Take charge of your eating habits! The foods you eat today can endanger your heart or protect it, and “what you chew” may also protect you against certain types of cancer. By eating a low-fat diet, including foods rich in vitamins A, C, and beta-carotene (a precursor of vitamin A), vegetables from the cabbage family (also called cruciferous vegetables) and other high-fiber foods, you can promote a healthy heart and possibly reduce your risk of cancer.

March is “Nutrition Awareness” month. This week, the Student Dietetic Association joins with Health Enhancement Services and the American Cancer Society in sponsoring the Great American Low-Fat Pigout on Thursday, March 10. It is a celebration of the foods that may lessen one’s risk of cancer.

Here are a few things you can do to lower your fat intake, increase dietary fiber and improve the overall quality of your diet:

. Reduce cholesterol by limiting egg consumption to no more than three a week, including those used in cooking.

2. Try to limit consumption of meat to 5-7 ounces per day.

3. When selecting meats, choose leaner varieties for most of your meals, such as fish, chicken, turkey and veal. Use beef, lamb, pork and ham less frequently and in smaller portions. Restrict your use of fatty luncheon and variety meats, such as sausage and salami.

4. Avoid food preparation that adds fat, such as deep-fat frying. Use methods that help remove fat, e.g., baking, roasting, stewing, boiling or broiling. Also, eat vegetables raw or steam them to maintain vitamin content.

5. Season dishes with herbs, spices or lemon juice, instead of fats and salt.

6. Instead of whole milk products and creams (e.g., bleu cheese, brie, ice cream, butter and sour cream), use skim or low-fat milk products, such as buttermilk, ice milk, sherbet, low-fat yogurt and hard cheeses, like Swiss.

7. Use vegetable oils and margarines that are high in polyunsaturated fats, such as safflower, sunflower, canola and corn oil. Avoid butter and other solid or hydrogenated fats, such as lard, coconut oil and palm oil. (Coconut and palm oil would seem to be lower in saturated fats because they’re not from animal sources; however, they’re actually higher in saturated fats than animal lard.)

8. Limit consumption of shrimp, lobster and organ meats.

9. Increase intake of fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables which contain virtually no fat, no salt (except canned vegetables), no cholesterol and are low in calories and high in fiber. Many vegetables and fruits contain vitamins A and C and beta-carotene, especially dark, green leafy vegetables, fruits and fruit juices. Eat a variety of vitamin-rich foods rather than relying on vitamin and mineral supplements.

Remember, your food choices today influence the quality of your life tomorrow.

(Thanks to the Student Dietetic Association at NIU, contributor to this week’s column.)