A healthy diet can help to control cholesterol levels.  High cholesterol can be a dangerous health issue that can lead to even more severe health problems.  Before you can understand how a healthy diet and lifestyle can help to control cholesterol levels, you need to understand what cholesterol is and its role in your body.

You should follow us on twitter.

How Cholesterol is good for your Body

While the majority of the information you hear about cholesterol is how it is bad for your body, cholesterol actually plays an important role in your health.  Cholesterol is a fatty substance found in foods.  It is actually something that your body needs to be healthy.  Cholesterol is used by the body to form cell membranes, produce some hormones, and create bile.

How Cholesterol is bad for your Body

The problem with cholesterol comes in when your body gets too much of it.    Your blood carries cholesterol throughout your body to various organs and glands that can use it. This cholesterol is called lipoproteins.  When too much cholesterol is being carried through the blood, it will start to build up in the artery walls.  This buildup causes plaque, which is the cause of many cardiovascular diseases.

As plaque builds up in your arteries, the amount of blood flow can be limited or blocked from the arteries being narrowed.  This prevents blood from reaching vital organs, especially the heart.  If the arteries that take blood to the brain are blocked, this can cause a stroke.

A Healthy Diet can help Control Cholesterol Levels

Since cholesterol comes from the food you eat, a healthy diet is imperative to lowering and controlling cholesterol levels.  It is important to understand that you cannot just go on a “diet” that will ultimately fail.  In order to be able to truly control cholesterol levels, you must make a lifestyle change.  This means, you must change the “way” you buy food, eat food, and cook food.

Making the Choice to Choose Healthier Foods

There are so many foods to choose from that it is sometimes hard to resist those that taste good, but are very bad for you.  Making healthier food choices can not only help to control cholesterol levels, but contribute to your long and healthy life.

• Lean Meats:  Skinless chicken or turkey, lean beef (sirloin, chuck, round, loin), pork tenderloin, or pork loin
• Light Dairy:  Fat-free or low-fat dairy products
• Fiber:  Include 25 to 30 grams of fiber per day.  Whole grain products such as:  wheat bread, brown rice, whole wheat pasta, fruits and vegetables
• Fruits and vegetables:  Include four to five servings per day
• Fish:  Have at least two servings per week.
• Avoid:  Fatty meats, processed meats, sugar desserts, chips, and high-sugar drinks

Guidelines to Control Cholesterol Levels

Not only do you have to eliminate specific foods from your diet, but you must also include new foods that have the necessary nutrients to help control cholesterol.  The following guidelines have been set by The American Heart Association and the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute’s National Cholesterol Education Program to lower cholesterol and to improve heart health.

• Fat – Believe it or not, your body does need some fat.  Just like cholesterol, too much is not good for you.  The total amount of fat you consume each day should be between 25 and 35 percent of your daily calorie intake. You should only take in 7 percent of your daily calorie intake of saturated fat and less than 1 percent of trans fat.
• Cholesterol – For cholesterol, try to limit your daily intake of less than 200 milligrams if you already have high cholesterol.
• Salt – Do not exceed 2,400 mg of salt per day.  Remember to include the salt you sprinkle on your food.
• Alcohol – Women should not consume more than one drink per day.  Men should not drink more than two drinks per day.

Tips to Judge Proportion Size

Remember that you should also pay attention to foods that are known to be “good for you.”  These types of foods have fat and calories.  Be aware of how much of these “good” foods you are eating.

• One cup is about the size of your fist.
• One serving of meat is about three ounces.  Compare this to a deck of cards.

A healthy diet not only helps to control cholesterol levels, but also helps to control your weight.  Add in some exercise a few days per week , and you are on the road to a long a healthy life.  Remember, diets don’t work.  You need to make a complete lifestyle change that includes diet, as well as exercise.

Click here to follow us on twitter and our facebook fan page.

< Prev		Next >

Add Comment