The health of your circulatory system -- your heart, blood vessels and blood -- is highly dependent on the foods you eat. Foods high in saturated fat, trans fats and cholesterol increase the concentration of cholesterol circulating in your blood. This facilitates plaque buildup on the walls of your arteries. Hardened plaque decreases the size of the opening through which blood can flow through. Nerve, heart and brain damage may result from circulatory problems due to obstructed or narrowed arteries.
Step 1
Leave the shrimp in the river or in the seafood department of your local grocer; a 3 ½ oz. serving of shrimp contains practically all the cholesterol you should eat on a low-cholesterol diet.
Step 2
Replace butter with cholesterol-lowering margarine, reducing your intake of saturated fat.
Step 3
Brown lean ground meat then drain through a colander. Rinse the meat under hot running water, eliminating even more fat from your lean ground meat.
Step 4
Eat, drink and cook with low-fat and fat-free dairy products, significantly decreasing your intake of saturated fat.
Step 5
Scramble up a fat-free and cholesterol free egg substitute instead of using whole eggs because a single egg yolk contains more than 200 mg of cholesterol. Make "fried" eggs using three egg whites instead of one or two whole eggs.
Step 6
Serve and enjoy fresh, baked or infused fruit for dessert instead of chocolate chip cookies or chocolate cake; cookies, cakes and many flour-based treats contain butter or shortening which are much higher in saturated and trans fats compared to dark chocolate.
Step 7
Avoid spareribs, breaded meats, hot dogs, organ meats and bacon as these sources of protein are very high in saturated fat. Replace these fatty meats with legumes, soy burgers, tofu, skinless poultry, very lean meats and fatty fish like salmon or mackerel; fatty fish have omega-3 fats which lower your bad cholesterol and raise your good cholesterol.
Step 8
Steer clear of nondairy creamers, hydrogenated shortening, hydrogenated margarine, coconut, palm oils, cream sauces and gravy as such foods are high trans fat and saturated fat.
Step 9
Cook and bake with olive oil instead of solid fats and vegetable oil because the monounsaturated fat in olive oil actually decreases your bad cholesterol level or LDL, according to a 2007 article by Janet Bond Brill, Ph.D., R.D., published in "ACSM's Health & Fitness Journal."
Tips and Warnings
- If you must eat out, review the nutritional data of the restaurant you will be visiting. Choose dishes made of lean, grilled proteins, steamed vegetables and a plain, sweet potato.
- A diet high in fatty foods can disrupt circulation in your limbs which can potentially lead to limb amputation.
Things You'll Need
- Cholesterol-lowering margarine
- Fat-free and cholesterol-free egg substitute
- Egg whites
- Fruit
- Legumes
- Soy burgers
- Skinless poultry
- Very lean meats
- Salmon
- Mackerel
- Olive oil
References
- "ACSM's Health & Fitness Journal"; Eat Like You're in Crete: Teach Your Clients the Benefits of the Mediterranean Diet; Janet Bond Brill, Ph.D., R.D.; September/October 2007
- Mayo Clinic: Heart-Healthy Diet: 8 Steps to Prevent Heart Disease
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