How To Lower Cholesterol With Diet

Want to know how to lower cholesterol with diet? While some foods increase cholesterol levels, eating other foods can actually help to lower levels of bad LDL cholesterol. It is possible to improve cardiovascular health and minimize the risk of heart disease with food. Learn about eating a healthy diet to lower cholesterol.

1. Eat fresh fruits. Antioxidant-rich fruits, such as berries, grapefruits, bananas and papayas, should be a regular part of your diet to lower your cholesterol levels. Antioxidants found in fruits and vegetables prevent the oxidation of cholesterol.
2. Go for the fiber. A fiber-rich diet is the way to go for lowering cholesterol. Eat plenty of whole grains, beans, nuts, fruits and vegetables. Look for ways to add fiber to what you eat throughout the day, such as sprinkling flax seed or wheat germ onto a bowl of oatmeal or a salad. Add navy beans to your bowl of soup; eat brown rice instead of white rice; and snack on apples, pears and prunes.
3. Add nutritional oils to your diet. Hemp seed oil, avocado oil, extra virgin olive oil—these fat sources are excellent sources of nutrition, including essential fatty acids. Slippery in nature, they improve the fluidity of the blood, helping to remove cholesterol build-up from artery walls.
4. Eat avocados. All vegetables should be part of your diet to lower cholesterol, but avocados in particular are important. They are rich in healthy monounsaturated fatty acids, as well as fiber and nutrients. They are also delicious. Try switching to avocado with your eggs and toast instead of butter. Substitute avocado for mayonnaise in your tuna salad, and eat it alongside your steak dinner to counteract the effects of eating a heavy amount of saturated fat.
5. Choose lean proteins. To effectively lower cholesterol with diet you have to start phasing out the hamburgers and hot dogs, the pork chops, ice cream and macaroni and cheese. Try eating fish two times a week, tofu once a week and chicken or turkey two times a week. This leaves only two days for a moderately-sized piece of red meat, preferably with the fat trimmed off.
6. Watch out for trans fats. Removing processed foods from the diet, such as margarine, potato chips and packaged cookies, is important for lowering cholesterol levels. While much of the focus on a healthy diet is reducing consumption of animal fats, hydrogenated oils are actually much worse than saturated fat. In fact, some saturated fat is beneficial. It should just be balanced with fiber, nutrients and unsaturated fats.

Knowing how to lower your cholesterol by eating a proper diet is a fundamental part of total health. It is possible to make a huge, lasting difference with food rather than prescription medication. Eat well and live well.