Your food choices play a specific role in preventing heart disease, and reversal of plaque buildup can also occur with aggressive dietary interventions.

Excess cholesterol, fat and calcium can collect along the walls of your arteries, forming plaque and restricting blood flow. Called atherosclerosis, this narrowing and hardening of your arteries can lead to cardiovascular disease.

Arterial calcium deposits contribute to the development of artherosclerosis, which is the hardening and narrowing of your arteries. Combined with cholesterol plaque, calcium deposits can significantly increase your chance of coronary heart disease, heart attacks and strokes, according to the American Heart Association.