Age, gender and genetics affect your risk of high cholesterol. Older adults, men and people with a family history of cholesterol face greater likelihood of of suffering from clogged arteries. But, you can reduce your risk and cholesterol numbers with changes to your diet and lifestyle. Although your body need some cholesterol, it makes enough on its own. You don't need to eat any foods that contain cholesterol.
Food Pyramid
The Food Pyramid created by the United States Department of Agriculture provides guidelines both for generally healthy eating and for specific conditions such as high cholesterol. The pyramid recommends that you include six servings of fruits and vegetables, six servings of grains, two to three servings of dairy and 5 oz. of protein in your diet to obtain balanced nutrition. The choices you make among these food groups -- lean chicken or kidney beans instead of red meat, for instance -- can help you control your cholesterol.
Types of Fats
Reducing fat in your diet can help to lower your cholesterol, but not all fats stay in your bloodstream. Saturated fats increase cholesterol and can be found in significant proportions in cheese, whole milk, meat, butter and egg yolks. You should also avoid trans fatty acids, found in margarine, hydrogenated vegetable oils and shortening. Unsaturated fats do not increase cholesterol and are found in most nuts, olives, fatty fish like salmon and sunflower oil. Unsaturated fats remain oily even when refrigerated. Saturated fats melt when exposed to heat but turn to solids when cold.
Diet Choices
Keep your diet low in saturated fat and moderate your overall fat intake. Check nutrition labels for both the amount and type of fat contained in a food. If a serving contains less than 5 percent of your daily value of fat, the food contributes minimally to your cholesterol. You should keep your intake of saturated fat to 20 g per day. If you meet this goal and your cholesterol remains high, you may need to reduce your consumption of saturated fat to 12 to 18 g daily.
Good and Bad Cholesterol
If you've been told to lower your cholesterol, this advice refers to LDL or low density lipoprotein cholesterol. This harmful cholesterol is affected by your diet. If your good cholesterol -- HDL or high density lipoprotein -- numbers are low, you can improve them through exercise. A third type of blood fat, triglycerides, also affects your heart health. If your triglycerides are too high, losing weight and reducing your consumption of sugar and alcohol can help.
References
- Medline Plus: Cholesterol
- United States Department of Agriculture: My Pyramid
- Center for Nutrition Policy and Protection: Nutrition and your Health: Dietary Guidelines for Americans
- Center for Nutrition Policy and Protection: The Food Guide Pyramid
- MSNBC: More Reasons to Cut Back on Saturated Fat
- MayoClinic.org: Cholesterol Levels: A Telling Indicator of Diet and Exercise
