Concerned with your cholesterol levels? There are ways you can begin to take action in lowering your cholesterol with the foods you eat.
In this post, I’m sharing with you the truth about cholesterol, and 5 simple nutrition changes to improve your health and support your cholesterol levels.
You may have heard about cholesterol mostly in a negative light, however, before you hit the panic button let’s understand first what cholesterol even is…
What is cholesterol?
Cholesterol is a waxy substance produced by the body or within food we eat. While most often we think of cholesterol as a bad thing it actually is a necessary part of creating healthy cells, synthesizing vitamin D, and also is used to produce essential hormones.
While cholesterol is produced in the body, we can also ingest cholesterol from the foods we eat.
When you eat foods that contain cholesterol, your body compensates by making less of cholesterol. In the same breath, when dietary cholesterol intake is low, your body increases cholesterol production to make sure your body has enough cholesterol for essential processes.
Types of Cholesterol Breakdown
Cholesterol is often referred to as either “good” or “bad” cholesterol.
HDL is the “good” cholesterol acts like a sponge, absorbing cholesterol to be excreted.
LDL is the “bad”cholesterol transports cholesterol and triglycerides, LDL when oxidized binds to the wall of blood vessels causing atherosclerosis, or the build of plaque on the artery walls that interferes with blood flow.
HDL & LDL are each lipoproteins, they act as transporters for cholesterol within the blood stream.
Triglycerides are another form of fat in the blood, that is a very powerful indicator of heart health.
Lifestyle risk factors increases your chances of developing elevated cholesterol like…
Poor diet
Physical inactivity
Obesity
Smoking
Family History
While sometimes medication is need to lower your cholesterol. The good news is you can also make improvements to your cholesterol with small adjustments to the way you eat.
5 Nutrition Tips to Lower Your Blood Cholesterol
1. Focus on Eating Whole Plant Foods at Each Meal
Whole plant foods like legumes, grains, nuts, seeds, fruits and vegetables each contain a very special nutrient that most of us are not getting nearly enough of…Fiber!
Fiber recommendations are 25-30 grams daily and most of us are falling short on this goal.
Oats, bananas, apples, berries, Brussel sprouts, legumes like kidney, black beans and chickpeas, are excellent sources of fiber that support lowering cholesterol because fiber acts as a magnet for cholesterol attracting the cholesterol before it reaches your blood stream.
2. Mindfully Consume Carbohydrates
Carbohydrate intake as a whole has a significant affect on cholesterol.
Carbohydrate foods are:
Grains—bread, rice, pasta, crackers, chips, granola bars, cereal, oats
Fruit—Berries, Banana, Melon, Oranges, Peaches, Apples
Dairy—Milk, Yogurt
Legumes—White beans, Black beans, Kidney beans
Sweets—Candies, Cake, Cookies, Brownies
Sugar Sweetened Beverages—Fruit Juice, Iced Tea & Soda
Nutrient dense carbohydrate rich foods are essential for heart health but not all carbohydrate foods are nutrient dense.
Complex carbohydrates provide fiber, and micronutrients like potassium, magnesium which support optimal cholesterol levels. Whereas sweets, like candies, cake, and sugar sweetened beverages lack fiber and have minimal vitamins & minerals.
Instead of trying to cut out carbs, start getting curious about what carbohydrate foods you are eating, and how much you are eating. This way you can build awareness to eventually modify your intake if needed. You may need the support of a dietitian for this one.
3. Choose Heart Healthy Fats
When it comes to fats, it isn’t as simple as labeling good or bad fats. Research tells us an imbalance between omega-6 and omega-3 fat intake has been linked to inflammation and heart disease.
So, eating egg whites, margarine and canola oil was once accepted as “healthy”. We now know this is not true. Choosing fats high in omega-6 fats like canola oil and margarine are not the best option for your cholesterol or health.
Omega-6 fatty acids are found in high quantities in oils like— sunflower, corn, soybean and cottonseed oil.
As for cholesterol from food, research has shown, cholesterol-rich whole foods like eggs, fatty seafood, and full fat dairy make a healthy addition to a diet rich in whole plant foods.
Whereas, higher intakes of cholesterol rich foods from processed meats (like sausage, hot dogs, cured meats), pastries, cakes and deep fried foods can lead to elevated cholesterol, increased inflammation and chronic disease(1).
Plant sources of omega-3 fatty acids like flaxseeds, walnuts, chia seeds, avocado, and algal oil have beneficial effects on reducing LDL cholesterol and improving good HDL cholesterol.
4. Eat a variety of fruits and vegetables.
When you eat fruits and veggies they provide your body with an abundance of compounds like phytonutrients including antioxidants that have a powerful ability to prevent damage to healthy cells in your body, reducing inflammation which has a protective affect on your arteries and cholesterol levels in the blood.
To up your intake of fruits and veggies—focus on eat at least one at each meal. Spoon blueberries into your cereal, grab a handful of spinach to wilt into your eggs, slice up red bell peppers for a snack with yogurt dip or add frozen zucchini to your smoothies.
5. Boost Your Cholesterol Lowering Benefits with Herbs
Introducing herbs into your cooking like turmeric, garlic and rosemary is a tasty way to improve your cholesterol levels.
Curcumin is a compound found in turmeric has appeared to lower LDL and total cholesterol while increasing HDL the “good” cholesterol.
Garlic has the ability to prevent LDL from oxidizing which is what damages the blood vessels. Garlic also reduces inflammation the blood vessels and improves the function of the blood vessel wall to promote optimal cholesterol levels (2).
Rosemary also prevents “bad” cholesterol (LDL) from oxidizing, attaching to and hardening the artery wall.
Need 1-1 support to lower your cholesterol?
Go ahead, share this article with anyone looking for support with managing a medical condition like elevated cholesterol. If you need on-going support to improve your cholesterol, health and well-being go ahead and apply to my nutrition coaching program to get the wellness care you deserve.
Resources
1. Schwingshackl, Lukas et al. “Effects of oils and solid fats on blood lipids: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.” Journal of lipid research vol. 59,9 (2018): 1771-1782. doi:10.1194/jlr.P085522
2. Jiang TA. Health Benefits of Culinary Herbs and Spices. J AOAC Int. 2019 Mar 1;102(2):395-411. doi: 10.5740/jaoacint.18-0418. Epub 2019 Jan 16. PMID: 30651162.
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