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[F470]Food To Lower Cholesterol

by Dr John Anne, Dr

Food plays an important role in managing the cholesterol level in your body. Apart from a well-managed lifestyle or proper medication, it is mandatory that you switch to fat-free, cholesterol-free healthy diet to manage the level of cholesterol. If you are suffering from high blood cholesterol problem, quite obviously you are having a high level of LDL; then you should consider about three important factors concerning your selection about food to lower cholesterol. These three factors are - saturated fat, trans fat, and cholesterol. It is advisable that you make your meal absolutely free from these three diet components.

Or else, at least limit the intake of these three diet components. This article enlightens you on the important food to lower cholesterol level in your body. You may add any of the following foods to your diet to manage your blood cholesterol.

Beans, Peas and Lentil

This is an appropriate food to lower cholesterol level. Beans, peas, and lentils consist of high soluble fiber, which effectively manages cholesterol level in your body. You can always prepare a colorful salad dishes using these nutritional substances, and keep yourself and your loved ones healthy. Apart from that, you may eat apples, carrots, barely, and oats to fulfill the need of soluble fiber.

Soy

It contains high protein. Isoflavones, naturally found in Soy products are believed to mimic the role of hormones that help in regulating cholesterol level in the body. If you really care about lowering your cholesterol level, it is a must that you take a minimum of 25gms of soy proteins as a part of your daily diet. You may take soy yogurt, soy burgers, ground soy, soy nuts, soy milk, tofu, and tempeh in your regular diet

Fish

Fish is an ideal food to lower cholesterol level. It meets the demands for omega 3, which is beneficial for lowering high blood cholesterol. It especially provides protection against LDL cholesterol. Omega 3 fatty acids are commonly found in mackerel, salmon, herring, sardines, tuna, and halibut. Fishes are the perfect option for getting omega 3, but you may also opt in walnuts, flax seeds, or almonds, to have the same benefits.

Olive Oil

Mono-saturated fats can effectively lower the level of high blood cholesterol, especially 'bad' or LDL one. It has the ability to raise the amount of HDL cholesterol in the system. Olive oil is rich with mono-saturated fat. Hence, you can switch to this wonderful food to lower cholesterol, especially while cooking or preparing salads.

Flax seed

Flax seed is a perfect food to lower cholesterol level. It constitutes high protein, soluble fiber and omega 3 fatty acids. It consists of useful component called lignans. Lignans offers protection against cardiovascular problems by means of lowering LDL cholesterol level. Apart from that, it is assumed that flax seed has the ability to fight against few types of cancer like breast and colon cancer. It also helps protecting body from diabetes.

Garlic

Garlic is known as kitchen's pride. Its medicinal property is highly respected among different cultures for several hundreds of years. It has the ability to fight against different cardiovascular diseases such as high cholesterol, atherosclerosis, and high blood pressure. According to the results found in different scientific studies, garlic helps lowering cholesterol level. Garlic has two compounds, known as allin and allicin. These two compounds are assumed to intrude with the cholesterol metabolism function in the liver. Additionally, garlic also regulates the amount of cholesterol released in the blood stream.

Vitamin C and E

These two vitamins are well known for their anti-oxidizing property. They can help minimize the level of cholesterol in the body. The primary sources for deriving vitamin C are cabbage, oranges, potatoes, peppers, kiwi, and strawberries. On the other hand, for having vitamin E in your diet, you can easily depend on various healthy foods such as avocados, broccoli, mangoes, Brazilian seeds, peanuts, almonds, and sunflower seeds.

As many people know, cholesterol is a waxy lipid (a fat) that naturally circulates in the blood. It is an important substance for many bodily functions including digestion, the manufacturing of vitamin D and the making of sex hormones.

It is found in every cell of the body as part of the cell's wall. However, like anything else, cholesterol levels that are too high are a danger signal. How high is too high? Total cholesterol levels should be less than 200, with total cholesterol being a combination of LDL (bad) cholesterol and HDL (good) cholesterol.

As in many things, having an excess is normally bad. Too much cholesterol is bad for heart health. The extra cholesterol will build up on the walls of the arteries, clogging them. This will often result in a stroke or a heart attack.

So, how do you watch out for signs of high cholesterol?

Some common factors include chest pain, obesity, smoking, a family history of high cholesterol, a sedentary lifestyle, and a diet high in saturated fats. If any of these risk factors are present, especially in combination, a visit to the doctor to determine cholesterol levels is recommended.

One good way to lower high cholesterol is adopting a diet to lower cholesterol. Certain diet plans (e.g. Atkins, Weight Watchers diets...) can be adapted to function as a diet to lower high cholesterol.

The key lies in ensuring that the diet includes the following things: low-fat foods, high-fiber foods, fresh fruits and vegetables, reduced salt and sugar, legumes and nuts.

Enjoy processed meats, whole milk products, eggs, fatty meats, bakery goods and fried foods in moderation. Or better yet, avoid them. Eating food like baked fish, whole-grain products, oatmeal, oat bran, artichokes, and unsaturated oils will benefit both heart health and cholesterol levels.

Switching to a diet to lower high cholesterol does not mean that you cannot enjoy your meals any more. Simple substitutes for less desirable foods are readily available in any supermarket.

Try low-fat cheese, fat-free milk, and butter substitutes instead of whole milk products. Lean cuts of meat, baked fish, fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts, soy products, beans and peas, green and seeds all fortify the diet to lower cholesterol, giving the heart one of the best types of protection.

Simple changes in cooking techniques can also make a huge difference. Drain grease when cooking, regulate portion sizes, bake or broil foods instead of frying them. Use vegetable oil when cooking, trim off fats and avoid adding extra salt or sugar.

To enhance the effectiveness of using natural food to lower cholesterol, include other ways to help lower cholesterol. Follow a balanced aerobic exercise routine. It has important benefits like weight loss and better circulation. Walking, running and swimming are all good forms of exercise. In addition, they burn excess fats or calories at the same time.

If you smoke, quit! It will improve the health of blood vessels and decrease the risk of stroke. Medications, such as Lipitor, to lower high cholesterol are used as a last resort.

Usually, a natural ndiet to lower high cholesterol combined with exercise will do the trick. So, take the first step to heart health now and go have a cholesterol level check done. It just may be the best thing you've done for your body in a long time. And who knows, there may still be time to work on prevention, starting with a natural diet to lower cholesterol levels.

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Both Dr John Anne & George Peters are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.

Dr John Anne has sinced written about articles on various topics from amino acid, Fitness and Acne Treatment. Dr John Anne is an herbal specialist with years of experience and extensive research on herbs and alternative health. If you are looking for more information, read about. Dr John Anne's top article generates over 135000 views. to your Favourites.

George Peters has sinced written about articles on various topics from Health, Gastric Bypass and High Cholesterol. Discover the or. George Peters's top article generates over 6600 views. to your Favourites.