A low-cholesterol diet plan is a balanced meal plan that is low in cholesterol and saturated fat. Several reliable health organizations offer free low-cholesterol diet plans online. The American Heart Association (AHA) provides meal planning, food shopping and cooking tips for a low-cholesterol diet. Actual low-cholesterol, low-sodium daily menu plans are available from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), along with recipes that fit into the daily plans. Since people with diabetes are prone to high cholesterol and heart disease, low-cholesterol diet plans are also available from the American Diabetes Association (ADA).
Step 1
Read the free general tips offered on the AHA web site as an introduction to low-cholesterol meal planning. Print these tips out for future reference. Use the interactive calorie counter available on this site to figure out how many calories you should be eating every day.
Step 2
Choose menus that seem appealing to you from the free, low-cholesterol daily meal plans offered by the NHLBI. Consider your daily calorie limit when choosing menus. Look for any recipes on the site that go with the meal plans you've chosen.
Step 3
Print out the meal plans and recipes you've chosen from NHLBI site. Read through the recipes and meal plans from beginning to end. Transfer any information you need to your food shopping list, or print out extra copies of the diet plans and recipes themselves to bring to the supermarket.
Step 4
Check out the American Diabetes Association's online collection of tips, meal plans and recipes to enlarge and diversify your collection of free low-cholesterol diet plans.
Step 5
Look for simple, free, low-cholesterol diet plans and tips on university medical center sites, such as the University of Rochester Medical Center site.
Tips and Warnings
- Check to make sure sites are updated and new information is incorporated on a regular basis. Use the information and recipes you have collected from websites as a guide to modifying your own recipes and creating your own low-cholesterol diet plans that incorporate some of your favorite foods.
