W hen it comes to eating smart for your heart, thinking about short-term fixes and simplify life with a straightforward approach that will serve you well for years to come. S mart eating goes beyond yzing every bite ad you lift 1 your mouth. "In the past we used to believe that 2 amounts of individual nutri ents ( 营养物 ) were the 3 to good health," Linda Van Horn, chair of the American Heart Asso ciation's Nutrition Committee. "But now we have a 4 understanding of healthy eating and the k inds of food necessary to 5 not only heart disease but disease 6 general," she adds. Scientists now 7 on the broader picture of the b alance of food eaten 8 several days or a week 9 than on the number of milligrams ( 毫克 ) of this or that 10 at each meal. Fruits, vegetables and whole grains, for exam ple, provide nutrients and plant-based com pounds 11 for good health. “ The more we learn, the more 12 we are by the wealth of essential substances they 13 ," Van Horn continues, "and how they 14 with each other to keep us healthy." You'll automatically be 15 the right heart-healthy track if vegetables, fruits and whole grains make 16 three quarters of the food on your dinner plate. 17 in the remaining one quarter with lean meat or chicken, fish or eggs. The foods you choose to eat as well as those you choose to 18 clearly contribute to your well- being. Without a 19 , each of the small decisions you make in this realm can make a big 20 on your health in the years to come.