Vessels can rightfully be considered one of the most important systems of the body, since the delivery of nutrients and oxygen, as well as the removal of waste products is their main function. In addition, vessels ensure the interconnection and transfer of information, and therefore the coordinated work of the entire body. They have different sizes, structures, but are necessarily present in every organ (except for the lens of the eye, skin, nails and hair). Therefore, it can be safely said that human health is the health of his vessels. Nutrition plays an important role in maintaining the normal functioning and durability of vessels.
Hippocrates once said: “You are what you eat .” He was of the opinion that human diseases are the result of nutritional deficiencies. Today, it is known that this statement is not absolute. Not all diseases are the result of nutritional deficiencies, but healthy eating is universal and is the basis for the prevention and treatment of any disease.
To maintain healthy blood vessels, it is recommended to reduce the consumption of critically important unhealthy food substances: table salt – less than 5 g per day, added sugars, saturated fats, trans-isomeric fatty acids.
It is recommended to eat mainly plant-based foods rather than animal-based foods. Saturated fatty acids should make up less than 10% of the daily energy value of the diet. They are replaced by polyunsaturated fatty acids, monounsaturated fatty acids, complex carbohydrates from whole grain products and cereals.
Dietary fibre intake should be 30–45 g per day (preferably also from whole grains and cereals), fruit ≥ 200 g per day (≥ 2–3 servings), vegetables ≥ 200 g (≥ 2–3 servings).
Red meat consumption should be reduced to 350–500 g per week, especially processed meat. It is recommended to eat fish once or twice a week, especially fatty fish, and 30 g of unsalted nuts per day.
To prevent vascular diseases, it is better to give up alcohol. Science has long proven that there are no safe doses of alcohol. In addition, it is not recommended to drink soft drinks.
Unfiltered coffee contains cafestol and kahweol, which contribute to increased cholesterol levels. Consuming ≥ 9 servings of unfiltered coffee per day can increase the risk of death from vascular and heart disease by 25%. However, moderate coffee consumption (3-4 cups per day) is not dangerous and may even have a beneficial effect on health.
The most common vascular disease that is closely related to nutrition is atherosclerosis, when medium and large arteries are affected. Fat deposits form on the inner walls of the arteries in the form of atherosclerotic plaques, which can close the lumen of the arteries – first partially, and then, if the diet is not changed, completely. As a result, nutrients and oxygen do not enter, metabolic products are not removed, and the organ supplied with blood stops working and is destroyed.
As for other organs and systems, poor nutrition can lead to obesity, pancreatitis, the formation of stones in the bile ducts, type 2 diabetes, and constipation.
It is currently believed that the most effective way to prevent this is to change the diet as a whole on a permanent basis. The most well-known diet with proven effectiveness is the Mediterranean diet. Back in the 1950s, American nutritionists Anselmi and Margaret Case systematized the dietary rules of Italians, Spaniards and Greeks (they have the lowest rates of heart disease and mortality, the lowest in Greece), proposing the concept of the “Mediterranean diet”.
It includes consuming plenty of fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains, fish and olive oil, moderate alcohol consumption and low intake of red meat, dairy products and saturated fats.
The use of a Mediterranean diet enriched with nuts for five years reduced the risk of atherosclerosis by 28%, and enriched with extra virgin olive oil – by 31%. In addition, it is known that adherence to the Mediterranean diet is associated not only with a 10% reduction in the risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality, but also with an 8% reduction in mortality from all causes.