Superfoods For Lowering Cholesterol
Remember, a balanced diet can help you live longer and avoid problems such as high cholesterol and diabetes.
High cholesterol levels in the blood can affect the proper functioning of the cardiovascular system. Over time, if you don’t take the right steps to lower your cholesterol, you may develop heart failure and other heart problems. The good news is that you can lower your cholesterol levels by making small changes in your diet and increasing your physical activity. Remember, by eating a balanced diet, you can avoid other problems such as high cholesterol, diabetes and live longer.
Foods to eat to maintain optimal levels of good and bad cholesterol include.
Oatmeal
Are you one of those people whose breakfast includes a good bowl of oatmeal? If not, then you know that oatmeal is one of the friendliest grains you can find. Its high fatty acid content prevents the intestines from absorbing linoleic acid and phytosterols.
This is because phytosterols contain the right amount of B vitamins, phosphorus and magnesium. These three elements help lower bad cholesterol or LDL and control total cholesterol.
Linoleic acid strengthens the body’s defenses, improves the nervous and visual system, controls cholesterol, and acts as a fat-reducing agent at the same time. Because of these benefits, we recommend that you include oatmeal in your diet. You can eat them in homemade bread, yogurt, bars, or with milk, cinnamon, and honey.
Walnuts.
Maybe you are avoiding nuts because you think the natural fats in nuts raise your bad cholesterol levels. If this is the case, then you should know that this is a misconception.
While nuts do contain fatty acids, polyunsaturated fats are exactly the type of fat we should be eating. If you suffer from high cholesterol, you should know that the omega-3 fatty acids in nuts help regulate LDL, bad cholesterol, and triglycerides.
Look at how many nuts you eat; you shouldn’t eat more than 10 nuts a day. Nuts can be eaten alone or in desserts, with yogurt or fruit, or in salads.
Beans
According to a study published in the Journal of Nutrition, eating half a cup of cooked dried beans can help lower bad cholesterol levels. It is important to remember to also implement changes such as increased exercise. Reducing the intake of high-fat foods was also mentioned.
Eating only half a cup of beans may sound boring, but you can mix them with some vegetables to make a salad. Change or add a new vegetable each day to keep it interesting.
Olive oil
This is one of the basic ingredients in any kitchen. While there are other inexpensive oils, try to include olive oil in recipes to help control cholesterol. Ideally, you should eat extra virgin olive oil, which is high in oleic acid and contains no trans fats.
Also remember to control the portion size, as olive oil is a fat and therefore provides a lot of calories. The recommended amount of extra virgin olive oil is 5 teaspoons per day.
Use this oil in your salads, fried foods, and when cooking meats. To avoid using excess oil, use a brush to spread the oil around. This way, you will use less and have better results.
Almonds
Are you one of those people who usually look for a good snack to give yourself a boost of energy after a workout? If so, you might want to consider adding almonds to your diet instead of commercial energy bars.
The reason for this is that almonds contain the same fatty acids as nuts, which can also help lower bad cholesterol. It is recommended that you replace fatty foods with nuts instead of including them in your daily diet. By doing so, you can control your calories and benefit from this food.
Soybeans and their derivatives
Soy is rich in essential amino acids, omega 3, omega 6, minerals, vitamin B, fiber, isoflavones and does not contain cholesterol. For these reasons, it not only lowers cholesterol levels but also helps control them.
If you are not already incorporating soy into your diet, keep in mind that there are several options available to you.
Give this product a chance and you will soon discover how versatile, convenient, inexpensive, and easy to prepare it is.
Avocado
For many years, it was believed that avocado was one of the causes of high bad cholesterol. However, we now know that this is nothing but a myth because this fruit not only increases bad cholesterol but also controls it. The avocado provides about 225 calories on average, but its unsaturated fats are responsible for destroying bad cholesterol and increasing good cholesterol.
We recommend limiting your avocado intake to an average of no more than half an avocado per day. You can add them to smoothies for a creamy flavor or to salads for a balanced taste. You can also spread them on toast when you need some energy.
