| What can you do to improve your cholesterol | | | | HDL. It is also one of the cheapest drugs available |
| levels? Here's a quick list to get you started. | | | | for lowering cholesterol. But, without medical |
| * Reduce fat in your diet | | | | supervision it may not be totally safe. A dose high |
| Buy the leanest cuts of meat you can find. | | | | enough to lower cholesterol can cause extremely |
| Regularly substitute poultry (without the skin) and | | | | high blood sugar or liver damage. |
| fish for red meat. Both are lower in saturated fat. | | | | * Take vitamin E |
| Switch to low fat cottage cheese and yogurt, | | | | Studies indicate that vitamin E may have a |
| reduced fat hard cheeses and skim or 1 percent | | | | positive impact on lowering cholesterol when |
| milk. | | | | taken in fairly large quantities - up to 800 IU per |
| * Eat no more than four egg yolks a week | | | | day. This is more than you can get from your |
| An average egg yolk contains 213 milligrams of | | | | diet alone. Larger amounts do not seem to cause |
| cholesterol! | | | | any harm. Further studies showed that even |
| * Eliminate fried foods | | | | amounts of just 25 IU per day helps in preventing |
| Don't fry foods. Roast, bake, broil, grill or poach | | | | LDL from sticking to blood vessel walls. That |
| them instead. Use fat free marinades or basting | | | | amount is only slightly higher than the |
| with liquids like wine, tomato or lemon juice. Use | | | | recommended daily amount (RDA) of 12 to 15 IU. |
| olive or canola oils for sautéing or baking. | | | | It's interesting to note that even that small |
| Both are very low in saturated fat. Use diet, tub | | | | amount has an impact on preventing that |
| or squeeze margarines instead of regular. Watch | | | | hardening of the arteries. |
| for the term "hydrogenated," which means some | | | | * Take Calcium |
| of the fat is saturated. | | | | One study indicates that when 56 people took a |
| * Eat vegetables and complex carbohydrates | | | | calcium carbonate supplement, their total |
| Lowest fat foods of all are vegetables, fruits, | | | | cholesterol went down 4 percent and their HDL |
| grains (rice, barley and pasta), beans and legumes. | | | | increased 4 percent. That was taking a dosage of |
| Try substituting some of these for meat and high | | | | 400 milligrams of calcium three times a day with |
| fat dairy products. Don't douse your pasta with | | | | no harmful effects reported. That does refer to |
| butter or your potato with sour cream. Use | | | | calcium carbonate. |
| tomato base sauces instead of cream base. Use | | | | * Take Vitamin C |
| lemon juice, low sodium soy sauce or herbs to | | | | It is the number one immune system booster and |
| season vegetables. Make chili with extra beans | | | | also drives up HDL. A study of people who took |
| and seasonings while leaving out the meat. | | | | more than 60 milligrams of vitamin C per day (60 |
| * Lose weight | | | | milligrams is the RDA) had highest HDL levels. |
| If you are overweight, the chances are almost | | | | * Fill up on fiber |
| 100% that you have a problem with high | | | | As little as three grams per day of fiber from oat |
| cholesterol. You can lower your LDL and elevate | | | | bran or oatmeal can be effective. There are |
| your HDL just by dropping some pounds. | | | | other sources of fiber as well such as barley, |
| * Nuts to you! | | | | beans, peas and many other vegetables. Pectin, |
| Do you like nuts? If you do, sprinkle a few on | | | | which is found in fruits like apples and prunes, |
| your cereal, bake them into muffins or pancakes | | | | reduces cholesterol even better than oat bran, as |
| or add them to casseroles or stir-fries. Walnuts | | | | does psyllium which is the fiber you find in many |
| and almonds are especially good. Eating about | | | | breakfast cereals and bulk laxatives. |
| three ounces of walnuts a day is shown to | | | | * Quit smoking |
| decrease blood cholesterol levels by 10% more | | | | Smoking promotes the development of |
| than an already low fat, low cholesterol diet. | | | | atherosclerosis. Tobacco smoke is actually more |
| * Eat chocolate | | | | damaging to the heart than the lungs. Smokers |
| Aha! All you chocoholics rejoice! Studies indicate | | | | have a higher chance of having a heart attack |
| that the fat in chocolate is stearic acid and has no | | | | (three times greater than nonsmokers) and a |
| effect on cholesterol levels. The chocolate does | | | | greater risk of dying of the attack (twenty one |
| not increase LDL and could raise HDL a wee bit. | | | | times greater than nonsmokers.) Even if you |
| But chocolate is still high in fat and calories so | | | | have smoked for years, stopping now can still |
| don't go overboard. | | | | immediately help combat the development of |
| * Drink fruit juices | | | | atherosclerosis. |
| Apparently some of the non-alcoholic ingredients in | | | | * Reduce sugar intake |
| red wine raises HDL and suppresses the body | | | | Many people don't realize that sugar affects |
| from producing LDL. Purple grape juice works the | | | | cholesterol and definitely affects triglycerides. |
| same way. The LDL lowering effect of red wine | | | | Sugar stimulates insulin production, which in turn |
| and grape juice comes from a compound that | | | | increases triglycerides. Men in particular, seem to |
| grapes produce normally to resist mold. The | | | | be sensitive to this effect from sugar. The |
| darker the grape juice, the better. Grapefruit juice | | | | mineral chromium which helps to stabilize blood |
| does the same thing and it may also help your | | | | sugar, can also raise the level of HDL. 100 mcg of |
| body get rid of nasty plaque. | | | | chromium three times daily can help to improve |
| * Eat garlic | | | | your cholesterol levels. |
| Cholesterol lowering effects of garlic have been | | | | * Exercise regularly |
| demonstrated repeatedly in people with normal | | | | There is positive evidence that exercise can lower |
| and high cholesterol. Eat all the garlic you can. It | | | | LDL cholesterol and boost HDL cholesterol. Both |
| also seems to raise the HDL levels as well. If you | | | | aerobic exercise such as walking, jogging, |
| are worried about the odor, take the tablets | | | | swimming, bicycling and cross country skiing and |
| instead. | | | | strength training like lifting weights or using weight |
| * Take niacin - carefully | | | | machines all promote the improvement of |
| It is proven effective for lowering LDL and raising | | | | cholesterol levels. |