Diet for lowering cholesterol?

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kadybug97
kadybug97 Posts: 33 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Recently just found out from my doctor that my cholesterol is slightly high. She told me to fix this I need to do more aerobic exercise and eat more fruits and veggies and look into diets to help lower cholesterol. I've lost 30lbs this year from mostly low carb, so after a little research, I'm thinking my high cholesterol is due to me eating more protein and fats than carbs, meals aning I've been having a little too much dairy and red meat and it's showing. ( My exercise is not the problem, as I exercise 5-6 days per week, so I need to fix my diet unfortunately )Has anyone had success getting a healthier cholesterol doing a high carb and low fat diet? Any foods you stay away from? To those who have a healthy cholesterol, what do your eating habits look like?
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Replies

  • pinggolfer96
    pinggolfer96 Posts: 2,248 Member
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    Are you over weight? Sometimes it's not the food as much as it is the quantity and your health in terms of your weight. If you look up the Twinkie diet study, he actually decreased his LDL cholesterol and increased his hdl just by eating twinkies in a deficit. Not saying that's going to work for everyone but it's just an example it's not always the food you eat. What are your body stats and health history?? Did your parents suffer as well?
  • Howdoyoufeeltoday
    Howdoyoufeeltoday Posts: 481 Member
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    Try to limit fructose. So sugars and fruit. They turn in to triglycerides when not used up. Mine is high so my doctor told me to limit fruits and candy and then do a blood test in two months. So good luck to ya!!
  • kadybug97
    kadybug97 Posts: 33 Member
    edited October 2016
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    @pinggolfer96 I am in the optimal weight range for my age and height currently. I lost 30 lbs this year and was 20 lbs overweight. I could probably lose another 5-10 though
  • brandiuntz
    brandiuntz Posts: 2,717 Member
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    My cholesterol eventually came into normal range by increasing exercise ( a mix of running and weightlifting) and adjusting my diet. I don't eat high carb (nor low). I do focus my carb intake on vegetables. I do get a lot of protein, fiber, and the fat that naturally comes with a lot of protein.
  • Chunkahlunkah
    Chunkahlunkah Posts: 373 Member
    edited October 2016
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    Have you had a lipid panel done in the past, and it's now higher? Or was this your first one?

    I have very low cholesterol overall, and the good kind, HDL, is higher than the harmful kind, LDL. I'm not sure how much of that I can attribute to my diet though. I believe a lot of it is genetic.

    As far as what I eat that I think likely helped the most:
    Soluble Fiber. Oatmeal, beans, and/or apples on pretty much a daily basis.
    Lowish carb and sugar.

    I also eat avocados or nuts on most days.

    I eat dairy every day. Sometimes I'll eat red meat a few times a week, and other times I'll go a few weeks without it. I don't purposely abstain from it, just happens.

    I eat a ton of eggs and always with the yoke.
  • elisa123gal
    elisa123gal Posts: 4,287 Member
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    I'd google cholesterol lowering foods. I know oatmeal is one. I read it can bring numbers down 11 points. And the person who mentioned adding fiber is right too…so yes.. beans. Also don't forget your healthy fats…add those and don't get confused thinking they're the bad type of cholesterol. Olive oil, nuts, omega 3's in fish.
  • jordan_bowden
    jordan_bowden Posts: 90 Member
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    I highly recommend the high carb, low fat vegan diet!! It is virtually near impossible to suffer from high cholesterol when you are eating whole grain, plant based foods. Your energy levels are through the roof, your digestion improves, skin clears, all the while enjoying a lifestyle of abundance and nourishment for your body. I noticed you were eating low carb, which tends to increase a reliance on highly fatty foods which helps your body feel more satiated on less foods. If you are willing to make serious changes to improve your overall health, I cannot recommend the hclf vegan diet enough! If you are interested, even just to try it for a while or have any questions, I would love to answer them.
  • GottaBurnEmAll
    GottaBurnEmAll Posts: 7,722 Member
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    I have genetically high cholesterol and it seems like you might too.

    If losing weight didn't lower yours, and being LCHF didn't work (for some people it does), then you can go the opposite way -- HCLF. In particular, low saturated fat. Think lean protein, whole grains, lots of vegetables. Keep your protein still high enough to retain lean mass, though. My current macro split is 50-30-20 (carb, protein, fat).

    I've been able to lower my cholesterol through eating this way and exercising (running and walking). It's still on the slightly higher side (thanks Dad), but I don't need statins or anything like that.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,393 MFP Moderator
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    If you are want to keep a low carb diet, you can replace SFA with USFA (more fish/nuts/etcc) to see if that helps. Also, increases to fiber (fruits/veggies) may help reduce cholesterol. Some people also don't respond well to high fat diets and it has the adverse effect. So it's possible you will see improvements by adding more whole grains and less fats.
  • J72FIT
    J72FIT Posts: 5,948 Member
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    Howdoyoufeeltoday wrote: »
    Try to limit fructose. So sugars and fruit. They turn in to triglycerides when not used up. Mine is high so my doctor told me to limit fruits and candy and then do a blood test in two months. So good luck to ya!!

    Her trigs are not the problem though...
  • J72FIT
    J72FIT Posts: 5,948 Member
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    I had to lower my cholesterol for a blood test to receive the lowest price for life insurance. I went vegan for two weeks and it dropped like a rock. Got my price :)
  • bigmuney
    bigmuney Posts: 284 Member
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    Vegan works
  • folgers86
    folgers86 Posts: 84 Member
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    I was told no saturated fat if I could help it, take fish oil, and exercise. Worked like a charm.
  • vingogly
    vingogly Posts: 1,785 Member
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    Years ago, I knew a guy in his 30s who had chronically high cholesterol and had had a couple of heart attacks already. His father and grandfather had the same problem and diet didn't help it. That's the influence of the genetic part in action; some people have higher cholesterol than others.

    I've been told the only thing to raise good cholesterol is exercise -- but exercise doesn't really affect the bad cholesterol. Here's an article from the Mayo Clinic on some foods that can help with the bad cholesterol:

    http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-cholesterol/in-depth/cholesterol/ART-20045192
    https://www.scripps.org/news_items/5641-how-to-lower-cholesterol-without-medication
    http://www.webmd.com/cholesterol-management/ss/slideshow-cholesterol-lowering-foods

    I personally have never had a terrible cholesterol problem, even at my heaviest and with high triglycerides from a crappy diet. I won that particular genetic lottery. However, blood pressure is another matter; it's the real killer in my family and is closely linked to my weight. I'm also apparently insensitive to sodium, since I've tried reducing it drastically with no effect on my BP.
  • laur357
    laur357 Posts: 896 Member
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    Fiber + Exercise. Whole grain carbs (farro, barley, steel-cut oats, whole wheat pasta/bread), berries, cruciferous veggies (Brussels sprouts, broccoli), potatoes with skin, etc. can help increase your daily fiber intake.

    As mentioned before, some high cholesterol is genetic - check with your family to see if they have issues as well. Increasing "good" fats may help in some cases too - think fish, nuts, seeds, olives, avocado.
  • californiagirl2012
    californiagirl2012 Posts: 2,625 Member
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    Mine was higher when I was obese, now it's still really pretty high, high enough that the doctor wants me to take statin drugs but I refuse. He's seen what I've done with my health, losing 85 pounds at age 50 and still an elite athlete at almost 56, and he knows my diet and supplement routine, and exercise both cardio and resistence training, and he says there is nothing more I can do. He recommended a book and a couple of supplements and I just do that. I know it will only do a little to bring it down, especially the good quality fish oil and CoenzymeQ10 combo pack I get, but really my living without the statin drugs is a calculated risk only I can decide to take or not.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    I successfully fixed my cholesterol issues and took my LDL from 165 to 93 (as of my last test) and my HDL from a paltry 25 to 62.

    I am not 100% vegetarian, but I eat a substantially plant based diet. I usually eat vegetarian 3 days per week, sometimes 4...this means that I eat a higher carb diet than what you typically would see here I guess. I do still eat meat, usually 3-4 days per week...most often salmon or cod and we usually have chicken about once per week. I eat red meat occasionally and enjoy a couple slices of bacon on Sunday morning.

    But really, my diet consists largely of whole grains, legumes, lentils, potatoes and sweet potatoes, corn, pasta varieties, brown rice, copious amounts of vegetables, a couple servings of fruit daily, etc.

    I also exercise regularly and dropped about 40 Lbs four years ago which I'm sure helped a lot.

    I definitely have hereditary issues where my cholesterol is concerned so I have to be pretty vigilant in my diet and exercise.
  • one1fast68
    one1fast68 Posts: 51 Member
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    Cholesterol will read higher when your tested if you are actively in a calorie deficit. (trying to loose weight as opposed to maintaining)
  • jessicapk
    jessicapk Posts: 574 Member
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    Fiber and exercise!

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