Foods To Lower Cholesterol
Eat yourself healthy: Five foods that actively lower your cholesterol
Raised cholesterol can increase the risk of stroke, heart attack and coronary heart disease, affecting around half of Brits in their lifetime.
Thankfully, making simple tweaks to your diet can be all it takes to cut the dangers associated with having an excess of fat in the body.
The NHS advises eating unsaturated foods to rebalance the levels of cholesterol in your body. So what should you be eating?
Here are five foods you should incorporate into your diet if you’re looking to fight the fat…
1. Nuts
Swap out your regular snacks, including crisps and chocolate, for cashews or almonds. Nuts are rich in polyunsaturated fats and help to keep your blood vessels healthy. A recent study by Loma Linda University in California showed that people who consumed 67g of nuts a day, or around a handful, reduced their cholesterol by 5.1%.
2. Wholemeal bread and cereals
Another simple change you can make to your diet is swapping out your processed products for wholegrain alternatives. Fibre-rich foods, including wholemeal bread, can help to lower your cholesterol. If you want to boost your fat-reducing game further, add some beans on top of your toast to keep the heart healthy.
3. Potatoes with their skin left on
While many worry that eating too many carby potatoes can make you pile on the pounds, spuds are a great source of fibre. According to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), adding 5-10 grams of soluble fibre to your everyday diet can help cut your cholesterol by 3-5%.
Potatoes are also free from saturated and trans fats. The carbohydrates are so low in these fat-building nutrients that they are included in the NHLBI’s cholesterol-lowering diet plan.
4. Avocado
Avocados may seem like the health fad of the moment, but scientific research suggests that the fruit can help to reduce your cholesterol. A study from the Journal of the American Heart Association showed that adding some avo into a healthy diet can work wonders. Their research showed that overweight or obese people who ate an avocado daily reduced their low-density lipoprotein, or (LDL) cholesterol.
5. Soya yogurts
Foods that contain soy are packed with proteins that can help to regulate your cholesterol levels. Snacking on edamame beans or soya-based yogurts can help to cut your cholesterol by around 6%, according to Heart UK. As well is this, soy is a good source of fibre, protein and omega-3, which benefits the heart.
For more information about lowering your cholesterol naturally, please visit our HeartSavior page.
Source: www.dailystar.co.uk/health/658264/How-to-lower-cholesterol-foods-diet