Ways to Lower High Cholesterol

What is cholesterol?

Cholesterol is a fatty substance known as a lipid. It's mainly made by the liver but can also be found in some foods. Cholesterol is needed for the body to function normally but having excessively high levels in your blood can have an effect on your health.

How does high cholesterol affect your health?

Cholesterol can build up in the artery wall and restrict blood flow to your heart, brain, and the rest of your body. It also increases the risk of a blood clot developing somewhere in your body.

Your risk of developing coronary heart disease also rises as your blood's cholesterol level increases. This can cause pain in your chest or arm during stress or physical activity (angina).

High cholesterol does not cause symptoms itself and you can only find out if you have it from a blood test.

What causes high cholesterol?

High cholesterol is mainly caused by eating fatty food, not exercising enough, being overweight, smoking and drinking alcohol, but it can also be inherited. Heart UK has separate information about inherited high cholesterol that starts at a young age (familial hypercholesterolaemia).

Cholesterol enters the body through the animal-based foods you eat, like meat and full-dairy products.

To get your levels under control, it's important to understand that cholesterol travels through the blood by substances called lipoproteins, and there are two main types:

LDL (low-density lipoprotein) is known as "bad" cholesterol because when the body has too much LDL cholesterol, it can build up in your arteries and block the flow of blood, which increases your risk for heart disease or stroke.

HDL (high-density lipoprotein) is called "good" cholesterol because it helps transport LDL cholesterol to the liver, where it can be removed before it builds up in the arteries. The higher the level of HDL cholesterol, the lower the risk of heart disease.

How do you reduce high cholesterol?

Diet

The first step in reducing your cholesterol is to maintain a healthy, balanced diet low in fatty foods -especially saturated fat. Also steer clear of high sugar and high sodium foods that are readily available.
Eat a variety of healthy sources of protein such as peas, beans, lentils, fish, nuts, chicken, and lean red meat. These foods are high in protein and nutrients but low in saturated fat. If you eat red meat, make sure it's lean and watch the quantity. Eat less meat and more plant foods by swapping some meat-based meals for vegetarian options.
Eat some low-fat dairy products or fortified dairy alternatives. Dairy foods contain calcium which is essential for good health. Choose low fat options to avoid the saturated fat. When choosing dairy alternatives, go for unsweetened, calcium-fortified varieties.
Swap saturated fats for heart-healthy fats. Choose vegetable-based spreads and oils instead of butter, lard, ghee, coconut, and palm oil to cut down on saturated fat.
Choose wholegrain options such as wholemeal bread and chapatti, brown rice, wholemeal pasta, or wholegrain breakfast cereals. They contain lots of nutrients, as well as fibre which helps with digestion and keeps you feeling full, so you don’t snack. Choose these instead of white rice, white bread, and white pasta.

Exercise

If you have high cholesterol and you want to reduce it, getting regular exercise can make a big difference. Research has found that regular exercise helps increase the amount of HDL cholesterol in your body, which prevents LDL cholesterol from building up in your bloodstream and blocking your arteries.

A review of studies on the relationship between cholesterol levels and exercise found a strong correlation between healthy cholesterol levels and exercise, partly due to weight loss. It was found that for each kilogram (about 2.2 pounds) a person loses, their LDL ("bad") cholesterol level goes down by about 0.8 milligrams per decilitre.

To improve cholesterol levels, as well as lower your blood pressure and overall risk for heart attack and stroke, you should get around 2.5 hours of moderate exercise or 1.25 hours of vigorous exercise per week. This works out to be about 20 minutes of exercise every day, or 30 minutes of exercise five days a week.

Train with a *personal trainer to ensure that you are using the best knowledge, and after you have achieved success, continue to train at least three days a week

There are several other important health benefits that come from staying active, including helping to: