What I Eat to Help Manage My Heart Disease
Key takeaways:
Maria Materasso was born with a heart condition, but she didn’t know it until she was 31.
She went to a cardiologist after having symptoms including shortness of breath. She was diagnosed with left ventricular noncompaction cardiomyopathy (LVNC).
She adopted a heart-friendly diet after her diagnosis. Here, she discusses what she eats to help manage her heart condition.
Maria Materasso was born with a rare heart condition, but she didn’t know about it for decades.
When she was 31, after the birth of her second child, Maria started having symptoms such as shortness of breath and heart palpitations. She’d get winded easily. She wondered whether the difficult births of her two children had put a strain on her heart.
Maria sought out a cardiologist, who ordered initial testing. When those results came back, he ordered more extensive tests, including a cardiac MRI.
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“They found out I have something called left ventricular noncompaction cardiomyopathy (LVNC), which basically means the bottom of my heart is a little bit spongy and soft instead of being a tight muscle like it’s supposed to be,” Maria says.
“That can cause all sorts of problems, like the symptoms that I was having — the shortness of breath,” she says. “Basically, it’s a weakened heart muscle. Your heart is supposed to function at over 65%, and mine functions around 49% right now.”
After her initial diagnosis, her cardiologist referred her to a specialist at Columbia University in New York City. They ran tests to get baseline numbers and set her up with a portable heart rate monitor. They also prescribed ACE inhibitors and beta blockers to help manage her symptoms. Down the road, if Maria’s percentage of blood leaving the heart each time it squeezes drops below 35% on a consistent basis, she may need a pacemaker or implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD).
Focusing on what she can control, such as what she eats
Two years after her diagnosis of LVNC and stage 2 heart failure, Maria is 33 and owns a cleaning business in Hopewell Junction, New York, where she and her husband are raising their two kids. She focuses on the things she can control, such as what she eats. She also sometimes posts about her life on TikTok, including this video about what she eats in a day.
“It’s kind of interesting because usually when people say they have heart problems, it’s a low-sodium diet,” she says. “But because my symptoms are the opposite of that — my heart rate runs very low — I’m actually on a high-sodium diet.”
But rather than choosing salty chips or other similar snack foods, she tries to pick more nutritious options. She snacks on pickles and olives or adds table salt to veggies or salads.
“I just try to eat as fresh and clean as I can — lots of fruits and veggies and lots of protein,” she says.
For protein sources, she turns to foods including chicken, fish, red meat, eggs, and yogurt. To make sure she’s hydrated, she carries a 40 oz water bottle and fills it up twice a day.
Making nutrition goals for the whole family
Maria’s husband is on board with her nutrition goals. So the whole family, including the kids — ages 7 and 3 — eat the same basic meals. A typical day for her might include foods such as the following.
Breakfast
“I always eat just a quick boiled-eggs breakfast in the morning,” she says. “That’s something easy that I can prep and keep in the fridge, ready to go.” She also likes to have a cup of coffee with a splash of milk.
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Lunch
“I always make sure to keep space in my day where I can take even just 30 minutes for lunch,” Maria says. “I’ll stop at a deli and grab a grilled chicken wrap. Or I’ll bring some cheese and crackers and a piece of fruit with me just to keep my energy up during the day.”
Snacks
“I try to eat small, frequent meals throughout the day,” Maria says. That might include a snack such as pickles or yogurt. Or she might fix herbal tea and grab a piece of fruit.
Dinner
For dinner, Maria likes to choose an entree with protein, such as chicken or fish, or sometimes red meat, along with vegetables or other side dishes.
Dessert
Maria likes to save room for dessert every once in a while.
“We do keep ice cream and treats in the house,” she says. “And I love going out for dessert. So I don’t hold [my kids] back from anything. And I don’t hold myself back from anything, either. But I feel like as long as we’re eating healthy most of the time, then it’s fine to treat yourself.”
A lighthearted approach to diet
When you are making food choices because of a health condition, the best thing you can do is to “make it as fun as possible,” Maria says.
She encourages others who might have food restrictions to “find foods you like, try new things, and go to the grocery store with an open mind.”
Maria takes an optimistic view about managing life with heart failure. Some things, she has no control over, she says. But she can control what she eats, and that makes her feel her best each day. So that is where she is putting her focus.
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