Cholesterol: Natural ways to lower LDL cholesterol

Over 106 million American, above the age of twenty, have high cholesterol, according to the American Heart Association. Finding time to include healthy food choices into a daily routine can be challenging for some.

Lack of time can cause people to make unhealthy food choices.  It can be difficult to change old habits, however, the rewards received by cleaning up an unhealthy diet makes it worthwhile.

Healthy foods do not have to be boring, explore new cuisines, and adopt healthy alternatives to reduce the cholesterol in meals. Give high fat recipes a healthy make-over, replace high calorie, high-cholesterol ingredients with healthy substitutes.

Fruits and Vegetables

Fruits and vegetables should be consumed daily. It is necessary to eat several servings of fruit and vegetables daily since it is impossible to obtain all the nutrients needed from one fruit or vegetable.

The recommended daily servings are 3 to 5 servings of vegetables and 2 to 4 servings of fruit daily, according to the USDA. Get creative, make delicious salads, add vegetables to a spicy stir fry, include them in hearty soups. Prepare a delicious fruit salad, or create a stimulating smoothie. Making healthy food choices is useful in melting fat and lowering cholesterol.

Beans

There are many ways to cook beans. They are an excellent source of soluble fiber, soluble fiber assists in lowering LDL cholesterol. Therefore, they make a needed staple for people looking to reduce the amount of cholesterol and fat consumed through diet.

Beans are flavorful and come in many different varieties. Because of their texture they can be used as a meat substitute. Replace meat recipes with beans, added to soups, salads, stir fries, or turned into a delicious bean burger, letting beans play the starring role can assist in lowering the amount of fat and cholesterol consumed.

Fiber

Increasing the amount of dietary fiber consumed daily normalizes bowel movements and helps maintain colon health. Adding fiber to the diet can also help lower cholesterol levels.  This occurs when dietary fiber binds with fatty acids, bile, and blood cholesterol. This procedure creates a significant amount of waste. Fiber promotes easier bowel movements by making the stool bulkier; this process helps move cholesterol out of the body. Fiber rich foods are; Apples, black beans, bran, barley, oatmeal, split peas, and spaghetti.

Fish

Most fish are low in fat which makes them an perfect option for a low fat diet. Cold-water fish like salmon, tuna, mackerel, salmon, tuna, and trout are high in fat content, but they are also an excellent source of two forms of Omega 3 fatty acids; EPA and DHA. Omega 3 fatty acids can help boost your HDL (the good cholesterol.), which may prevent heart disease. Omega 3’s is especially useful since they reduce triglycerides. Frying fish cancels its healthful benefits. Bake, broil, or poach fish.

Reduce High Cholesterol Foods

Eggs, dairy, fat meats, organ meats, are all high in cholesterol. Decreasing fattening foods in the diet helps successfully cut the harmful cholesterol.  Trim the fat off of meat before preparing it. A tasty alternative to dairy milk is soy milk or rice milk. These nondairy milks come in a variety of flavors.

Check out the recommended books and references for more information on natural ways to lower your LDL cholesterol.

Recommended Books

1. Eating for Lower Cholesterol by Catherine Jones
2. Vegan Planet by Robin Roberson

References

1. American Heart Association: Cholesterol Statistics
2. United States Department of Agriculture: My Pyramid
3. University of Maryland Medical System: Omega-3 Fatty Acids