Building a good cholesterol level requires reducing the amount of total and bad cholesterol in the blood and increasing the amount of good cholesterol. Numerous foods can help people build good cholesterol levels.
Low risk levels are partly determined by age and gender, but the general good cholesterol guidelines are below 200 mg per dL for total cholesterol, lower than 130 for bad cholesterol (low-density lipoprotein or LDL) and higher than 40 for good cholesterol (high-density lipoprotein or HDL).
Fruits with Soluble Fiber
Foods with soluble fiber lower total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol, according to "The New Pritikin Program" and "11 Foods That Lower Cholesterol," a Harvard University publication. Apples, citrus, grapes and strawberries are loaded with pectin, a soluble fiber that lowers LDL. The fruit with the most soluble fiber is figs, which have 3.7 grams of soluble fiber per serving.
"11 Foods" explains how soluble fiber reduces cholesterol. It says soluble fiber "binds cholesterol in the digestive system and drags them out of the body before they get into your circulation."
Beans with Soluble Fiber
Beans have more soluble fiber than most other foods. Black-eyed peas, for example, have 4.5 grams of soluble fiber per serving. Kidney beans, lima beans and pinto beans also have large amounts of soluble fiber.
Oat bran is the grain with the most soluble fiber---2 grams per serving. Barley and oats also have a lot of soluble fiber. All vegetables have no cholesterol, but eggplant and okra are better than others because of their large amount of soluble fiber.
Fortified Foods
Foods fortified with stanols and sterols lower cholesterol. In recent years, food companies have put these two plant extracts into their products. The most common foods with stanols and sterols are margarine, orange juice, granola bars, rice milk, low-fat cheese, chocolate and cooking oil.
According to "11 Foods," "getting 2 grams of sterols or stanols a day can lower LDL cholesterol by about 10 percent" because they "block the body from absorbing cholesterol." The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) now lets companies claim that stanols and sterols lower heart disease risk.
Omega-3 Fats
Omega-3 fish oil also lowers LDL cholesterol, according to "11 Foods." Fish with a lot of omega-3 fats include tuna, salmon, mackerel, trout, halibut and herring. Eating fish, in general, two or three times per week can lower cholesterol if it replaces high-saturated sat, high-cholesterol meat.
Other Foods
Nuts are listed on the "11 Foods" list of top foods to build good cholesterol because eating 2 oz. of them per day can lower LDL cholesterol by 5 percent. Soybeans are also listed because 25 grams of soy protein per day can lower LDL cholesterol by 5 percent to 6 percent.
The complete list is oats, barley and other whole grains, beans, nuts, vegetable oils, food fortified with stanols and sterols, soy, fatty fish, fiber supplements, fruits with pectin and low-calorie vegetables.
References
- The New Pritikin Program"; Robert Pritikin; 1990
- "The 8-Week Cholesterol Cure"; Robert E. Kowalski; 1989
- "Controlling Cholesterol"; Dr. Kenneth H. Cooper; 1989
