After reviewing my research on healthy foods and cholesterol from this year I came up with the top 14 Foods that Lower Cholesterol.
- 1. Whole grains and oats – a five-year Insulin Resistance Athersclerosis Study showed that people whose diets contain the most whole grains “had the thinnest carotid artery walls and showed the slowest progression in artery wall thickness.”
- 2. Blueberries – a compound in blueberries (pterostilbene) may help lower cholesterol as effectively as commercial drugs with fewer side effects.
Shop for Blueberries - 3. Pistachios, 4. Walnuts, and 5. Almonds – a Penn State study showed that eating pistachios significantly lowers LDL (bad) cholesterol levels. Research published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology showed eating walnuts after a high-fat meal might protect your heart. Omega-3 fats and antioxidants in nuts work to reverse the arterial damage caused by saturated fats.
- 6. Avocados, 7. Olives, and 8. Olive oil – 26 of the 30 grams of fat in an avocado are heart-healthy, unsaturated fats that can increase your levels of HDL cholesterol. The good fats in avocados, olives, and olive oil protect against heart disease and diabetes. Check out the Mediterranean Diet.
- 9. Flaxseed oil – flaxseed oil can lower blood pressure in men with high cholesterol. In a three-month study of 59 middle-aged men, those who took daily flaxseed oil supplements (with eight grams of the omega-3 fats, alpha-linoleic acid) experienced significantly lower systolic and diastolic blood pressure.
- 10. 100% cranberry-grape juice – antioxidants in grape juice slow down LDL cholesterol oxidation, and cranberry juice raises HDL or “good” cholesterol.
- 11. Fish and Fish oil – a study from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology found that people with type 2 diabetes who consumed high doses of fish oil over nine weeks lowered the size and concentration of several lipoprotein subclasses (cholesterol) in their bodies.
- 12. Black soybeans – a study from the Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture shows that black soybeans may help prevent obesity, lower LDL cholesterol, and reduce the risk for type 2 diabetes.
- 13. Pomegranate juice – a National Academy of Sciences study showed that pomegranate juice reduces cholesterol plaque buildup and increases nitric oxide production (nitric oxide helps reduce arterial plaque).
- 14. Yogurt with live active cultures (probiotics) – Vicki Koenig, MS, RD, CDN said “several studies have shown that the probiotics Lactobacillus Acidophilus and Lactobacillus Reuteri actually help lower cholesterol. They work by preventing the reabsorption of cholesterol back in to the blood stream.”
You might be a person who is predisposed to high cholesterol, or maybe your diet could use a shape-up. Here are a few key points on cholesterol that I try to focus on:
- LDL or “bad” cholesterol deposits itself on the walls of your arteries, forming plaques that make them hard and narrow. HDL or “good” cholesterol removes excess LDL in your blood and brings it to your liver for disposal. The more HDL you consume, the less LDL you’ll have in your blood.
- You may need medication to help reduce your cholesterol, but eating a heart-healthy diet and getting exercise are very important.
- Everyone should have their cholesterol checked-it doesn’t matter if you are young/old, female/male, or thin/overweight.
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what about chickpeas and hummus? a friend told me it lowers cholesterol but its not mentioned specifically. how does it rate amongst beans and legumes?
There’s this thing called ISPAGHOL in the subcontinent which is probably the purest form of fiber. That helps a lot.
I discovered that my little girl, at the age of four, had a cholestorol level of 281. She never had a chance to eat unhealthy foods because she was still a baby… and my cooking habits have always been the healthiest because my husband also had and has high cholestorol. When I found out, I put my little girl on a diet that consisted of all of the advice that is mentioned here. Four months later I checked my little girl again… cholestorol level:309. I am devastated because I know that its hereditary, but I don’t know how to fight it!!! Her organism needs everything! How can I deprive it of dairy products or meat and eggs? And why? It doesn’t make a difference anyway. She’s got such a long way ahead of her… how can I secure that she gets there fine? If anyone can help me, please respond.
This information will come in handy. I just found out that my cholesterol is high and my doctor said I should change my diet. Thank you very much.
yes indeed, your information are very useful for us,keep going………….
I did not see alchohol in the list .
no joke people my colesterol was 220 and i have lowerd it to 160 in 4 weeks !
the only thing i have done diffrently is now i take a walk or job in the morning before work , and have a few beers or a glass of wine before i go to sleep .
assalam o alaikum,
whenever my cholestrol level goes high, then my heart beat beats so fast , and i can’t breath well ,and if i eat something like aspirin or any thing like garlic then my blood pressure goes down and i can’t walk well , i wana something to eat, u suggest that will help to reduce cholestrol level immediately,and is green tea good for reducing cholestrol level?
I have a family history of high cholesterol i’ve been on meds for 9 years i eat right and have a lot of activity in my life it continues to be high i dont get it I think when its in your genes there seems as though there is no hope i hope it will come down ,I would like to stick around and see my grand kids.
sir my hdl 285 before present 185 ( within 3moths)
– past present
height 174 174
weight 79.5 73
hdl 285 185
ldl 190 119
I regularly do exercise, yoga, lifestyle change
give me suggestions through mail
I did not want to take medication, so for one year I ate a lot of, and almost exclusively, oat meal, oat bran, kidney beans, apples, pears, prunes, barley, mucho walnuts, pistachio nuts, almonds, herring, salmon, tuna, late trout, sardines, yogart and blue berries….my LDL went down to 100 and my over all cholesterol is down from 240 to 183. I lost 10lbs as well and I feel great. I play tennis 2-3 times per week and that certainly helps.
I have changed my diet, eating oatmeal for breakfast, quit smoking, drinking the probiotic yogurt drinks (one daily), eating healthy snacks, apples, bananas, eating lots of chicken (boneless/skinless), exercising, and my cholesterol is STILL very bad. Its been months, and I thought it would have improved a little bit, but my doctor says it’s even a few points worse!!!!
I noticed there was no mention of using ground flaxseed in all of your baking at home. Flaxseed oil is nice, but there is ground flaxseed because of the grain grown in the field from our farmers. There are more ways of lowering your cholesterol than is mentioned or can be on one page alone people. Take your time, keep researching, keep improving. It takes time to get your regiment right. Remember cholesterol and fat get produced when elements that are absorbed into the body don’t get burned off or thrown into the waste cycle of the human body. If you really think about what you are eating, odds are, you won’t be elevating your levels further. Its hard and it does take work to get those readings correct. I found a diet low on sugar, high on fiber, some exercise, and as much fun as possible helps a lot. A little red wine once in a while is fine too!
i am 36 and have high cholesterole .doc thinking of meds but im hoping i can get it down with waight loss im 88 kilos and diet
up untill 6 months ago my diet was o full of fat and prosed food but i have never smoked or drink no coffee tea eat good meals i thought i walk an hour a day what am i doing wrong with the change or has the damage already been done . i have a couple of lumps around my eyelids due to bad cholesterole too help
One of my collegue suggested me to try the alternative medicine to treat my high cholesterol problem. she told me to mix pure honey and cloves of garlic in 1 jar. leave it till 1 week. then after, you take 1 tbsp. 3 times a day, and you will be surprise that your cholesterol is going back to normal.
better to practice alternative medications because its herbal, natural and will not give any harm to the body.
I eat most of the recommended foods weekly. I weight train 3 days/week, and run 4 days/week. I just found out that my cholesterol is still high, and glucose is slightly lower.
I’m not going to give up though. I’m going to “turn it up” a few notches!! I refuse to take medication!
@ chelle maybe the problem is in your body producing too much cholesterol that your body needs..
I am 44 years old, and found out that my Triglycerides are 654, is bad from my Lipid panel. Does anybody know if the Nutrisystem (if followed to a T) diet will be helpful in lowering my cholesterol and weight? Diet is based on portion control, and caloric intake (1,000 – 1,200 calories per day). Thanks!
This info for (Kris July 28th 2009)…..Chickpeas are low in fat and most of this is polyunsaturated. … have also shown that they can assist in lowering of cholesterol in the bloodstream
Death rate in US for heart disease reveals that 725,191 per year, 60,432 per month, 13,945 per week, 1,986 per day, 82 per hour, 1 per minute. On an average people lose 11 years due to heart disease. Prevention is always better than cure, good life style and stress free life increases life span. Also good natural supplement like Proleva can stay with you for quite long to get you going. Pomegranate one of the extensively tested fruit helps in reducing risk of heart attack. One serving of Proleva contains the equivalent of four glasses of pomegranate juice. I have been using Proleva after it was recommended by my doctor. I feel strong and healthy from the very first week of my intake of Proleva.
How about a vegan diet? Cholesterol-free.
My cholesterol level is going up and up. I had a stroke to my voice. Physically not affected. What should I do? I am scared it gets worse. Another stroke will attack me maybe worse than before. Now my speech is affected.
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