At one point or another many of us have been told that we have high cholesterol in our blood and we need to adjust our diet.
Well, that's always good to know, but how exactly does one creat an optimal cholesterol-lowering diet, especially one that fits your tastes and budget enough to live with for life?
First, of course, you should go through the labels on the foods you currently eat to eliminate the ones high in cholesterol and saturated fat. Both contribute to high cholesterol blood levels.
You should counsume no more than 300 mg of cholesterol per day, no matter what your current cholesterol level. When trying to lower blood cholesterol, you should try keeping it below 200 mg per day.
Saturated fat is a bit more difficult to calculate with precision, but keeping it as low as possible is advisable. Basically, one gram of saturated fat for every 100 calories of a daily diet is the acceptable upper limit.
Foods to avoid or seriously cut back on include anything with animal fat for any kind.
This includes eggs, milk, and the fat found in meat.
Additionally, avocados and nuts can contain sufficiently high amounts of cholesterol to cause problems, so they should be restricted as well.
Fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains are all extremely low in cholesterol and can be consumed freely.
However, these alone don't provide necessary protein, and some fat is necessary to any diet.
Subsstitution is therefore necessary to achieve a nutritious and well balanced diet.
Liquid vegetable oils are better than solid, partically hydrogenated vegetable oils, which are better than animal fats.
Lean meat is better than fatty meat, skinned chicken is often better than beef, egge whites are better than egg yolk and so on.
Learning your dietary alternatives is essential to crafting a low cholesterol diet you actually want to eat.
Remember that you don't have to elimiate all high cholesterol foods permanently from your diet. You just have to eat them as treats instead of everyday foods.
In addition, explore the full range of foods open to you, as there are many flavorful alternatives to a diet of unrelieved oatmeal. Creating a varied diet fitted to your tastes and lifestyle is a vital component in maintaining your cardiovascular system and long term health.
