Nuts and seeds can be a healthy part of your diet. But remember, if weight loss is one of your goals, keep them to a minimum (at least until you reach your ideal weight):

• Almonds
• Cashews
• Chia seeds
• Flaxseeds
• Hazelnuts
• Macadamias
• Sunflower seeds
• Peanuts
• Pecans
• Pumpkin seeds
• Walnuts

Legumes

Add more legumes to your diet, as one study showed they can reduce the risk of heart disease:

• Adzuki beans
• Black beans
• Chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
• Fava beans
• Kidney beans
• Lentils
• Lima beans
• Pinto beans
• Soybeans
• Tofu
• White beans

Star McDougall Story: Lyndall Shick

Lyndall Shick is one of many McDougall success stories. Her family history of heart disease haunted her. By age 11, she had lost six family members to heart disease. At 41, she had her first heart attack, which was particularly upsetting due to being the same age as her father when he passed away from his third stroke.

After an angiogram (x-ray of the heart) and angioplasty (surgery to stretch out the arteries), she was given the American Heart Association (AHA) diet guidelines, a bunch of pills, and sent on her way.

Lynda struggled to keep up with the AHA diet; she would do her best, and then slip back into bad habits (as we all do). Eventually, her health started to fail. Between 1992 and 2004, she had nine surgeries and procedures.

In 2013, she started having chest pain, eventually leading to a trip to the ER, and a fresh angiogram showed she needed coronary bypass surgery. Despite being unsure, she went through with it, although it didn’t really help her…so she found a new solution: A whole food plant-based diet.

Through this research, she came across the McDougall Program.

Since 2013 she’s been able to follow the program and finds it easier to follow. As she says, “I eat all I want, and surprise people by the sheer volume of food I consume! I’m no longer afraid of carbs, and home, not restaurants, is the best place to eat.”

Her cholesterol is the best it’s been, her blood pressure is no longer a concern, her depression is better and she has more energy thanks to the McDougall Program!

Take Care of Your Heart

Improving your diet is the most effective way to care for your heart without completely uprooting your life and finances. We understand it’s a huge step to completely change your food consumption, which is why we’re here to help.

If our heart disease diet meal guide isn’t enough guidance by itself, simply join The McDougall Program. The 12-day program is run by nutrition expert and physician Dr. John McDougall and his team. It’s 100% online, and you’ll receive direct access to a dedicated support specialist for an entire year.

Join The McDougall Program today!