• 1/2 cup soy nuts
  
• 1 piece fresh fruit
  
• 1 cup berries
  
• 1 cup non-fat yogurt
  
• 1 cup cold cereal with at least 5 grams of fiber; 1/2 cup skim milk
  
• 2 cups raw vegetables with fat-free dressing for "dip"
  
• 1 slice whole-wheat toast with 1 teaspoon fruit spread
  
• 1 soy smoothie (blend 1 cup soft tofu with your favorite fresh fruit; thin with soy milk)
  
  

Healthy Do's and Don'ts

Do:

• Choose monounsaturated fat, such as olive oil or canola oil, in cooking. Monounsaturated fats can actually help raise your HDL levels, especially if you replace saturated fat with monounsaturated fat -- for instance, by using olive oil instead of butter
• Replace cow's milk with soy milk to increase soy protein intake to 25 grams per day, the amount the American Heart Association says is necessary to lower cholesterol levels. As an added bonus, soymilk contains no saturated fat or cholesterol!
• Drink eight ounces purple grape juice or red wine each day (check with your physician before you use wine or other types of alcohol on a regular basis). Antioxidants called flavonoids are found in both purple grape juice and alcohol and appear to help lower risk of heart disease
• Go nuts! A small handful of nuts can add protein, fiber, monounsaturated fats and even antioxidants that help reduce risk of heart disease. Toss a few nuts in your breakfast cereal or on a lunchtime salad
• Use ground flax seeds, which may lower cholesterol levels. Ground flax seeds are high in soluble fiber and omega-three fatty acids, essential nutrients for a healthy cardiovascular system. Mix one to two tablespoons ground flax seeds in a morning fruit smoothie, stir them into yogurt or add to granola
  
  Don't:
  
• Eat lunch meat with more than two grams of fat per ounce, fatty meat or poultry or fried foods. This will help decrease your saturated fat intake, which raises blood levels of cholesterol more than any other food
• Skimp on the fiber. The Nurse's Health Study showed that every additional five grams of fiber consumed on a regular basis decreased risk of heart disease by 37 percent. Consider eating a high-fiber breakfast cereal (with at least five grams of fiber per serving) each day