If your diet includes foods that contain too much cholesterol, saturated fats and trans fats, your blood may have an abundance of low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or "bad," cholesterol and triglycerides, a type of fat. If you want to make heart-healthy changes to your diet, limiting the amount of cholesterol you consume makes a good first step.
Recommended Amounts of Cholesterol
Your recommended daily intake of dietary cholesterol depends on your age, health, family history and lifestyle. If you've had a heart attack or stroke or if you've been diagnosed with arterial blockages in your arms, legs or neck, you should limit your daily intake of cholesterol to 200 mg. You should also stay within this limit if you have two or more risk factors, which include being overweight, being older than 50, having diabetes, having a family history of heart disease or if you smoke. Young, healthy adults can comfortably include up to 300 mg of cholesterol in their diets, according to MayoClinic.com.
Sources of Cholesterol
Animal products provide the source for all dietary cholesterol. Many animal products also contain saturated fat, so if you restrict the cholesterol in your diet, you will likely restrict saturated fat as well. Some meats, such as chicken liver and beef liver, contain more than a full day's supply of cholesterol in a single 3 ½ oz. serving. Water-packed tuna, on the other hand, contains just 10 to 15 percent of your daily limit of cholesterol in a 3 ½ oz. serving.
Low-Cholesterol Breakfast Choices
Reducing dietary cholesterol may mean changing some of your eating habits, beginning with breakfast. A two-egg and cheese omelet contains 484 mg of cholesterol, far more than anyone should consume in a day. But a bowl of oatmeal made with 1 cup of non-fat milk contains just 4 mg of cholesterol and no saturated fat. Whole wheat toast with peanut butter contains no cholesterol; one cup of non-fat yogurt with fruit contains 10 mg of cholesterol and no saturated fat.
Lunch and Dinner Considerations
If you keep cholesterol to a minimum at breakfast, it frees up your choices for the rest of the day. You could eat a lunch that includes a grilled chicken sandwich and a dinner that includes a pork chop and still keep within a 200 mg daily limit -- if you keep portions to 3 ½ oz. If you want to eat a large piece of steak for dinner, you can plan for it by keeping your cholesterol consumption low at both breakfast and lunch. Some lunch choices that contain little or no cholesterol or saturated fat include black beans with rice, a veggie sandwich or a fruit and spinach salad.
