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The vital role of your diet in lowering your cholesterol levels
By Dr Zulfikar Bux
Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine
As we are aware by now, elevated bad cholesterols lead to an increase risk of coronary heart disease.
Dr Zulfikar Bux
This means that the higher your bad cholesterol levels, the higher the risk of you getting a heart attack. Having high cholesterol is mostly related to our diet. Changing our diet most often is the best remedy to help adjust our cholesterol levels.
Today we will figure out how our diet can help lower cholesterol levels.
WHAT CAN ADJUSTING MY DIET DO?
You can lower your cholesterol some if you avoid red meat, butter, fried foods, cheese, and other foods that have a lot of saturated fat. But if you are interested in improving your health, it’s best not to focus just on cholesterol. There are changes you can make to your diet that will reduce your risk of heart disease and other problems—even if they don’t lower your cholesterol much.
No single diet is right for everyone. But in general, a healthy diet can include:
*Lots of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains (examples of whole grains include whole wheat, oats, and barley)
*Some beans, peas, lentils, chickpeas, and similar foods
*Some nuts, such as walnuts, almonds, and peanuts
*Some milk and milk products
*Some fish
To have a healthy diet, it’s also important to limit or avoid sugar, sweets, and refined grains. (Refined grains are found in white bread, white rice, most forms of pasta, and most packaged “snack” foods.)
WHAT ABOUT EGGS?
Eggs are okay, but don’t overdo it. The news is often littered with stories about the health benefits or risks of eggs. The truth is, eggs are a good source of protein and do not raise cholesterol much, even though they have a lot of cholesterol in them.
ARE THERE SPECIFIC FOODS THAT CAN LOWER MY CHOLESTEROL?
Maybe. There are some foods that seem to lower cholesterol, but scientists are still not sure. Here are some foods that are being studied:
*Foods rich in omega 3 fatty acids – Foods rich in omega 3 fatty acids include oily fish, and olive and canola oil. These foods seem to raise good cholesterol and might lower certain types of bad cholesterol. More important, studies show that people who eat lots of these foods are less likely than those who eat less of them to have heart disease. If you want, it’s fine to eat one to two servings of oily fish a week (such as salmon or tuna). If you would like to take fish oil supplements, talk to your doctor.
*Nuts – Some studies show that eating certain nuts, such as walnuts and pistachios, can help lower cholesterol and even the risk of heart attack or death.
*Fibre-rich foods – Fibre-rich foods, such as fruits, vegetables, beans, and oats, seem to lower cholesterol and are generally good for your health. Some doctors even recommend fibre supplements.
SHOULD I TAKE SUPPLEMENTS TO LOWER MY CHOLESTEROL?
Maybe. Some research has shown that certain supplements can lower cholesterol. But there is almost no research showing that supplements can help prevent heart attacks, strokes, or any of the problems caused by high cholesterol.
Here are some supplements that might help with cholesterol:
Ï%Red yeast rice – This supplement can contain the same ingredient that is in a prescription medicine to lower cholesterol. Red yeast rice helps lower cholesterol, but the products that claim to have it might not always have much of the active ingredient.
Ï%Calcium – Some studies show that calcium supplements can lower cholesterol. But there are no studies showing that they lower the risk of heart attack or stroke. Some studies even suggest that calcium supplements can increase these risks
Trying supplements should not be your first and only choice to lower cholesterol. Your best bet lies in eating properly and maintaining it over time.
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