How to Lower Cholesterol?

[DeePrice]

Happy 2014!  What your your best suggestions for menu plans which will support an eating life style to lower cholesterol?  My husband had a physical at the ned of 2013, and they want him to significantly lower his cholesterol before his next 6 month check up.  However, doctors were not offer a clear cut eating plan, and of course I'm the person who cooks his food!  Help me, fellow Fit Biters! 

[steff]

The Dash Diet.   Check out the Dash Diet on line.  It's easy. 

[Odyssey13]

Your husband is fortunate to have such a caring wife. Diet and exercise can do a lot. When my husband was told he needed to go on medication for high cholesterol, he asked if there was a more natural alternative. He started taking Red Yeast Rice before he went to bed each night. It has helped him when diet and exercise weren't getting the numbers low enough.

Cholesterol is in so many things we use on a daily basis. If he drinks coffee, it's in the creamers or milk. He's getting more than the recommended daily cholesterol in two eggs. Even turkey burgers have cholesterol in it. The key is to begin substituting when you can -  egg substitutes aren't bad and you can make french toast with them as well as scramble them. Fat free milk isn't bad and I used to only drink whole milk.

Steel cut oats are great for helping to reduce cholesterol. It's also a filling and nourishing breakfast or a late night snack.

The DASH diet is really the way most of us should eat, if we want to be healthy. Guess you'll be eating this right along with your husband.

As for exercise, does he have a FitBit? If not, maybe you could get him one for Valentine's Day!

[steff]

One caveat about red yeast rice, it has the same side effects as prescription cholesteral lowering medicines.  So, if you use it; make sure you are aware of those side effects, like the muscle aches and weakness, because it can have serious long lasting effects. 

[Odyssey13]

Steff, you're right. I did forget to add that it's like a statin drug, which is why the doctor said it was an acceptable alternative. The doctor also said that it didn't always work for everyone.

[mkp11040]

I had high cholesterol at a young age (16 year old) and needed to fix my numbers fast! Looking at what I ate weekly showed that I was eating way too much processed meats (sauage, bacon, scrapple, etc.) and combining other foods with higher cholestrol (i.e. anything that was once living/breathing has cholestrol in it) which caused higher numbers. My doctors recommended diet and excersise as the main prescription, but gave very little guidance other than that. Monitoring my consumption of mainly breakfast foods helped lower my cholesterol almost immmediately. Now I focus on lighter breakfasts which include on any given day: granola and yogurt, 1/2 cup of fresh fruit, or veggie and fruit smoothies. I would say start with a mealtime (breakfast, lunch or dinner) where you think there is a lot of cholestrol in the recipes you make. Then try and change some of the recipes to incorporate less cholestrol and add foods with more fiber (legumes and beans, fruits and vegetables) and less saturated fat (less butter). For example: If you are making eggs for breakfast, add one whole egg (yoke and whites) and then add just the whites of the second egg. It decreases your total cholesterol and fat from the meal because you eliminated the second yoke which is where most of the cholesterol and fat is located, but you still get the integrity of eating whole eggs (not just the whites).

Other Ideas to decrease cholesterol:

Eat fish or take fish oil pills to add omega-3 fatty acids to your diet (I took fish oils pills for a few years and they have great benefits for heart health and omega-3's show to decrease cholesterol)

Eat more vegetables and fruits (green things are good, higher in fiber and less in cholesterol)

Eat foods higher in fiber

The best medicine is staying active and to keep an eye on your saturated fats (for me it was the breakfast meats and red meat)

[JaySD]

Oatmeal every morning, good stuff, lowers cholestrerol. 

[Goodthrust]

Look at the spectrum diet.... #1 Heart Healthy diet!!! I'm doing it now. Most of my days consist of Fruits and Veggies but I throw in a 6 to 8oz steak every now and then. I've lost 12 pounds and am looking forward to my next cholesterol test...

[Jabrat]

I have lowered my cholesterol by 35 points!  Plan on really getting strict, strict and getting it down some more!  Walked 4,000 miles last year!  I will get there!

[Jabrat]

Thank you for all the information - wonderfully written!!

[gerrymcd]

Red rice yeast is similar to statins, both in 'mode of action' and possible side effects.  But there are potential downsides to using supplements rather than Rx statins ..... the concentration and purity of an Rx statin tablet is very, very tightly controlled.  What ever it says on the the bottle is almost certainly what will be in the tablet.  

Red rice yeast is a 'supplement' and therefore its manufacture is not controlled/regulated by the FDA.  In which case there could be considerable variation in the active ingrediate, depending on batch, manufacturer, etc.  Since the active ingredient in active red yeast is the same as in statin Rx drugs there is a stong case to be made for taking tightly regulated Rx statins, rather than red rice yeast and risking taking tablets with incorrect dosage.  Plus if he opts for statins your husband's Dr will be aware he is taking it and be cognisent of possible side effects (and probably run blood tests to check liver function if health problems arise, etc). 

Admittedly, 'red rice yeast' sounds more natural than taking tablets of (1S,3R,7S,8S,8aR)-8-{2-[(2R,4R)-4-hydroxy-6-oxooxan-2-yl]ethyl}-3,7-dimethyl-1,2,3,7,8,8a-hexahydronaphthalen-1-yl (2S)-2-methylbutanoate....but at the end of the day, its the same thing.

[gerrymcd]

Oh, and if he does take red rice yeast or statins he should avoid eating grapefruit.  Grapefruit inhibits metabolism of either 'medication' in the liver, stoping them from being removed from the body, which obviously leads to an increase in concentration and a higher risk of side effects.

[carl669]

there is no one size fits all appoach as we are all unique.  others here have suggested the DASH diet.  i did my research and i disagreed.  instead, i started eating LCHF (low carb ~30g per day, high fat) 7 months ago and these are the results:  total chol: from 189 to 155, LDL: steady at 89, HDL: from 38 to 45, triglycerides: from 245 to 114.

he needs to find what works for him. don't let anyone tell you any particular diet is the best.  sure, it may be the best for that person, but not for someone else.  as with many things in life, it's trial and error.

oh....and i think most all diets have one thing in common - fresh is always better than processed.

[Odyssey13]

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@carl669 wrote:

there is no one size fits all appoach as we are all unique.  others here have suggested the DASH diet.  i did my research and i disagreed.  instead, i started eating LCHF (low carb ~30g per day, high fat) 7 months ago and these are the results:  total chol: from 189 to 155, LDL: steady at 89, HDL: from 38 to 45, triglycerides: from 245 to 114.

he needs to find what works for him. don't let anyone tell you any particular diet is the best.  sure, it may be the best for that person, but not for someone else.  as with many things in life, it's trial and error.

oh....and i think most all diets have one thing in common - fresh is always better than processed.

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@carl669  I thought a low carb, low fat diet was preferred, but your numbers clearly show it's working for you. High fat? Is there a site you used to read on this? It's completely opposite from what the doctor told my husband to do to lower his cholesterol.

[warden204]

Hi DeePrice, I lowered my cholesterol 15 points in 6 months by exercise and I added Flax seed to my diet. I use 2 tablespoons per day,everyday.

[carl669]

@Odyssey13:  there's quite a few sites that i read, but here's a couple sites that i look at more regularly.  i like these sites because they're not trying to sell me any products.

http://www.dietdoctor.com/faq

http://www.dietdoctor.com/lchf

this one has a nice multi-part segment on cholesterol. it's very heavy on the sciense, so i usually have to read the posts a few times to understand what he's saying.

http://eatingacademy.com/nutrition/the-straight-dope-on-cholesterol-part-i

for recipes, i like:

http://nomnompaleo.com/recipeindex

http://www.marksdailyapple.com (he does sell his own line of product, but there's plenty of free recipes and free information)

just remember, high fat means good fats.  olive oil, organic/grass-fed butter, organic grass fed beef etc.  it can be more expensive, so do the best your budget allows for.  

[Odyssey13]

@carl669  Thanks for the links. I was trying to understand high fat, since the doctor told my husband to only do low fat. I'll be doing some reading and studying. Thanks again.