A great way to reduce cholesterol naturally is to add more beans to your diet. There are tons of ways to do this (here are some suggestions), but one of the easiest ways is to add them to your main meal. Not only do they help to lower cholesterol, but they’re also a good source of protein, and they help keep you fuller for longer.
Oatcakes are so cheap and versatile – I eat them all the time. I have them for breakfast topped with cottage cheese or almond butter, for lunch topped with tuna or houmous, or as a snack dipped in houmous or with sliced avocado on top. Eating them is a great way to add more fibre to your daily diet, which helps to lower cholesterol. I always carry a packet around in my bag, and have boxes of them at home and at work, and find they work really well as an afternoon snack to tide me over until dinner.
Apples are one of the top cholesterol-lowering foods. They’re also full of nutrients and antioxidants, so an apple a day really could help keep the doctor away. Here are some cholesterol-friendly suggestions to include more in your daily diet:-
These chocolate truffles contain dates, nuts and seeds, all of which help to lower cholesterol and provide tons of nutrients. They also contain 70% dark chocolate, which can help to lower bad cholesterol and increase good cholesterol when eaten in moderation.
Experts recommend eating at least two servings of oily fish a week to keep your heart healthy. Oily fish, like salmon, is rich in healthy omega-3 fatty acids, which help to increase good cholesterol (HDL), reducing the risk of heart disease.
If you’re looking for a super quick and simple cholesterol-friendly recipe for a weeknight dinner, then this should fit the bill nicely! This delicious beef stir fry is high in protein and nutrients, and is also low in saturated fat, making it a great cholesterol-friendly meal.
Most of the ingredients that make desserts taste good, like butter and cream, are high in saturated fats, which unfortunately means they’re not great for anyone with high cholesterol. Luckily though there are lots of chefs and bloggers who have dedicated a lot of time to creating healthy dessert recipes that don’t include high fat ingredients, but still taste great.
I’ve spent a lot of time over the last few months searching for recipes that are cholesterol friendly and still taste good. I haven’t found a huge amount of meat-based recipes containing foods like beans that actively lower cholesterol, so I tend to add them myself or have them on the side.
I really love chocolate, so when I found out I had high cholesterol I was worried that I’d have to cut it out of my diet. Imagine my delight then when I found out that eating chocolate can actually help to reduce cholesterol! There’s a catch though…well two actually. It has to be dark chocolate (70% cocoa or higher), and it has to be eaten in moderation, because unfortunately it’s still pretty high in sugar and saturated fats.