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Many people can lower their cholesterol levels simply by changing what they eat. For example, if you’re a fan of cheeseburgers, eating less meat (and thinner cuts) and more vegetables, fruits, and whole grains can lower your total cholesterol by 25% or more. yet. Reducing saturated fat (found in meat and dairy products) and trans fat (partially hydrogenated oils) can lower cholesterol by 5% to 10%.
Things To Do To Lower Cholesterol
Although diet can be a simple and powerful way to improve cholesterol levels, it plays a bigger role for some people than others. Don’t be discouraged if you’re following a diet but you’re not reaching your goal blood levels. Keep it up. Even if you need medication to control your cholesterol, you’ll likely need less than if you didn’t make any dietary changes.
Great Tips To Lower Your Bad Cholesterol
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How To Lower Cholesterol: 4 Dietary Changes To Make Right Now
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Get helpful tips and guides for everything from fighting inflammation to finding the best diets for weight loss… PLUS, the latest news on medical advances and breakthroughs from experts at Harvard Medical School. In the years after World War II, U.S. doctors and Europe noticed a startling phenomenon: heart attack and stroke rates dropped dramatically in many areas. Autopsies from this period also reveal reduced rates of atherosclerosis, which is a buildup of fatty arterial plaques that cause cardiovascular disease.
At first, the experts were confused. But in the past, many have concluded that wartime food shortages and forced changes in people’s diets—namely, massive reductions in consumption of red meat and other animal products—contributed. to improve heart health. Later work, especially the famous Framingham Heart Study, helped establish that blood cholesterol levels, driven in large part by a person’s diet, tend to overlap with cardiovascular disease. .
What Is Ldl Cholesterol?
The idea that the foods a person eats can raise or lower their risks for bad cholesterol levels and disease was, at first, radical and controversial. While there is ongoing debate about the relationship between red meat and poor health, the links connecting diet, cholesterol, and cardiovascular disease are beyond doubt.
Cholesterol is a waxy compound that your body uses to make hormones and strengthen cell walls. “Our body needs some cholesterol for daily functioning, but the amount that our body needs is relatively small,” said Dr. Laurence Sperling, the founder and director of the Heart Disease Prevention Center at Emory University in Atlanta.
Different parts of the body, including the brain and blood, contain cholesterol. It is the excess supply of cholesterol in the blood, in particular, that causes problems – particularly low-density lipoprotein (LDL), also known as “bad cholesterol. Excess LDL in the arteries “can form a fatty streak , which is the precursor to atherosclerotic plaque,” explained Dr. Francine Welty, a cardiologist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston and former chairman of the lipid committee of the American Heart Association. Therefore, LDL is the main building blocks of arterial plaque.
The two main diseases associated with clogged arteries—coronary artery disease and cerebrovascular disease—are the three leading causes of death worldwide. More than 1 in 4 deaths are caused by one of these two conditions, and managing or lowering your blood cholesterol levels is a proven way to prevent these diseases. Sperling says that good or “target” cholesterol levels vary depending on a person’s age, sex, and health status. But, ideally, you want to keep your LDL cholesterol below 70 mg/dL. While drugs can help people get there—and in some cases may be necessary—he says non-pharmacological approaches are just as important. “Lifestyle and behavior are the foundation of cardiovascular prevention for everyone,” he said.
Why Is My Cholesterol High? Causes, Symptoms, Treatment
Here, experts detail the most effective lifestyle changes to make to lower your cholesterol. A proper diet, they all agreed, topped the list.
One of the biggest trends in food and nutrition advice is a move away from talking about specific micronutrients and optimal daily servings of this or that food group. However, nutrition experts are now talking more about the broad standards of healthy eating. This means limiting some foods while prioritizing others, rather than trying to hit narrow targets.
“One thing I tell most of my patients is that the Greek origin of diet is diaeta, which means a way of life,” Sperling says. “Diet doesn’t have to be torture, or something you stick to for a month. It should be a meaningful and purposeful change that you can extend your life.”
In this sense, he says that one of the most important changes you can make is to pack your meals with more fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts, and whole grains. Many of the most effective and evidence-backed cholesterol-lowering diet plans—such as the Mediterranean diet—focus on these foods, he says.
What Is (and Isn’t) Included In A Low Cholesterol Diet
Meanwhile, reducing your intake of animal products—especially red meat and processed dairy foods—is one step that research has repeatedly tied to improvements in cholesterol. “I ran the lipid prevention clinic at my hospital for 31 years, and the first thing we tell people is to lower their intake of saturated fats,” Welty said. He mentions red meat, butter, and dairy as foods that people should focus on reducing—not necessarily eliminating, but reducing—if they want to improve their cholesterol. Many Americans consume saturated fats, from eggs and dairy products to red meat, with almost every meal. This kind of immodesty is a problem. “The Japanese have some of the lowest rates of cardiovascular disease in the world, and that’s because they eat much less red meat and saturated fat than we do in America,” Welty said.
It should be noted that saturated fat is a controversial topic in nutrition research. Some experts argue that saturated fats are to blame for health problems that are likely caused by processed meats, refined carbohydrates (such as those found in sugary or packaged foods), and the trans fats in fast foods and some snacks. Some argue that if people avoid meat and dairy but eat more processed or refined carbohydrates, that’s a bad trade-off. On the other hand, experts generally agree that trading saturated fats for some of the healthy foods mentioned above—like fruits, vegetables, and nuts—is a very effective way to improve your cholesterol. scores and heart health. “If you reduce saturated fat in your diet, that’s one of the best ways to lower LDL,” Welty says.
He adds that protein-rich soy-based products — from tofu to soy milks and yogurts — can also be good substitutes for meat, butter, milk, and other conventional sources of saturated fat. “People in America are fixated on protein, but Americans really don’t like eating soy products,” he said. This is unfortunate because research spanning decades has linked soy to improving heart health and lowering blood cholesterol levels. “If you need to replace saturated fats with other proteins, soy is a good choice,” he says.
Exchanging foods with claws for foods with feathers or fins is another good idea. “Replacing red meat and pork with fish and chicken is something we always recommend,” says Welty. In particular, fatty fish such as salmon, mackerel, and herring are heart-healthy choices.
The Five Things Every American Needs To Do To Lower Their Cholesterol’ Revealed
On the other hand, experts say that fish oil—a popular health supplement—is not a helpful addition to your regimen. “Fish oil does not lower bad cholesterol,” said Dr. Leslie Cho, director of the Cleveland Clinic’s Women’s Cardiovascular Center. He says that some prescription fish oil supplements can help lower triglycerides, which is why doctors recommend them. But commercial fish oil supplements have been linked to an increased risk for abnormal heart rhythms and should be avoided.
Last but not least, Cho says getting more fiber in your diet — something many Americans don’t do — is extremely important. “Fiber can bind cholesterol in food
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