The best way to improve your cholesterol levels and reduce your risk of heart disease is to change your diet and lifestyle. Eat a whole foods, plant-based diet and incorporate exercise and stress-relieving activities into your daily routine. I made a list of the best cholesterol lowering foods in 2007. It’s time for an update! Here’s my new 2011 list of the Top 14 Foods that Lower Cholesterol with the latest research and recommendations from nutrition experts:
1. Whole Grains and Oats – a five-year Insulin Resistance Atherosclerosis 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.” Try these recipes:
- Baked Apple Crumble
- Better Than Your Average Oatmeal
- Quinoa Stuffed Bell Peppers
- Pineapple Brown Fried Rice
2. Blueberries – pterostilbene, a compound in blueberries, may help lower cholesterol as effectively as commercial drugs with fewer side effects. Antioxidants in blueberries, such as anthocyanins, have been found to lower LDL (bad) cholesterol and improve cholesterol health in several notable studies. Try these recipes:
3. Nuts (all kinds) – eating a small serving of nuts every day can reduce your total cholesterol, reduce your LDL cholesterol, and improve your ratio of total cholesterol to HDL (good) cholesterol. Try these recipes:
4. Chlorella – chlorella is a potent, eco-friendly source of healthy omega-3 fats, making it cholesterol lowering food. Studies show that it can significantly improve cholesterol levels. An easy way eat chlorella is in a smoothie. Try mixing chlorella granules with coconut water, blueberries, and strawberries for a healthy afternoon snack or dessert.
5. Chocolate – eating dark chocolate has been found to provide dozens of health benefits, including improving cholesterol levels. For the best health benefit, consume raw chocolate without added dairy products or artificial sweeteners. Try these recipes:
6. Avocados, 7. Olives, and 8. Olive Oil – The high level of monounsaturated fats in avocados, olives, and olive oil protect against heart disease and diabetes and can increase your good cholesterol and decrease your bad cholesterol. Check out the Mediterranean Diet for more on these foods and their health benefits. Try these recipes:
- Black Bean Soup w/ Avocado
- Hearty Grilled Veggie Sandwich
- Avocado Pineapple Smoothie
- No Cheese Pesto (lots of olive oil)
9. Goji Berries – goji berries keep your arteries from narrowing and prevent cholesterol from oxidizing and sticking to the inside or causing blood clots. Research from China found that goji berries can increase the production of an antioxidant called superoxide dismutase (SOD) which prevents cholesterol oxidation. Try these recipes:
10. Flaxseed and Flaxseed Oil – flaxseed oil is a great vegetarian choice for a healthy fats supplement if you don’t want to take fish oil. Many experts agree that flaxseeds are a good choice to help maintain heart health and avoid heart disease and dangerous cholesterol levels. Try adding a spoonful of ground up flaxseed to your favorite smoothies or baked goods. You can substitute 3 tbsp. ground flax seeds for 1 tbsp. butter/margarine.
11. 100% Cranberry-Grape Juice – antioxidants in red and purple juices slow down LDL cholesterol oxidation and may raise levels of HDL cholesterol. Read my article “Did We Forget About Cranberries?” and try the recipe below with extra grape juice:
- Strawberry Banana Breakfast Smoothie (with grape juice)
12. Soy Foods (such as tempeh, tofu, or edamame) – try eating high-quality soy foods instead of meat. Soy foods may not improve your cholesterol levels on their own, but they will give you a healthy dose of protein and will cut out artery-clogging dietary cholesterol found in meat. Try these recipes:
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), making it a perfect cholesterol lowering food. It’s also been shown to improve fertility.
14. Leafy Greens – leafy green vegetables such as spinach and kale are loaded with fiber and lutein, a carotenoid which has been found to reduce LDL cholesterol particles and help prevent heart disease with its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant powers. Try these recipes:
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:
- Cholesterol is not the sole reason people have heart disease, but it’s definitely a contributing factor. Experts agree that dietary cholesterol raises blood cholesterol and that high blood cholesterol levels increase your risk for heart disease.
- Everyone should have their cholesterol checked-it doesn’t matter if you are young/old, female/male, or thin/overweight.
- While there are many factors at play (such as family history, stress level, physical activity level, and age), your diet has a tremendous influence on the amount of cholesterol in your blood and more importantly, on your risk for life-threatening diseases.
See also:
“What is Good Cholesterol and How Do I Improve It?”
“What is Bad Cholesterol and How Do I Improve It?”
“3 Diets that Fight Cholesterol”
{ 121 comments… read them below or add one }
Love it! Thanks, Laurel!
yeah, where’s the garlic?
I became vegan at the age of 40. My cholesterol dropped from just over 230 to under 150 in about six months. If you eat cheese, milk, fish, … forget it. From what I have seen, if you eat fish, keep taking your Lipo..whatever. I actually enjoy food much more now that ever before – really.
I want to know more about the fruits that reduce the cholesterol
From what I’ve read and let me tell you I’ve read alot, anyway veggies and fruits are the best source to lose weight, gain muscles and lower you cholesterol any food that is man-made or processed is bad, only food from nature are the best source for any good thing to the body.
Please just send a healthy food group guide or magazine free information to K. Dickerson 115 Moffat Street, Brooklyn, New York 11207.
Thank you so much.
I was told about drinking copella pure apple juice(cloudy)each day and as well as changing my diet my levels have been greatly reduced!give it a try!i live in England so i’m not sure if you’ll get the copella brand over there but i’m sure you’ll have something similar!Ted!
Hi,
Please advice some more food according to Indian life style who helps to reduse LDL.
Hi,
can garlic helps to reduse LDL?
Thanks for the great information! Are tomatoes bad for cholestorol???
I have really taken control of my life since I found out my triglycerides were at 414! I am 25 and I have two small children. I want to be around for them when I get older…I have hired a personal trainer and I am on a strict but delicious diet, and I feel better than I have felt since High School. This Website I left also has some very valuable informatio. GOOD LUCK TO ALL!
What is you’re limited in the funds you have. I can’t afford fruits and veggies daily. I’m a single mother, with high ldl. I have no health coverage either. So what is out here for people like me? There are more just like me that would love to do something of their health but, it’s hard. I don’t have the funds to hire a health trainer.
Hi Lee,
Rolled oats are really good, you can make oatmeal or simply soak the oats in hot water, add some cinnamon and some natural sweetener or just have plain w/ a little salt. I have cooked my oatmeal in apple juice and/or raisins and water, plus a little plain sea salt. Beans are really good too, high in fiber and not very expensive, esp. if you soak the dried ones overnight (after sorting and rinsing, of course)! There are so many kinds of beans! Then there are lentils and split peas, which just require sorting and rinsing and then cooking – they are so small that no soaking is needed. Vegs tend to be cheaper than fruits, so focus on vegs and have fruits just as a treat. Cutting out sugar is helpful for everything! Increasing your fiber intake, with beans, whole grains, oats, plain shredded wheat, small amounts of seeds and nuts. Call your local health food store and see if they carry bulk items, or your local grocery and see if they carry bulk. Bulk generally is less per pound, plus you can start off small to experiment and see what you like. It’s a matter of changing your tastes, if you’ve been used to a low fiber, usual kind of diet. Eating more fiber, which will increase your elimination, will improve your ldl and slim your waist-line also! I could go on and on : ) Good luck and continue to educate yourself : ) Thankfully we have sites like this and so much more that we can tap into on the web!
ooops! I didn’t mention rice, white and brown, pearled barley (like the kind i had in beef soup when i was a child), millet, quinoa. Check around the whole grains, they keep well (freeze to kill any “critters”) or add a bay leaf or two in the bag for the same reason. Sort then rinse the grain a few times. I cook more than i need for one meal and then just heat up portions when needed. Or eat it cold or at room temperature. Eating like this is less expensive than the “usual”. Oh yes, olive oil is nice too. Avoid crisco and hydrogenated fats..they raise cholesterol. Oh yes, look for tamari and shoyu sauces, it’s like soysauce but all natural ingredients and naturally fermented, it’s great and so tasty on beans and grains! Helps digestion also!
Sounds like a hassle, but it’s well worth it, when you start feeling lighter and happier too ^_^
Learning about herbs, esp. the antiobiotic sort is useful too, like chapparal, echinacea and goldenseal.
These are good for respiratory infections, sinus infections, etc.
There’s so much more! Feel i’m hogging the page, so i’m going now : ) This is just an area that really interests me!
Thanks for the info. I knew about a few of these but there were so many that I didn’t realize could be benifical in my diet to help with lowering my cholesterol.
Thanks again!
Thank you. Very helpful info.
A friend lowered her LDLs by eating lots and lots of apples….Guess there’s something to the “an apple a day keeps the doctor away”… I buy organic apples, but they are not cheap! If you can’t buy organic, at least scrub them with soap and water to take off pesticides.
Another good breakfast idea that is popular in Europe is Muesli..Soak overnight: 2 cups raw oatmeal (I use steel cut rolled oats, but Quaker Old Fashioned Oats is ok) in 1 to 1-1/2 cups Soy Milk, add 2 grated apples (skin & all), 1/2 cup chopped nuts (walnuts or almonds), 2 tbsp raisins, 1 tbsp Honey, ..cover tightly, refrigerate overnite and “instant breakfast”! You also could sprinkle with cinnamin, or top w/yogurt.. Enjoy!
I use 1-1/2 TBSP buckwheat (raw)in yogurt twice a day and it has enabled me to get off cholesterol medication.
do NOT follow the ‘dont eat eggs’ advice give a few posts above me (#2 of the five). i conduct obeisity research in the field of nutrition and genetics at UCD. i say this bc ive read a lot of papers on nutritional affects on the body. the egg avoidance was popular a small while back, but recent research directly contradicts this.
eating eggs lowers cholesterol. do not shy away from them. please read recent research papers. in fact, my coleagues laugh at people that think avoiding eggs is better for lowering cholesterol, so please trust me. spead the news!
thank you!
It’s true, eggs are a powerhouse of nutrition! If you search eggs on my site, you can find some great research I posted on them.
I noticed a bunch of people asked why I didn’t include garlic. Although I’m a firm believer that garlic is beneficial in many ways, I tend to rely on studies and research for this blog. I found too many conflicting ideas about garlic so I chose not to include it in this list. Still, eat up garlic, it has tons of benefits and may very well be helpful in lowering LDL cholesterol.
Thanks for your comments everyone!
have you looked into turmeric?
new studies suggest it’s a potent LDL
lowering properties…
1. ORANGE PEEL is without any doubt No.1. due to its NUMEROUS extremely EFFECTIVE antioxidants. If you just want plain antioxidants you could buy Sulphur dioxide which you can buy at local pharmacy and is used to conserve wine, but without any function in vivo!
So -40%LDL for one ORANGE PEEL a DAY
2. Walnuts (not almonds, hazelnuts, whatever) due to its HIGH ORAC value, Ellagic acid content, Omega3:Omega6=1:4. So -10% for 50gr of walnuts a day
3. HAYTHORN — Splenidid tea really. Cardioprotective since beginning of time
4. Berries, with blackberry on the fist place
5. CINNAMON – ORAC of 180.000. What else to say:) Lowers LDL 27% for 1gr a day
6-10. RUN, JUMP ROPE, or better yet DO TABATA INTERVALS!
-Do not take garlic for LDL. You’ll achieve exactly nothing:) You could lower blood pressure btw.
For hindering lipid peroxidation damage use:
1. Extra virgin olive oil which will substitute saturated fats in LDL particle (Omega 9, oleic acid)
2. Raise Glutathione (WHEY PROTEIN)
3. Green Tea, whatever tea (I prefer common sage, basil and haythorn, all of them huge ORAC)
4. Fruits, plums especially, but berries also, oranges, apples…
5. Brocolli + tomato! great combo
and never forget atorvastatin + aspirin!
don’t try to be too smart. don’t forget atorvastatin and aspirin.
All the best
does folic acid help keep the walls of the artheries in good shape
Dr Caldwell B Esselstyn Jr.(www.heartattackproof.com) is a leading authority on prevention and reversal of heart diseases.
He is the only Doctor in the world with 100% success rate in treatment of heart disease. 25 years back he took 25 patients suffering from extreme heart disease (other Cardiologists had given up on these patients) and treated them. Nearly all of these patients are alive and healthy even after 25 years.
Dr Caldwell suggests: No DAIRY (so no curd as suggested above), NOT A DROP OF OIL in diet (not even extra virgin olive oil), NO FISH and no avocados from the list mentioned above.
I have been a vegetarian all my life yet my cholesterol was high from last 10 years. Within 3 months of starting Dr Caldwell suggested diet, my cholesterol dropped a whopping 40% and is still low after a year.Never felt more better in my life after reading his book and following his advice.
There is strong proof that Soyabean can increase Lipoprotein(A) levels. Lipoprotein (A) is a independent risk factor for heart disease. So possibly Soyabean products should be avoided.
Therefore I avoid Soyabean milk and take Oat milk. The only non-dairy milk, I think, in the UK market without any added oil or chemicals is ‘Oatly’ Organic milk.
No.2 Fruit juices tend to increase Triglycerides level so try to have a fruit instead of a fruit juice.
Slight correction to my above post:
Dr Caldwell had undertaken treatment of 15 patients and not 25 patients as stated above…
wow this was a little helpful, not to much tho
Good article with helpful information and all foods I like. What about green tea for lower cholesterol?
Hi
Tulsi is best herb for cholesterol control.
Garlic too
I was just 27 and 110 pounds when I found out I had hereditary high cholesterol. Everyone should get checked once a year. Thanks for the great eating tips!
thanks for the great info!!!
Very interesting. I have learned a lot and I have made a list of all the food that lowers cholesterol. I will start my special diet tomorrow.Can anyone tell me if I can be off of the drug statin when at my next blood test, I find out that my ldl is decreasing. I don’t want to be on that drug for a long time. Looking for other advices. My doctor will probably say :- stay on it. Thankyou Laurel for your good work.
I’m going to fast track by blending 1 eggs 1 cup of oats, 1 cup of chopped almonds, 1/2 cup of virgin olive oil, 1/2 cup of natural yoghurt, 1/2 cup of cranberry juice. If I can keep it down I reckon in about six months I might lower my cholesterol.
Has anyone heard of espresso raising your cholesteral?
Thanks to everyone for commenting!
Dana, espresso won’t raise your cholesterol because it doesn’t have any animal fats. So, enjoy your coffee! Just, in moderation.
I have not seen any information regarding insoluble fiber; please give me some sources and if it is useful to lower cholesterol levels. Thanks!
Plant sterols are great for lowering cholesterol. There is a brand new all natural, product that has been formulated to lower cholesterol and help fight heart disease.
It is all natural and contains the amount of plant sterols that the FDA states will help lower cholesterol.
If anyone is interested, send me an email at [email protected] and I’ll send you some info. on it.
Tastes yummy! Like strawberry candy!!!
Hi, I see, higher chloestral leads to lipoma, is there a way to stop lipoma building from our body. So, will sweating help to reduce the growth of lipoma, or reduce chloestral.
Thanks,
Yuvaraj
Thanks for the 14 foods list.
I read some others and they go on about cheese, milk etc. I think it depends on each person’s body, as I eat those and my cholesterol is fine. My father’s is up so I came to find something for him, but then again, I eat most of those foods. Weight watchers say no more than 4 eggs a week. But my blood test diet says I can have two eggs a day, so who knows what causes cholesterol in certain people?
I have also known people that have been told to go to the ‘heart tick’ choices of foods. They did and then went back for their next test and it had doubled, so therefore the ‘heart tick’ food is not always the best for everyone. They have been told after three different consultations that their cholesterol levels must be of that level and they are happier with eating the things they normally eat.
Brilliant comments and I would say I am eating and enloying most of the foods suggested,feel great am healthy and loosing the weight slowely but surely the right way!
Routine heart check and labs (no problems I was aware of). Doc phoned while I was at Las Olas in Cardiff by the Sea having fresh lobster. Told me my LDL was too high. Going to have to focus on the 14 foods now I suppose, bye bye lobster
Hopefully, I will do my heart some good. I am told I will have new labs done in 3 months to see if the statin and diet are working. Arrgh, bye bye lobster.
I need to know about fresh fish native to my state, such as, perch, walleye, blue gills, aand bass, as far as lowering my cholesterol (286) everybody says salmon, to me its an infomercial to salmon fisherman which is not native to my state.
From my personal experience, I think brown rice also helps. All cooking oils should be stopped and replaced by extra virgin olive oil. But olive oil should be used in its raw form without heating it.
thanks!!!! recently found out my cholesterol is borderline high, so these foods will definitely help!!!
Ive been searching for days for a site like this, thank you all so much for this site & comments!! My husband is at my side and we will grocery shop tomorrow for your recommended food items. THANKS =)
I’m about to die worring about my cholesterol I have a blood disorder and now high lipid levels in my blood. I’m freaking out what should I do I got a long list of foods to start eating and a lot of instructions on how to eat and take better care of myself but nothing is working I need some good advice and soon I don’t want surgery or anything like that I’m only 18 and my life has just begun I need help
Lose the fish and all forms of animal including dairy, yogurt and you might be on to something. Eggs are shown to race incidence of breast cancer. Read the China Study by T. Colin Campbell, it will show you the basis and data for the plant based argument. I am a believer.
How can I raise my HDL?
Thanks
i eat ALL of the so called lowering foods and drinks and spices, i eat nothing fried/ no butter and i exercise and my total (cholesterol)is still 226!!!!!
I just found out I have slightly elevated LDL. I am being put on a medication. I do exercise and watch my diet. I can’t eat fried foods anyway but will increase fruits and vegetables. My Dr. believes mine is hereditary. My blood pressure and weight are good. The 14 foods are helpful.