To commemorate American Heart Month, reduce your chances of heart disease.

Eat smart. Enjoy many different fruits, vegetables, and grain products including whole grains; lean meat, poultry, legumes,
fish (at least 6 ounces weekly); and fat-free and low-fat dairy foods.

• Keep your body weight healthy. Balance the calories you eat with those you burn. Stay physically active.
• Keep your blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels normal. Limit the saturated fat, cholesterol, and trans fatty acids in what you eat. To keep triglycerides within a healthy range, avoid excess calories from any source, including alcoholic drinks.
• Keep your blood pressure normal. To help you do so, keep your weight healthy. Eat foods with less salt, and limit alcoholic drinks.

Do something heart healthy today.

• Commit to a goal. Choose from those listed above. Take one small step, one realistic change, toward it today.
• Make an appointment. Get your cholesterol level and blood pressure checked if you haven’t done so for a while.

Not sure? You’re not alone. Research shows many consumers underestimate their portion sizes—and their caloric intake. The causes may in part be cultural. Restaurant supersizing, larger cup holders in new cars, larger dishes and cups—all contribute to our distorted ideas about portions. And our hurry-up society means we may overeat before our body cues say, “I’m full.” It takes about twenty minutes for your brain to register you’re full.

The portion savvy:

• Know visual cues.
• Compare their own portions to the package label’s serving sizes. For your size portions, figure the calories. Surprised?
• Eat from a plate, not the package! That way you’ll know how much you really eat.
• Enjoy “slow food.” Pay attention to your food—the flavors, the surroundings, and the amount you eat.

Venture a guess. How many steps do you think you take daily: 500, 1,000, 5,000, more? Some studies suggest that 10,000 steps daily is about right to help with weight management. Stepping that much may take conscious effort!

Who’s counting? You!

• Buy an inexpensive pedometer, clip it on your belt or waistband, and watch your steps add up.
• Start with a baseline. For a week or two, count your total steps, then calculate a daily average.
• Log in. Before you hit the pillow, record your day’s steps.
• Put on your sneakers and start moving! Set a stepped-up goal; perhaps start with your highest day so far.
• Step up gradually. Try 500 more steps per day for a week, until you comfortably reach the 10,000-steps-a-day target. Stick with it!

Pressed for supermarket time? Still want to shop healthy?

Here’s how to quickly decipher the Nutrition Facts on food labels, using the “5-20 guide”:

• Nutrient Facts are listed as percentages of Daily Values (DV), in amounts per serving. For a single nutrient, 20% or more is a lot, and 5% or less is a little.
• For nutrients you may need less of, such as fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium, look for foods with 5% or less DV per serving.
• For nutrients you may need more of, such as vitamins A and C, calcium, iron, and fiber, look for foods with 20% or more DV per serving.

A few more quick label-reading tips:

• Check claims. If the front of the label gives a clue for “high” or “more,” “less” or “free,”Nutrition Facts gives the specifics.
• Remember the rule of doubles. Eating double the servings means double the DV for any nutrient and for calories.

Prunes have a new name: dried plums! With it comes new data. Great-tasting dried plums offer more health benefits than just keeping your body regular.

Dried plums score high in antioxidants, plant substances that may help protect you from heart disease and some cancers. They’re also good sources of fiber (soluble and insoluble)—3 grams in five dried plums. They supply minerals: boron, copper, iron, magnesium, potassium. And whether dried or fresh, their natural sorbitol is key to their laxative effect.

To cut fat from baked goods, substitute an equal amount of puréed plum for at least half the butter, margarine, or oil.

Not in the habit of using a meat thermometer? Today’s a good day to start.

• Shop for a meat or “instant read” thermometer.
• Insert the thermometer in the thickest part (not by the bone or fat).
• Check the temp: 140°F for pre-cooked ham; 145°F for fish; 160°F for pork, medium-cooked beef or lamb, ham (not pre-cooked), ground meat, or egg dishes; 165°F for ground chicken or turkey, or leftovers; 170°F for poultry roast or breast; 180°F for a whole chicken or turkey.

Cruciferous vegetables (named for their tiny cross-forming flower petals) belong to the cabbage family. The family portrait includes everything from arugula to watercress—with cauliflower, collards, kale, kohlrabi, mustard greens, radishes, rutabaga, Swiss chard, and turnips in between.

Why so healthful? First their nutrients: beta carotene (which forms vitamin A), vitamin C, and varying amounts of calcium, iron, and folate. Second, cruciferous vegetables have a unique phytonutrient array that includes cancer-fighting indoles and isothiocyanates, and fiber.

That said, being certified doesn’t mean qualified. No state or federal laws regulate the many certification programs of personal trainers. Some states require a health-related university degree (perhaps in exercise physiology) and an exam; others certify with a few weeks of training. Few trainers are educated to give nutrition guidance. Don’t confuse them with physical therapists or registered dietitians.

If you want the services of a personal trainer:

• Talk to a qualified health professional. Ask your physician or a registered dietitian (RD) for a referral. For nutrition advice, find a local RD at www.eatright.org.
• Meet the trainer. Before you sign up for services, ask about his or her education, experience, and training approach. Is it right for you?
• Go prepared. Share your medical history, health status, and any physical limitations.
• Set goals together.Make them attainable and safe for you. If your goal is fitness, you don’t need to set goals to be an athlete.
• Ask questions about the approach, the equipment, the pace, the skills.
• Follow-through—and enjoy!

Truth is, healthful is full of positives: a variety of flavorful, eye-appealing food combinations, the good feeling of eating enough without being overstuffed—and the interaction of eating with others.

Smart eaters do this. Do you?

• Focus on the positives. Choose grilled vegetables, quick-to-eat fruit, tangy yogurt, hearty whole-grain foods, or fresh, tender seafood. Ultimately that’s more motivating!
• Dump the negatives. Never say “never eat,” and avoid “avoid,” “cut out,” and “don’t.” Skip “shoulds” and “have tos,” also. These tactics leave you feeling guilty when you “break” the rules—an almost sure bet for failure!
• Stick to “small bite” advice. Unless you have an allergy or perhaps another health problem, you can eat a small amount of any food if your overall choices are healthful.

BMI is meant to screen for, not diagnose, overweight or obesity. It’s a tool to evaluate your weight in relation to your height. A higher-than-healthy number (above 25) suggests a higher risk for weight-related health problems such as heart disease, hypertension, stroke, diabetes, some cancers, arthritis, and breathing problems.

Although BMI is a good health indicator, it’s not the last word. With less muscle but more body fat, a person’s BMI still may fit the healthy range (18.5 to 25); conversely healthy, muscular people might have a BMI above 25.What counts is your overall health. Diagnosing a weight problem and determining your healthy weight is best determined with your physician.

Learn more about your “number.”

• Check your BMI online. Go to Partnership for Healthy Weight Management (www.consumer.gov/weightloss/bmi.htm) or National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (www.nhlbisupport .com/bmi/bmicalc.htm).
• Find out more about what your BMI means. Contact a registered dietitian, or ask your health care provider to help you.