Lowering Your Cholesterol With The Food You Eat
If you have high cholesterol, you should know that your diet can help adjust your levels. While not the only factor to high cholesterol, what you eat plays a significant role in what your cholesterol levels are. So whether you want to control your cholesterol level or bring it back down to a healthy range, what you eat can definitely help. Here is a look at low cholesterol diets and what they can do for you.
If you visit your local grocery or health store, you will see that the number of diets and diet plans for lowering cholesterol are definitely on the rise. This can be good news if you are one of the millions of people suffering from high cholesterol. However, even if your cholesterol levels are within a healthy range, if you are 40 or over you may want to consider a lower cholesterol diet as well, as this can be beneficial to your overall health. Here is a look at what your low cholesterol and low fat food options are and how to figure out what will work best for you.
One of the best sources of information on lower cholesterol diets is your doctor. Your doctor is already aware of your current health condition, as well as any problems you might have outside of elevated cholesterol levels. He or she will also be able to tell if you need additional assistance in the form of medications. In most cases, your lower cholesterol diet will involve reducing the higher fat foods in your diet and making lower fat food choices.
There are a few options of cholesterol lowering diets already on the market. Many work by targeting the amount of fat that you eat. How much fat you eat, particularly saturated fat, has a big influence on what your cholesterol level will be. Here are a few of the most popular cholesterol lowering diets:
? The Mediterranean Diet – This diet focuses on eating plenty of fresh vegetables, fruits, and grains. These can help lower your cholesterol levels as well as provide you with many of the vitamins and nutrients that you need for overall health. Only a small amount of red meat is included in this diet, though you are allowed some dairy, poultry, and fish. Another central part of this diet is the suggestion that a glass of wine be consumed at each meal, so if you have liver problems or do not tolerate alcohol well you should talk to your doctor before starting this diet.
? The Vegetarian Diet – While many people choose to eat a vegetarian diet for a variety of reasons, it can also be very good for lowering your cholesterol. For most vegetarians, meat, poultry, fish, dairy, and egg products are not allowed. Therefore the majority of the diet comes from fruits, vegetables, and grains, with soy, nuts, and seed products being the main source of protein.
? The Mayo Clinic Diet – This diet was designed by the Mayo Clinic medical center for patients who needed to lower both cholesterol and blood pressure levels. Like the previous two diets, it includes a high level of fresh fruit and vegetables, but it is not as restrictive about some of the other food groups.
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