Most everyone knows about the dangers of high cholesterol -- heart disease, heart attack and stroke. You see the advertisements on television for various cholesterol-lowering drugs, and hear the importance of a heart-healthy diet. The question on your mind might be, "How long will it take before I see results?" This depends on your level of commitment. A month might be too soon to see significant results, but adhering to a cholesterol-lowering plan for a month is a solid start on what should be a lifetime commitment.
Behavior Modification
Lowering your cholesterol and keeping your cholesterol within a healthy range requires a change in your mindset -- as well as your eating habits. You must be ready to make healthy eating a part of your everyday life for the rest of your life if you plan to live a long and happy life.
Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes
Therapeutic lifestyle changes, or the TLC diet, is a three-part program consisting of diet, physical activity and weight management to lower your cholesterol. Designed by the National Cholesterol Education Program, the brainchild of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, it is the most effective means of lowering your cholesterol. Although it may take longer than four weeks, you will begin to see results as you progress through each phase of the program.
The TLC Program
The TLC diet is broken down into three six-week phases. During the first six weeks, you make your initial visit to the doctor, and you reduce saturated fats to no more than 7 percent of your total daily calories while reducing your daily cholesterol consumption to 200 mg or lower. If necessary, your doctor will reduce the number of calories you eat each day to aid in weight loss and increase your intake of high-fiber foods. You will visit the doctor again at the end of your six weeks so he can check your cholesterol levels. He may then add 2 g per day of plant sterols or stanols to your diet, reinforce your limitation of saturated fats and cholesterol, and increase your intake of soluble fiber to between 5 g and 10 g each day. These include foods such as oatmeal, grains and legumes. During both six-week intervals, moderate physical activity is necessary to help reduce blood cholesterol. If by your third visit to your doctor, your cholesterol levels are still elevated, he may consider placing you on a cholesterol-lowering medication.
The End Result
How quickly you see these results depends on the number of risk factors you have for heart disease. If you are obese, inactive, have a family history of heart disease or a medical condition such as high blood pressure, you may require more aggressive treatment than someone who just has poor eating habits. Your results depend on these factors, as well. Decreasing saturated fats can reduce blood cholesterol between 8 and 10 percent. Reducing dietary cholesterol can result in up to a 5 percent. Losing just 10 lbs. can lower your LDL between 5 and 8 percent. Increasing soluble fiber can improve your LDL cholesterol up to 5 percent, while consuming dietary sterols and stanols can reduce your LDL between 5 and 15 percent.
