Good and Bad Cholesterol Foods – Important Foods to Raise HDL and Lower LDL Cholesterol Level

Lots of people think that cholesterol is awful for the health. Actually our body needs a smallest level of cholesterol and beyond that it is hazardous. It keeps up the power of the intestinal walls and converts the sunlight into vitamin D while the skin is in direct contact with the sun. To be accurate here are two types of cholesterol; i.e. Good & awful. Good is HDL (High Density Lipoproteins) and awful is LDL (Low Density Lipoproteins). When it comes to reducing its level in the body, the diet is completely about good and awful cholesterol foods. You should focus your diet on lowering the LDL and increasing the HDL.

Here are a little basic fact of Good and awful Cholesterol Foods

1. You must avoid trans fat. This gives a increase to the good cholesterol. For this you have to avoid fried foods as much as possible.
2. A different basic tip is to do the cardiovascular workouts on daily basis
3. You should never smoke or get alcohol as it is the awful cholesterol food that gives adverse result on the health
4. You have to boost the intake of monounsaturated & polyunsaturated types of fat. The foods that are rich in these types of fat are olives, canola oils, fish (a number of particular types), nuts, avocados, etc.
5. Omega 3 fatty acids also help in improvising the HDL & LDL ratio thereby checking the result of good and bad cholesterol foods. there are some fishes rich in these for instance tuna & salmon. You must take them a couple of times in a day.
6. Other foods rich in Omega 3s are fish oil, leafy green vegetables, soybean products, acai berries, etc want to be taken.
7. Taking 1 1/2 cups cooked oatmeal gives you 6 grams fiber each day. You might also like to add new fruits similar to bananas to this. This would add 4 grams more fiber to the diet.
8. You can also try taking steel cut oatmeal, cold cereal ready along with oatmeal, oat bran, walnuts, almonds, etc which are careful to be the good cholesterol food items.

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Understanding Your Cholesterol Numbers

Should your doctor decide that it is time to check your cholesterol, he or she will send you for a blood test, and then wait for the cholesterol numbers to be reported. Plan to spend a little discussing these numbers with your doctor, asking about how you can improve them if that is in fact needed, and ask what your risk is for heart disease.

If your cholesterol numbers are not acceptable, your doctor may suggest that you take prescription medications to help get your cholesterol levels in a better range as quickly as possible. If you do not do this it could lead to heart disease, so consider carefully the medical advice you are given.

Now, if your numbers are reasonable, your medical practitioner may just suggest that you improve your diet, switching to one that is low cholesterol, and hardly contains high cholesterol foods regularly.

Once you are aware of the foods that you should and should not be eating, then switching to good foods should not be a problem, especially as you know that once you are eating better, your heart health is going to be improving, and your risk of heart problems will be getting less.

This is precisely what you want, a strong heart. But along with the avoidance of a high cholesterol diet, you should also be exercising, may be four days a week going for a brisk 30 minute walk, as this will help your fitness level, and your general health.

So, if you are to consume low cholesterol foods , what does that mean you will be eating, and what foods should you avoid? It is necessary to avoid an excess of foods from animals, this means red meats should be consumed in moderation, with only the leanest cuts of meat being considered. Egg yolks are also of high cholesterol, but the egg whites are fine, so think about moving over to egg white products rather than whole eggs.

On the list of not recommended is butter, as it is derived from an animal, so if you still want to in oil, think about using olive oil, especially virgin olive oil. This is less processed than light olive oil which is called that just because it is lighter in color, not lighter in calories.

Oat bran and oatmeal is good for you to eat, and is a great way to start your day. It gives your body soluble fibre, which is also found in barley, pears and apples.

Pulses, or legumes, or dried peas, dried beans and lentils are good for you, because not only do they provide you with soluble fibre, but they also contain plant protein, which is good for the growth of muscles and tendons, as well as good for healthy blood, bones, hair and internal organs too.

Naturally, there are many more foods that contribute to a diet of low cholesterol, but there is limited space here. What is important is to start lowering your cholesterol now, so that you are at lower risk of heart attacks or strokes. But of course, the decision is yours, reduce your cholesterol now, or run the risk of heart attacks and strokes in your future.

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