Today, most of us realize too much cholesterol is not good for us. Increased blood cholesterol eventually leads to blockage in the blood vessels of heart and brain. If left undetected and untreated, it will finally lead to heart attack or stroke. Unfortunately, most of us do not know how much of cholesterol is enough and when to pull the strings on our diet.

Food & Cholesterol 

There are a number of foods in your everyday diet that can alter the fate of your cholesterol. A number of cardiovascular tragedies could be averted and lakhs of rupees could be put to better use. Today, nutritionists believe that one of the fastest and the most economic way to bring down cholesterol is a right diet. Eliminating a few foods and increasing a few others can actually help minimize chances of a heart attack. This exciting new theory promises to bring a complete turnaround in our once clogged arteries.

It would just be perfect if we have a handy guide to the amount of cholesterol we consume and a guideline for selecting low cholesterol foods over high cholesterol ones.

Oat bran for oodles of heart health.

This old fashioned food can do modern day diets a world of good. What’s more, it’s an inexpensive way to keep cholesterol under check. Oatmeal is high in fiber. It reduces the insulin requirement in diabetics and also brings down blood cholesterol. Oat brain is a more concentrated source of fiber than whole oats. You can take a couple of tablespoons daily with a cup of hot low-fat milk or it can be mixed with the wheat flour and cooked in the form of chapattis. It can be had in the form of porridge. You can thicken soup with it. Oats contain practically no fat or sodium, therefore they are heart-friendly.

Live it up with olives!

Here’s a great choice for patients with the heart disease and for those interested in preventing the risk of cardiac disease. Olive oil improves the lipid profile. The mono-unsaturated fats in olive oil favorably alter cholesterol levels. A study conducted in 2,300 middle-aged men from seven countries showed that the death rate from heart disease was exceptionally low in men who consumed olive oil as a major source of fat. Unlike other oils, it boosts HDL, lowers LDL, cuts down the chances of clots and blockages and fights high cholesterol. Since olive oil is a stable oil, it doesn’t get oxidized easily. To get the maximum cholesterol-lowering benefits of olive oil, cut down on saturated fats like red meat and dairy products.

Cholesterol Diet 

To know your daily limit for dietary cholesterol it is essential to get yourself a fasting lipoprotein profile done. The test draws an accurate picture of how susceptible you are to heart disease. Look at this table to see if your numbers fall within the healthy or unhealthy range.

How much should one have?

Cholesterol

A healthy person must restrict his dietary cholesterol intake to 300 mg whereas a person who has high blood cholesterol or one with heart ailment must restrict it to between 100-200mg.

Total Fat

Restrict the total fat intake to 20% of your total daily calorie intake.

Count your cholesterol

Here I have drawn up a list of foods with their portion and cholesterol content. This will help you decide which foods to avoid or have to maintain your cholesterol intake in healthy range.

Clearly, the above table has brought out how removing the high fat portion of chicken, eggs and milk helps bring down the cholesterol content of food substantially. If you may have noticed, both skinned chicken and fish have similar amount of cholesterol, however fish is heart healthy as compared to chicken due to the presence of omega fatty acids that helps lower cholesterol. An important point that comes through is the fact that egg whites, fruits, vegetables and whole grains and pulses have zero cholesterol. Needless to say, one must stay away from any form of organ meats like liver, kidney and brain, which have the highest cholesterol content.

Treating cholesterol with Health Total

While consuming between 100mg-200 mg may be safe for those with as family history of high cholesterol, even 100 mg of cholesterol per day may be too much for those who already have high cholesterol.

Now you will appreciate why your doctor is asking you to make the shift from non vegetarian to plant based foods. Take to heart some of these dietary guidelines and you will find yourself win the battle against high blood cholesterol and heart disease.

Our cholesterol health plans can help effectively treat high cholesterol levels, and increase good HDL, therefore creating a balance in your body. So contact us on our toll free number  1-800-843-0206"> 1-800-843-0206 today to book your free appointment

, and gain freedom from cholesterol.