Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is one of the leading causes of death in the U.S. According to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, more than 12.5 million people have CVD and each year approximately 500,000 die from the disease. Diets high in fat and cholesterol are contributory to these numbers. Reducing the risk of CVD involves limiting consumption of saturated fats, trans fats and cholesterol.
Step 1
Avoid consuming whole eggs if you have high cholesterol and limit your intake even if you do not have high cholesterol. Limit your intake of egg yolks to no more than four per week, as recommended by the American Heart Association. However, you can eat egg whites without limit as they do not contain cholesterol.
Step 2
Avoid consuming red meats, processed meats and animal protein with skin. Remove the skin from chicken and turkey and trim visible fat from meats to reduce saturated fat intake. Choose skim milk over whole milk. There are 4 mg of cholesterol in a one-cup serving of skim milk, whereas whole milk has 33 mg in the same-size serving.
Step 3
Prepare meals with olive or canola oils and avoid using tropical oils such as coconut and palm, which are high in saturated fat. Butter, margarine, shortening and lard are fats that are solid at room temperature and can contribute to the elevation of cholesterol levels.
Step 4
Avoid commercially baked and/or processed foods. These include doughnuts, cakes, cookies, ice cream and fried fast food items that are all high in saturated and trans fats, which also raise cholesterol levels.
Step 5
Increase your intake of fiber-rich fruits and vegetables. Fiber contributes to the reduction of cholesterol levels.
References
- "American Fitness" What's Up With Your Cholesterol? Peggy Kraus; Nov/Dec. 2007
- "Sports and Fitness Nutrition," Robert Wildman and Barry Miller; 2004.
