A healthy diet plays a vital role in recovering from open heart surgery and protecting your heart from future complications. Optimal nutrition can help speed up healing and restore strength and energy. A well-planned diet can also assist in controlling weight, which is crucial for maintaining good cardiovascular health.
The Importance of Diet After Heart Surgery
After undergoing heart surgery, such as heart valve replacement or coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), adopting a specific eating pattern can aid in healing, reduce inflammation, and manage cholesterol and blood pressure levels. This is crucial for a successful recovery. The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends resuming eating and drinking as soon as possible after surgery, focusing on a variety of healthy foods to fuel cell growth and repair.
General Dietary Guidelines for Recovery
During the first two months after surgery, patients are generally advised to eat whatever they want, regardless of fat or salt intake, to ensure they ingest enough protein and calories to aid healing. After this initial period, it's recommended to transition to a low-fat, low-cholesterol, and low-salt diet unless a stricter diet is necessary.
Key Food Groups and Recommendations
Each of the basic food groups provides a different combination of nutrients, vitamins, and minerals. Variety is key to good nutrition. Here are the basic food groups and recommended servings:
- Lean meat, skinless poultry, and fish: No more than 6 oz (cooked) per day; include fish twice a week.
- Vegetables and fruits: Aim for five or more servings per day.
- Fat-free milk and low-fat dairy products: Consume 2-4 servings per day, depending on age.
- Breads, cereals, pasta, and starchy vegetables: Include six or more servings per day.
- Fats, oils, nuts, sweets, and eggs: Use sparingly.
Foods to Embrace for Heart Health
Fruits and Vegetables
Fresh fruits and vegetables are rich in vital nutrients like vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fiber, all crucial for cardiovascular health. They support tissue repair, strengthen the immune system, and help reduce inflammation, which is especially important after heart surgery.
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A review of 95 studies found that consuming 200 grams per day of fruits and vegetables (combined) was associated with:
- An 8% lower risk of coronary heart disease
- A 16% lower risk of stroke
- An 8% lower risk of cardiovascular disease
- A 3% lower risk of total cancer
- A 10% lower risk of all-cause mortality
Specific fruits and vegetables linked to a reduced risk of mortality include:
- Leafy greens
- Berries
- Citrus fruits
- Apples
- Pears
- Cruciferous vegetables
- Fruit juice
- Cooked vegetables
- Potatoes
Nuts
Nuts are packed with nutrients, healthy fats, and antioxidants, all beneficial for cardiovascular health. Studies link higher nut consumption with a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), particularly coronary heart disease, indicating a significant protective effect. Nuts also show promise in lowering risks associated with stroke mortality, atrial fibrillation, and overall mortality. Consider adding nuts like almonds, cashews, walnuts, or pistachios to your daily diet as snacks or toppings.
Legumes
Nutrient-packed legumes, abundant in fiber, vitamins, minerals, and protein, have a strong association with lowering heart disease risk. Research examining people’s intake of legumes, including beans, lentils, and chickpeas, revealed that eating up to 400 g per week was associated with reduced heart disease.
Fish Rich in Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Eating fish rich in omega-3 fatty acids, like salmon, mackerel, or sardines, supports heart health due to their anti-inflammatory properties. They may reduce heart disease risk factors such as high triglycerides and elevated LDL cholesterol. An analysis involving over 191,000 people found that consuming at least 175 g of fish per week (about two servings), particularly oily fish like salmon or tuna, was linked to a reduced risk of major CVD and mortality in those with existing vascular conditions.
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Grass-Fed Meat and Dairy
Grass-fed meat and dairy products tend to have a more balanced ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids. Animals fed primarily on grass or plants produce meat and dairy products with higher levels of omega-3s than those fed on grains in intensive feeding systems. If grass-fed options aren’t available, try to opt for unprocessed, all-natural meats.
Whole Fat Dairy Products
Whole fat dairy products contain essential nutrients like vitamins A, D, and K, along with calcium and potassium, which are crucial for heart health, bone strength, and muscle function. Recent research suggests that high-fat dairy doesn’t lead to obesity, diabetes, or cardiovascular disease and might even offer preventive benefits. A diet emphasizing whole fat dairy along with a variety of natural foods, such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes, and fish, could lower the risk of cardiovascular disease and death.
Foods to Limit or Avoid
- Foods high in saturated fat: such as liver and organ meats, eggs, whole milk, butter, cream, whole-milk cheeses, fried foods, and palm oil.
- Foods high in sodium: including luncheon meats, canned soups, canned spaghetti sauce, TV dinners, snack foods, and smoked fish. Aim for under 2,000 mg of sodium/salt a day.
- Fried foods and trans fats: such as french fries, fried chicken, donuts, and potato chips.
- Excessive sodium: from processed foods, canned soups, or excessively salty snacks.
- Added sugars: common in sodas and candy.
- Processed carbohydrates: from white bread and white rice.
- Processed meats: like hot dogs and bologna.
- Alcohol: Avoid the excessive consumption of alcohol, as it has high calories but does not provide any nutrition.
- Sugary drinks: Avoid drinks that have high sugar or corn syrup.
Specific Considerations After Heart Valve Replacement Surgery
After heart valve replacement surgery, doctors usually encourage people to resume eating as soon as possible, including foods such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins. However, surgeons may advise patients to limit specific foods and drinks, such as salt, caffeine, and alcohol (if applicable).
Managing Medications and Diet
Patients with mechanical heart valves, some patients with tissue heart valves, irregular heart rhythms, history of strokes or "mini-strokes", clots in the legs/arms or clot in the lungs will be sent home with coumadin (also called Warfarin). It is extremely important for patients to have their INR (Bleeding Time) checked frequently. Different foods can make drastic changes to your INR level and should be discussed with your physician.
If you are on anticoagulation medication, watch how much vitamin K you consume. Keep the amount of high vitamin K foods consistent. For example, eat a ½ cup or 1 cup of these foods daily. Do not completely take out a vitamin K-containing food without replacing it. For example, do not eat coleslaw daily and then stop eating it completely. Watch out for dietary supplements. Check the label; do not take a supplement with more than 100 micrograms/day.
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People with heart failure also need to maintain healthy potassium levels, which help balance fluids in the body and help the heart work properly. Some heart failure medicine can cause potassium levels to drop. Lack of potassium can lead to very rapid heart rhythms that could result in sudden death.
Additional Tips for a Heart-Healthy Recovery
- Portion control: When choosing foods, consider how many calories are in each serving. You should also learn about the amount of saturated fat, total fat, cholesterol, and sodium these foods may add to your daily menu.
- Read labels: Choose foods low in saturated fat, trans-fat, cholesterol, and sodium. Read labels and ingredient lists to find out what a product contains.
- Eat regularly: Eating more frequently speeds up metabolism because your body "learns" that more food will be on the way, thus burning off calories instead of storing them and absorbing less cholesterol and fat. Eating breakfast is a great way to jumpstart your metabolism each day.
- Stay active: Staying physically active after suitably recovering from surgery is important.
- Manage weight: Maintaining a healthy weight is crucial for long-term heart health.
- Avoid smoking: Avoiding smoking, vaping, and inhaling secondhand smoke, if applicable, is essential.
Addressing Common Post-Surgery Issues
It’s not unusual to experience problems like nausea, lack of appetite, and constipation following heart surgery. If you continue to experience such side effects, contact your physician.
Restarting Exercise After Heart Surgery
- Gradually increase your activity.
- Do not lift objects greater than 20 pounds (your doctor may give you a different number if appropriate).
- It is OK to perform activities above shoulder level, such as reaching for an object or brushing your hair.
- You may climb steps unless they have been restricted by your doctor. You may need to rest part of the way if you become tired. Do not climb up and down stairs several times during the day, especially when you first arrive home.
- Pace yourself - spread your activities throughout the day.
- Walk daily.
- Get a good night’s sleep. If you feel tired, go to bed early.
Cardiac Rehabilitation, Occupational Therapy and Physical Therapy
Occupational therapists (OTs) are professionals who teach cardiac patients how to complete self-care and functional tasks while following sternal precautions to protect their chest incision after surgery. They meet with patients before they go home from the hospital to ensure they are prepared for their recovery at home. A few examples of helpful adaptive devices include a bath stool in the shower or tub, grab bars around the toilet or tub, and long-handled shoehorns and sock grippers. To make an appointment with an occupational therapist, please talk with your physician who can write up an order for OT services. Occupational therapy sessions vary, depending on each patient's personal needs. An individualized treatment plan with specific goals is developed after the first appointment, which includes an evaluation and recommendations. The following appointments check your progress and review or expand your program.
Physical therapy (PT) focuses on helping patients build strength and improve coordination, balance, endurance, flexibility and mobility.
Cardiac rehabilitation focuses on helping patients make healthy lifestyle modifications to reduce risk factors for coronary artery disease.
Resuming Sexual Activity
The amount of energy it requires to perform intercourse with a spouse or regular partner is similar to climbing about one or two flights of stairs or walking about one half mile (0.8 km) at a brisk pace. If you cannot perform these activities without becoming tired or short of breath, please allow additional recovery time before resuming sexual activity. Soon you and your partner will return to a satisfying emotional and physical relationship. Anxiety on the part of either partner, as well as some medications, may interfere with sexual arousal or performance.