Heart Smart Eating at Home

• Replace bread spread like butter and margarine with a light spread of fresh avocado, 100% unsalted peanut butter, or a small dip of extra virgin olive oil
• Avoid ‘double’ seasoning, for example, marinating with salt before cooking and then adding more during cooking
• Control your portion by eating from a smaller plate/bowl
• Flavour food with herbs and spices such as onion, garlic, ginger, chilli, pepper and turmeric to reduce the need for salt and sauces. Even sauces that are spicy yet sweet tasting, like our good old Thai Sweet Chilli sauce (1 tablespoon) could come close to meeting 10% of our recommended daily sodium intake. Click here to find out the content in commonly found sauces.
• Use salt replacements. Potassium salt is an alternative salt that can replace regular table salt as it contains 30% less sodium. However, individuals with a background medical condition such as chronic kidney disease should exercise caution with potassium salt substitutes unless under guidance by a health professional.
  Himalayan salt, sea salt, rock salt and kosher salt are not table salt substitutes, as they have similar sodium content by weight.
• Choose healthier cooking methods like grilling, steaming and pan-frying over deep-frying to reduce fat intake
• Go for more fresh ingredients instead of processed ingredients such as canned food, processed meats and preserved food
• Go for products with lower saturated fat content (e.g. lean meats, skinless poultry, low fat/reduced fat dairy)
• Include fish in your meal at least 2 times a week
• Taste before seasoning
• Replace sugar with dried or fresh fruit when eating breakfast cereals
• Reduce sugar in your baking recipes by ⅓ or ½
• Use the Heart Smart Eating Plate as a guide for a healthy and balanced diet
• Choose healthier cooking oils with a lower saturated fat content and use in moderation