Be heart-smart this Valentine’s Day and cook with love

This Valentine’s Day, why not celebrate with heart-healthy dishes that won’t break the bank? From nutritious breakfasts to light lunches and desserts, you don’t have to put your health at risk. Good food choices are always a great gift for yourself and your loved ones.

As a businesswoman, wife, and loving caregiver, Siphokazi Ngqoba-Zatu from Graceland, Cape Town sees food as a way to express love. To her, cooking for her family is an act of caring and nurturing.

It’s not just about providing nourishment, but also about creating a sense of connection and togetherness, she says.

‘Prevention is better than cure’

Her in-laws have a history of diabetes, and her own family has a history of hypertension. To address these issues, they’ve adopted a healthy lifestyle and made changes to their diet.

Ngqoba-Zatu tells Health For Mzansi that they avoid processed foods and sweets, even though it can be difficult at times. Despite the challenges, they believe that making these changes will ultimately improve their quality of life and help them to live long healthy lives.

She feels that making healthy meals at home is a great way to foster healthy eating, even for their kids.

She believes that even on special occasions like Valentine’s Day and anniversaries, for her family it’s important to maintain healthy eating habits.

Cooking is a way for Mpho Mbeki-Ntoni to express her love to her husband and family. Food made with love and understanding, according to her, is more valuable than a complex recipe.

Living with HIV also serves as a reminder to her that she has to pay attention to other food components such as fibre, she says, which is crucial for supporting gut health and improving digestion. For those who are HIV positive, fibre-rich foods may also help in maintaining a healthy weight and lowering cholesterol.

According to her, someone’s ‘cooking love language’ shows that you care about someone and want them to be happy and healthy. Sometimes, a simple meal made with love is the best way to express that concern.

“A good meal made with love hits differently and the way you serve and prepare it says a lot about you, and who you cook for, some things can start from that plate to the bedroom.”

Mpho Mbeki-Ntoni

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Special days, healthy meals

Kinza Hussain, a registered dietitian with the Heart and Stroke Foundation South Africa, states that a healthy diet can significantly reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke. Studies suggest that the right diet choices may lower the risk by up to 80%, she adds.

“Valentine’s Day is traditionally celebrated as the day of love and what better way to love yourself than by taking care of your heart?”

Dietitian Kinza Hussain

Hussain suggests that both the quality and quantity of the food we eat can impact heart health. In other words, not only do we need to focus on eating nutritious foods, but also on eating the right amount of those foods.

“There is no need to cut out any food group as every food group has an important role to play in the body.”

Healthy red foods of love

Keeping with the theme of Valentine’s Day, there are many healthy “red” foods which can be included in the diet on the day, and beyond! Try including red food from different food groups to ensure that you are getting the benefit of a well-balanced diet.

“Examples include red quinoa from the whole grains, lean ostrich meat and/or red kidney beans from the proteins, and from the vegetables, these can include beetroot, red onions, tomatoes, red pepper and red cabbage.”

Dietitian Kinza Hussain

Hussain says, “It is important to bear in mind that while sticking to the “red” theme on the day may be fun, the reason we need to include a variety of different coloured foods and especially fruits and vegetables every day is so that our body receives all the different vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals and antioxidants it needs.”

She points out that we should consider including beans and lentils in our diets due to their low-fat content, high-fibre content, and ability to decrease blood pressure and cholesterol.

Rather than refined cereals, she suggests consuming high-fibre wholegrain starchy foods like barley, brown rice, oats, and wholewheat pasta.

“Fibre is good for your heart and can help to improve cholesterol levels.”

Stay away from these unhealthy options

Hussain explains that some items should be minimised, such as trans and saturated fats, which can increase cholesterol.

“These can be found in foods such as fatty and processed meats, chicken skin, butter, ghee, cream and hard cheeses, pies, pastries, biscuits, crackers, fast and deep-fried foods.”

Hussain emphasises that consuming chocolate constantly is risky for our general health because it is often heavy in added sugars and saturated fats. Even while occasionally indulging in chocolate is okay, giving something sweet to that particular someone may still be enjoyable and healthful.

“Since Valentine’s Day falls in summer in South Africa, make the most of seasonal summer fruits which not only satisfy the sweet tooth but are loaded with antioxidants and fibre. Examples include watermelon, strawberries and raspberries.”

She says transfats are particularly unsafe since they raise “bad” cholesterol while concurrently lowering “good” cholesterol.

“Added sugars such as sweets, chocolates, and especially sugary drinks such as sodas, fruit juices and flavoured water need to be limited as they increase triglycerides (TG), a type of fat in the blood. They also provide empty kilojoules and contribute to weight gain.”

Hussain suggests limiting sodium and salt intake. A high salt consumption is associated with high blood pressure.

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