Heart Patient Diet Plan: What to Eat for a Healthy Heart

A heart-healthy diet for heart patients is built on vegetables, fruit, whole grains, pulses, nuts, fish and unsaturated oils, with less than 2,300 mg of sodium a day (ideally around 1,500 mg), saturated fat under about 6% of calories, and very little processed meat, fried food and added sugar. The DASH and Mediterranean patterns both follow these rules.

If you want a plan built around your own body, cuisine and food choices, use our free diet plan maker for health conditions and choose "Heart disease". It creates a 7-day meal plan with portions and a grocery list, right in your browser.

This guide is for adults with coronary heart disease, people recovering after a heart attack or stent, and anyone told they are at high risk. It is general guidance: always follow the plan your cardiologist, cardiac rehab team or dietitian gives you.

What does a heart-healthy diet actually do?

Food affects the heart in four main ways: blood pressure, cholesterol, weight and blood sugar. Too much salt raises blood pressure. Saturated and trans fats raise LDL ("bad") cholesterol, which builds up in artery walls. Extra calories and sugary foods add weight around the waist and push up blood sugar and triglycerides.

A heart-healthy diet works on all four at once. You'll find the same core advice from the NHS, the US National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and the World Health Organization: more plants and fibre, healthier fats, less salt and fewer ultra-processed foods.

What are the key numbers for heart patients?

• Sodium: under 2,300 mg a day; about 1,500 mg if you have high blood pressure or heart failure.
• Saturated fat: about 6% of calories, which is roughly 13 g a day on a 2,000-calorie diet.
• Fibre: at least 30 g a day, from whole grains, pulses, vegetables and fruit.
• Added sugar: as little as possible, under 5% of calories.
• Oily fish: two portions a week (salmon, sardines, mackerel, trout, rohu or pomfret are good options).
• Fluids: if you have heart failure, follow the fluid limit your cardiologist sets.

You can check how close a normal day gets to these numbers with the food calorie and fibre checker: type in what you ate and it adds up calories, fibre and sodium.

What should a heart patient eat?

Eat often:

• Vegetables of all kinds: sabzi, salads, spinach, okra, gourds, broccoli, carrots
• Whole grains: whole-wheat roti, brown or basmati rice in measured portions, oats, barley, quinoa, wholemeal bread
• Pulses: daal, chana, rajma, lentil soups, beans
• Fruit: apples, guava, oranges, berries, papaya
• Nuts and seeds: a small handful of unsalted almonds or walnuts; flax or chia seeds
• Fish two or three times a week; skinless chicken; eggs in moderation
• Low-fat dairy: plain dahi or yogurt, skimmed milk, low-fat paneer in small portions
• Oils: mustard, olive, canola or sunflower oil, measured with a spoon

Limit:

• Red meat (keep to small portions, once or twice a week)
• Full-fat dairy, cheese and cream
• White rice, white bread, naan and maida-based foods
• Fruit juice, even fresh: whole fruit is better

Avoid or keep for rare occasions:

• Deep-fried foods: samosa, pakora, puri, fries, fried chicken
• Ghee, butter, vanaspati and coconut oil in large amounts
• Processed and salted meats: sausages, bacon, salami, nuggets
• Salty snacks, pickles (achar), papad, instant noodles and packet soups
• Sweets and sugary drinks: mithai, cakes, soda, sweetened chai

How can desi cooking be made heart-healthy?

South Asian food can be very heart-friendly: daal, sabzi, dahi and roti are a great base. The problems are usually the cooking method and the amounts. Try these changes:

• Measure oil: 1 to 2 teaspoons per person per dish instead of pouring.
• Make the tadka with mustard or olive oil instead of ghee.
• Cook curries in a non-stick pan, and grill, bake or air-fry instead of deep-frying.
• Use lemon, garlic, ginger, cumin, coriander and fresh herbs for flavour so you need less salt.
• Skip the extra salt on the table and limit achar and namkeen.
• Fill half the plate with sabzi and salad, a quarter with daal, chicken or fish, and a quarter with roti or rice.
• Drink chai without sugar, or with much less, using skimmed or low-fat milk.

What does a sample day look like?

This is an example for about 1,800 calories. Your own target depends on your size, age and activity, so use the calorie calculator to find it.

• Breakfast: a bowl of oats cooked in skimmed milk with half an apple and a few walnuts; tea without sugar
• Mid-morning: one guava or orange
• Lunch: 2 small whole-wheat roti, 1 cup mixed-vegetable sabzi, 1 cup daal, cucumber and tomato salad, a small bowl of plain dahi
• Evening snack: roasted chana (a small handful) or unsalted nuts
• Dinner: grilled fish or chicken (palm-sized), ¾ cup brown or basmati rice, stir-fried vegetables with a teaspoon of olive oil
• If hungry later: a glass of warm skimmed milk

A Western version follows the same pattern: wholegrain toast with eggs and tomatoes for breakfast, a bean and vegetable soup with wholemeal bread for lunch, and salmon with roasted vegetables and new potatoes for dinner.

What should be on the grocery list?

Oats, whole-wheat atta, brown or basmati rice, lentils and chickpeas, seasonal vegetables, leafy greens, apples, oranges and guava, plain low-fat yogurt, skimmed milk, eggs, fish, skinless chicken, unsalted nuts, flaxseed, mustard or olive oil, lemons, garlic, ginger and spices.

What are the most common mistakes?

• Switching from ghee to "refined oil" but still using the same large amount
• Eating "healthy" snacks that are actually salty or fried, such as namkeen or chips
• Drinking several cups of sweet chai a day
• Skipping breakfast and then overeating at night
• Relying on supplements instead of real changes to meals

When should a heart patient see a doctor urgently?

Call emergency services for chest pain or pressure, pain spreading to the arm, jaw or back, sudden breathlessness, sweating with nausea, or fainting. See your doctor soon if you notice swelling in the ankles, rapid weight gain over a few days, or breathlessness when lying flat, as these can be signs of fluid build-up.

Where should you start?

Pick two changes this week, such as measuring your cooking oil and swapping white rice for smaller portions of brown or basmati rice. Then build from there.

For more detailed targets, see our guides on foods that lower cholesterol and the DASH diet for high blood pressure. You can also open the cholesterol-lowering diet plan or the high blood pressure diet plan tools directly.

When you're ready, create your personal week of meals with the diet plan maker, and take it to your next appointment to discuss with your cardiologist or dietitian.