The Best Foods That Lower Blood Cholesterol Naturally
If you are looking for ways to lower cholesterol naturally then there are some great foods that can help.
Before we list some of these healing foods that lower cholesterol I would like to clear up what may be a confusing term - "lowering cholesterol".
So what can be confusing about that, you may ask? Well, there are two main types of cholesterol in our blood, LDL cholesterol and HDL cholesterol, and they have starkly opposing functions.
LDL cholesterol is known as 'bad' cholesterol because it binds with other substances in the blood that form plaques in our arteries which can lead to cardiovascular disease.
HDL cholesterol, on the other hand, is known as the 'good' cholesterol because it actually removes cholesterol from the arteries and therefore help to remove plaques.
Once removed form the artery the cholesterol is sent to the liver and broken down into a substance that is sent to the bowel for elimination.
So, we don't actually want to lower HDL cholesterol levels; in fact we want to do quite the opposite! So when we refer to 'lowering cholesterol' we are really talking about lowering LDL cholesterol.
There is however one more thing to add to the mix - triglycerides.
Trigylcerides are also a kind of cholesterol that can increase our risk of heart disease if their levels in the blood become too high.
So lowering cholesterol in the general sense of the word is to lower both triglycerides and LDL cholesterol.
HDL cholesterol is also a risk for heart disease, but only if its levels are too low! So here are the foods that can help! Tomatoes and their products have been shown to significantly help in lowering overall cholesterol levels.
A FInnish study tested healthy individuals by giving them a daily glass of tomato juice and an ounce of ketchup.
Amazingly, after just three weeks these individuals experienced a drop in overall cholesterol levels and an even bigger drop In LDL cholesterol levels specifically.
Apples are also great foods to lower cholesterol.
They contain two types of fiber called pectin and cellulose, both of which have been show to lower LDL cholesterol levels.
Even half an apple a day can help.
Pectin and cellulose helps by absorbing and quickly moving cholesterol out of the bowel in our feces before it has a chance to be absorbed into the blood stream.
Other fruits such as bananas and pears are also a great source of these fibers.
Before we list some of these healing foods that lower cholesterol I would like to clear up what may be a confusing term - "lowering cholesterol".
So what can be confusing about that, you may ask? Well, there are two main types of cholesterol in our blood, LDL cholesterol and HDL cholesterol, and they have starkly opposing functions.
LDL cholesterol is known as 'bad' cholesterol because it binds with other substances in the blood that form plaques in our arteries which can lead to cardiovascular disease.
HDL cholesterol, on the other hand, is known as the 'good' cholesterol because it actually removes cholesterol from the arteries and therefore help to remove plaques.
Once removed form the artery the cholesterol is sent to the liver and broken down into a substance that is sent to the bowel for elimination.
So, we don't actually want to lower HDL cholesterol levels; in fact we want to do quite the opposite! So when we refer to 'lowering cholesterol' we are really talking about lowering LDL cholesterol.
There is however one more thing to add to the mix - triglycerides.
Trigylcerides are also a kind of cholesterol that can increase our risk of heart disease if their levels in the blood become too high.
So lowering cholesterol in the general sense of the word is to lower both triglycerides and LDL cholesterol.
HDL cholesterol is also a risk for heart disease, but only if its levels are too low! So here are the foods that can help! Tomatoes and their products have been shown to significantly help in lowering overall cholesterol levels.
A FInnish study tested healthy individuals by giving them a daily glass of tomato juice and an ounce of ketchup.
Amazingly, after just three weeks these individuals experienced a drop in overall cholesterol levels and an even bigger drop In LDL cholesterol levels specifically.
Apples are also great foods to lower cholesterol.
They contain two types of fiber called pectin and cellulose, both of which have been show to lower LDL cholesterol levels.
Even half an apple a day can help.
Pectin and cellulose helps by absorbing and quickly moving cholesterol out of the bowel in our feces before it has a chance to be absorbed into the blood stream.
Other fruits such as bananas and pears are also a great source of these fibers.
