Articles

Lowering Your Cholesterol

Nancy Bennett, MS, RD, CDE

Here are three simple dietary steps towards lower cholesterol:

1. Reduce your total fat intake
The first step to lowering cholesterol is producing less of it. Most people don't realize their own liver makes 75% of the cholesterol in their blood, while only 25% comes from diet. The amount of cholesterol made by the liver depends upon what it is fed and that depends upon what you eat. A diet low in total fat lowers the liver's production of cholesterol. Simple substitutions on a daily basis, like trading mustard for mayonnaise, help to lower your fat intake and your weight (See "Don't diet, Tweak the One You Got").

2. Choose foods low in saturated fats
The second step is changing the type of fats you eat. Some fats, like those found in avocados, olives and nuts, actually increase the good kind of cholesterol (HDL) and lower the bad kind of cholesterol (LDL).

HDL is like "roto-rooter" in your arteries. It goes out to the plaque, scraps out the cholesterol and brings it back to the liver where it is converted into bile. Mono-saturated fats, like canola and olive oil, are rich sources of these good fats.

The culprit in cardiovascular disease is LDL cholesterol. High levels of this form of cholesterol increase your risk for heart attack or stroke. Saturated fats increase the liver's production of LDL cholesterol. High concentrations of this type of fat are found in dairy fat and coconut oil.

You can tell the major type of fat in a food by its form at room temperature: oils are unsaturated (like olive oil) and solids are saturated (like butter and beef fat). What about "partially hydrogenated or trans" fats? These are oils that have been turned into solids. They are found in margarines, shortenings and pre-packaged snack foods. Scientists believe these fats are bad news so read labels and avoid them.

3. Eat more food rich in soluble fiber
The third step in lowering cholesterol is increasing your intake of soluble fibers. These fibers bind bile in your gut and this helps you excrete cholesterol. Oatmeal, beans, apples, pears and oranges can help to lower your cholesterol by 10 to 15%.

Every 1% drop in cholesterol lowers your risk for heart disease by 2%, so a 15% drop in cholesterol drops your risk by thirty percent! The effort is worth it and so are you!