High cholesterol is one of those silent killers. Without symptoms, you don’t know your levels are high unless you have a blood test. High cholesterol levels can lead to heart disease and strokes, so if you’re in the danger zone it’s important to get things under control. While your doctor’s advice and medication should always be your first step, what you eat can have an effect too. Here are some proven ways you can reduce your cholesterol levels, just by changing what you eat.
First, eat mostly plants
Studies like this one have shown that a plant-based diet is better at reducing cholesterol than a lower-fat diet. Think beyond salad. Plants also include seeds and nuts, whole grains like brown rice, buckwheat and quinoa, fruits and vegetables, roots like potatoes and kumara, and legumes like beans, chickpeas and lentils.
You’ll get plenty of energy and nutrition from these foods, lots of good fibre and healthy fats, and sterols that reduce ‘bad’ cholesterol.
Next, eat foods that lower cholesterol
The humble oat, with its beta glucan, can lower your cholesterol. So can barley, so have breakfast porridge regularly, and stews made from barley. The ‘quick cook’ grains will have fewer nutrients, and could contain added sugar or salt. Pick whole oats and barley for the best cholesterol-lowering effects.
Eat peels with your meals
You might usually peel vegetables – potatoes, kumara, carrots, eggplant. Peeling removes fibre from the food, and you need fibre to reduce your absorption of cholesterol, and lower the ‘bad’ kind in your blood.
So, eat whole foods with the peels on. Even the zest (finely grated peel) off oranges, lemons and limes can be delicious in your recipes.
The right fat, not the wrong fat
Fat is important, but only the right fat. Butter and cream are high in saturated fat and linked to heart disease, as are coconut and palm oils, and many processed oils and foods.
You’ll get plenty of the right fat from avocados, nuts and seeds, olives and oily fish like sardines, mackerel and salmon.
Swap out some meat for healthy legumes
Legumes are chock-full of protein, and also the dietary fibre for your cholesterol levels. If you worry about the hours it takes to cook beans and chickpeas, try the canned versions, and rinse off the salty brine before use. Or invest in a pressure cooker and get perfect beans in less than half an hour.
Beans include soy – tofu, tempeh, edamame (whole green beans), soymilk, and soy sauce. Eating soybeans regularly can lower your ‘bad’ cholesterol.
Nuts aren’t just for squirrels
Eat a wide variety of nuts and seeds, preferably raw with their skins on. That way you get the full amount of nutrients, proteins and fats, and that all-important, cholesterol-fighting fibre.
Be moderate
You don’t have to go vegan to lower your cholesterol. If you currently eat meat with every meal, try one vegetable meal a week, and go from there. The important thing is to eat a wide range of whole foods, so that what one food can’t provide another one will. Who knows? You might actually enjoy your new diet!