Last updated on October 11th, 2024 at 06:16 pm
If you have been advised to check your cholesterol or have high cholesterol, you may look for natural ways to lower your cholesterol. Or you’re already taking medication and want to ensure your diet is healthy. High cholesterol at a young age can be detrimental to health.
Nevertheless, this list of foods might assist lower your cholesterol as well as those that are bad for it.
Foods you need to avoid
Some nutritionists advise shoppers to stay away from particular shopping aisles. Bypass aisles stocked with cookies, crackers, and other high-saturated-fat snacks. Having high cholesterol at a young age can also lead to other complications. Causes of high cholesterol include junk foods.
In general, avoid products if any of the following ingredients are listed prominently on the food label—
Trans fats
These unhealthy ingredients can be found in packaged snacks, including crackers, cookies, pastries, as well as some varieties of margarine. To see all the fats in the product, read the nutrition facts.
Biscuits, breakfast sandwiches, microwave popcorn, candies with cream filling, doughnuts, fried fast food, and frozen pizza are additional items that frequently include trans fats.
Sugar
Yes, it tastes fantastic. However, the excess may result in issues with cholesterol, weight gain, heart disease, and diabetes. Try minimizing the amount of sugar you consume, especially processed ones like soda, sweet tea, candies, cakes, cookies, etc. Instead, choose natural sugar from food like sweet potatoes and fruits like bananas, watermelon, etc.
Moreover, spaghetti sauce and other fast food products also have added sugar in them. This includes numerous breakfast bars, tomato ketchup, and even tonic water. Therefore, check the label when you go out to buy any packaged food or beverages.
Salt
Your blood pressure can be increased by eating too much sodium. You already know not to consume excessive canned soup and salty snacks. Did you know it can also be found in some fast food sandwiches, chicken, cold cuts, and pieces of bread and rolls?
You might also be shocked to learn how frequently it appears in frozen foods. Read the labels if you’re unsure. Salt is necessary, but it is best to limit the daily intake.
Reduce saturated fats
Official health guidelines in the UK advise that—
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The saturated fat intake of men between the ages of 19 and 64 should be limited to 30 grams per day.
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Women between the ages of 19 and 64 should consume no more than 20 grams of saturated fat daily.
Saturated fats, mostly included in red meat and full-fat dairy products, can increase your blood levels of total cholesterol. The bad cholesterol, known as low-density lipoprotein (LDL), can be reduced by consuming fewer saturated fats. Cholesterol at a young age has become normal now, and high saturated fats are often responsible.
To avoid this, read the labels of every food item you buy from the outside. And limit the consumption of red meat, bacon, and dairy products like butter and cheese.
Limit alcohol consumption
Although drinking alcohol in moderation has been linked to higher HDL cholesterol levels, the advantages aren’t enough to encourage others to start drinking.
If you do drink, use it responsibly. Accordingly, men older than 65 and women of all ages are permitted to have up to one drink per day, while men 65 and younger are permitted to have up to two drinks per day.
Alcohol abuse increases the likelihood of serious health problems such as high blood pressure, heart failure, and strokes.
Fried food
Deep-fried foods are high in saturated fat and cholesterol. An improved option is skinless roasted chicken or turkey, baked potatoes, or baked fries mixed with olive oil. Consider using an air fryer for fried food that tastes lower in fat.
High levels of saturated fat and trans fat, found in fried foods, contribute to the development of arterial plaque, increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease, heart failure, cardiac arrest, and stroke.
Processed meat
In general, you should avoid processed meat due to its low nutritional value and high salt content. Fatty beef or pork pieces are typically used to make bacon, sausage, and hot dogs.
If you are consuming processed meat, choose sausage or deli meat made from lean chicken with little processing.
Red meat
Ground beef, ribs, pork chops, beef roast, and steak are high in saturated fat and cholesterol.
Focus on lower-fat forms of animal protein, including baked skinless or 90% lean ground fowl, as well as lean cuts of beef like sirloin, tenderloin, filet or flank steak, pork loin or tenderloin.
Food to intake
Eggs
Eggs’ cholesterol has a terrible reputation. One egg produces around 60% of the recommended daily intake of cholesterol but only 8% of the recommended daily intake of saturated fat. Vitamin B, iron, and disease-preventing minerals are all found in eggs, which are also abundant in protein and low in calories. Egg whites are a good choice if you need to control your cholesterol because they include a lot of protein without any cholesterol.
Nuts
Nuts are considered a superfood. The amount of healthy monounsaturated fats in them is impressive. It has a high concentration of omega-3 fatty acids, a form of polyunsaturated fat linked to improved cardiovascular health.
Nuts also offer L-arginine, an amino acid necessary for producing nitric oxide, which is abundant in nuts, especially almonds. In turn, this aids in maintaining healthy blood pressure.
Also, phytosterols may be found in nuts. These natural chemicals found in plants are structurally identical to cholesterol and work by preventing the body from absorbing it.
Nuts include the minerals calcium, magnesium, and potassium, all of which may help decrease blood pressure and the likelihood of cardiovascular disease.
Bring in soluble fiber
Soluble fiber-rich foods can help reduce cholesterol absorption in the gut.
Examples include —
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Oatmeal and other whole-grain cereals
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Apples, bananas, oranges, pears, berries, and prunes are all examples of fruits.
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Vegetable beans and peas (legumes) include kidney beans, lentils, chickpeas, black-eyed peas, and lima beans.
Garlic
Culinary and medicinal uses of garlic date back centuries. Allicin, its principal active ingredient, is one of several potent plant chemicals it contains
Scientific evidence suggests that garlic may help reduce hypertensive patients’ blood pressure and may also reduce patients’ total and “bad” LDL cholesterol, but the latter impact is less.
Conclusion
Sometimes more than changing to a healthy lifestyle is needed to lower cholesterol levels. If your doctor prescribes the drug to lower your cholesterol, take it exactly as prescribed and keep up your healthy lifestyle modifications. By changing your lifestyle, you can lower the dosage of your medication.
High cholesterol at a young age may lead this population to consume medicines regularly. Usually, these statins work as a blood thinner. While branded ones are expensive, you can buy generic medicines online for cholesterol from medkart.in.
Alternatively,
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Download the android app from here
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iOS app from here.
Simply upload the prescription and search for key components in medicine. Order online through an app or website and save on your medical bills.
