Top Cholesterol Lowering Products


Controlling cholesterol level in blood is very important for overall health, for heart protection and for weight loss. By making changes in everyday diet a person can lower bad cholesterol by as much as 10 or even 20%. Healthy food is not as unsavory as one might think: many of the things are delicious, especially if cooked right.

Before starting with certain kinds food, one should reduce bad cholesterol food intake such as products full in saturated fats like meat and some oils and transitive fats like some store-bought cookies, crackers and cakes.

Here are top 3 products that lower bad cholesterol:

1.    Oatmeal and oat bran.

This is one of the major sources of soluble fiber which fights bad or low-density cholesterol level (LDL). In fact it reduces the absorption of it pushing cholesterol right through the body. Besides, some studies have shown that oats have beta-glucan that extracts cholesterol from blood and vessel walls reducing its concentration.

While some people enjoy oatmeal or oat cereal at every breakfast, others cannot stand it. Well, a little bit of imagination helps to find best solutions for everybody. Here are some tips for those who want to try oats in various meals:

2.    Nuts: macadamia nuts, walnuts, almonds…

U.S. Food and Drug Administration has excluded macadamia nuts from healthy food list because of high level of fat. However, this is monounsaturated fat that does not harm people. It does not add weight and in fact helps to reduce low-density cholesterol level increasing good cholesterol. Macadamia nuts also have sterols which were proven to lower LDL as well.

Walnuts contain polyunsaturated fatty acids which improve blood vessels making them more elastic and strong. They also reduce cholesterol level. According to scientific studies, the diets where 20 percent of fat comes from walnuts help to lower LDL by 12%!

Almonds are good for the same purpose. A study described in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association has proven that almond have mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids, sterols, soluble fiber and flavonoids all of which soak up low-density cholesterol and prevent its absorption.

3.    Omega-3 fatty acids and fish.

Fish is one of the main sources of the Omega-3 fatty acids which are good for heart health and lowering LDL. The highest concentration of the acids is in mackerel, herring, salmon, sardines, lake trout and albacore tuna. However, some of these, like mackerel are high in mercury and should be eaten rarely. To preserve Omega-3 one should not fry the fish, but bake or grill it. The American Heart Association recommends eating fish twice a weak for healthy heart and low cholesterol level.

If one does not like fish or has allergies there are other products containing Omega-3. The highest concentration of the acids is in flaxseed which can be found in some breakfast bars or is used in the form of flaxseed oil. Walnuts, soybeans, winter squash, shrimp and scallops are high in Omega-3 fatty acids too.

Not as effective as the above mentioned, but still good for bad cholesterol lowering are such products as apples, cinnamon, beans, garlic, grapes and products fortified with plant sterols or stanols: margarine, orange juice and yogurts.

Katie Jackson

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Posted on June 3, 2009 
Filed Under Cholesterol lowering products and medication

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