یکی از اجزای اصلی برنامه کاهش کلسترول خون، رژیم غذایی است با دنبال کردن یک برنامه صحیح غذایی، شما میتوانید کلسترول خون را کنترل کنید. کره، بستنی وغذاهای چرب مانندفست فود ها، کله پاچه و … باعث افزایش چربی های خون خواهند شد. به عقیده محققان،می توان با کاهش مصرف چربی های بد وغذاهای حاوی نمک بالا و نوشابه های حاوی قند، در کاهش کلسترول خون موثر بود.
همزمان باکاهش مصرفغذاهایی که اثراتنامطلوب بر روی میزان کلسترول خون شما دارند، مصرف غذاهای مفید بهعنوان جایگزین، نقش کلیدی در کنترل میزان کلسترول خون خواهند داشت.
بعضی ازغذاهای مفید میتوانند نقش معجزه آسایی در کنترل کلسترول خون ایفا نمایند. علاوه بر آن که طعم بهمراتب بهتری از داروهای کاهش دهنده کلسترول خون داشته و عوارض احتمالی این داروهارا به دنبال نخواهند داشت.
با مصرف پنج دسته غذای کاهش دهنده کلسترول ، می توانید به کاهش خطر بیماری قلبی خودکمک کنید:
۱- چربی های سالم: همه چربی ها بد نیستند. شما به چربی های خوب نیاز دارید. چربی خوب شاملروغن های زیتون، کانولا، دانه کتان، گردو، بادام زمینی و روغن کنجداست.اینچربی ها به کاهش التهاب داخلی، کاهش میزان کلسترول، بالا بردن سطح ایمنی بدن وسلامت سیستم اعصاب مرکزی و مغز کمک شایانی می کنند.
۲- میوه و سبزیجات: سبزیجات سرشار از ویتامین، املاح، رنگدانههای گیاهی و آنتی اکسیدان ها می باشند. آنها با چربی بد خون که باعث ایجاد پلاک دررگ ها می شود، مبارزه می کنند.و در کنترل مهم ترین عامل خطر برای بیماری هایقلبی، حمله قلبی و سکته مغزی، کمک می کنند.
سعی کنید در طول هفته انواعمختلفی از سبزیجات رااستفاده کنید تا بتوانید ازفواید آنها برای سلامتی خود بهره مند شوید.میوه ها نیز منبع عالی از رنگدانههای گیاهی، آنتی اکسیدان ها و فیبر هستند. لذااستفاده متناسب و متنوع ازمیوه ها در کنترل کلسترول خون مفید خواهد بود.
۳- غلات سبوس دار و حاوی فیبر: از موادغذایی حاوی فیبربالا مانند جو ، جو دوسر، گندم و برنج سبوس داراستفاده کنید. این گونهموادغذایی حاوی فیبرمحلول بوده و با کلسترول در دستگاه گوارش ترکیب شده و باعث خروج آن از بدن میشود.
حبوبات مانند لوبیا، عدس، لپه، نخود ، لوبیا سفید و … سرشار ازفیبر و آنتی اکسیدان هستند و در بهبود میزان کلسترول ، مفیدهستند.
۴-خشکبار : خوردن برخی خشکبار مانند گردو ،بادام زمینی و بادام می تواند در کاهش کلسترول خون کمک کند. در هفته شما باید ۲ تا ۳ وعده خشکبارمصرف کنید. هر وعده خشکبار حدود یک سوم لیواناستولی در میزان مصرف خوددقت کنید، زیرا خشکبار حاوی کالری فراوانیاستنکته مهم دیگر در مصرفخشکبار این است که از خشکبار بدون نمک استفاده کنید.
۵-مصرف ماهی: ازغذاهای دریایی بویژه ماهی ها در سبدغذایی خوداستفاده نمایید. البته توجهداشته باشید که میگو تنهاغذای دریایی حاویکلسترول فراوان می باشد و نباید آن را مصرف کنید.درهفته حتما دو بار از ماهیاستفاده کنید. این ماهی هابهتر است از نوع چرب آنها مانند سالمون یا قزل آلا باشد.
نکته: جگر، دل و قلوه حاوی کلسترول فراوانی است سعی کنید خیلی کم از اینگونه گوشت ها استفاده کنید.
پنج خوراکی معجزه آسا برای کاهش کلسترول :
۱- سیب : درمطالعه‌ای که اخیرا در فنلاند انجام شده‌است به یک نتیجه جالب توجه دست یافته‌اند و آن کاهش کلسترول خون با خوردن سیب بوده است. دراین مطالعه افراد به مدت سه ماه روزی سه عدد سیب مصرف نمودندوکلسترول خون آنها به میزان ۲۰ واحد پایین آمد. علت این قضیه به خاطر وجود ماده‌ای به نام پکتین است که به علت خاصیت فیبریی که دارد سبب پایین کشیدن کلسترول می‌گردد. همچنین سیب با داشتن مواد ضد اکسیدان از تجمع کلسترول بد در جریان خون نیز جلوگیری می‌کند.
۲- اسفناج: در کنار دیگر سبزیجات، که برای شما بسیار مفید است، اسفناج با اثر معجزه آسای خود و به دلیل وجود کاروتنوئیدی به نام لوتئین سبب کاهش ساخت کلسترول در خون می‌گردد. با قرار دادن یک یا دو وعده اسفناج درغذای روزانه، میزان کلسترول خود را کاهش دهید.
۳- جو (جوی دوسر) : خوردن یک کاسه سوپ جوی گرم هم لذتبخش است و هم به دلیل وجود فیبرهای قابل حل در آب، سبب کاهش کلسترول شما می‌گردد. پس سعی کنید از جو بیشتر در غذاهای خود مصرف نمایید.
۴- پوست پرتقال: پوست پرتقال به دلیل وجود ماده‌ای به نام پلی متوکسیلیتد (فلاونید که در رنگدانه آن وجود دارد) سبب کاهش کلسترول خون به حد قابل توجهی می‌گردد.
۵- چای سبز: اگر روزییک فنجان چای سبز مصرف کنید کلسترول شما بطور چشمگیری کاهش می‌یابد.
در ادامه چهار متن به زبان انگلیسی جهت مطالعه بیشتر و اجرای دستورات غیر خوراکی معرفی می شود .
Got high cholesterol? Learn what you can do to lower it quickly — starting today.
By David Freeman
WebMD Feature
Reviewed by Robert J Bryg, MD
How’s your cholesterol? If you think that the normal reading you got back in 2004 (or earlier) means you’re in the clear, think again: Levels of the artery-clogging substance often rise with age, and cardiologists say everyone 20 or older should be screened for high cholesterolat least once every five years, with more frequent screenings for anyone deemed to be at high risk for heart disease. If it’s been awhile since your last cholesterol screening, now’s a good time to ask your doctor if you’re due for one.
The good news? If your fasting total cholesterol level exceeds the desirable level of 200, or if your low-density lipoprotein (LDL, or “bad”) cholesterol is above 100, getting it down to a safer level could be easier than you think. In fact, with simple lifestyle modifications — and, if necessary, drug therapy — people often see significant reductions in cholesterol within six weeks. Get going right now, and by New Year’s Eve you could be toasting your cholesterol level rather than resolving to lower it.
Here are 11 tips from WebMD health experts on how to cut high cholesterol fast:
Get Your Personalized Cholesterol Health Assessment
۱٫ Set a target.
You know you’ve got to get your cholesterol number down, but how low do you need to go? That depends on several factors, including your personal and family history of heart disease, as well as whether you have cardiovascular risk factors, such as obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, and smoking.
If your risk is deemed high, “most doctors will treat for a target LDL of less than 70,” says James Beckerman, MD, a cardiologist in private practice in Portland, Oregon. If your risk is moderate, a target LDL of under 130 is generally OK, Beckerman says. If your risk is low, less than 160 is a reasonable target. “The trend now is to treat people earlier, especially if they have two or more risk factors,” he says.
۲٫ Consider medication.
Lifestyle modifications make sense for anyone with elevated cholesterol. But if your cardiovascular risk is high, you may also need to take a cholesterol-lowering drug. Michael Richman, MD, medical director of the Center for Cholesterol Management in Los Angeles, calls drug therapy “the only thing that will work fast” to lower high cholesterol. “Everyone should do the basics, like stopping smoking and losing weight,” Richman tells WebMD. “But these things lower the risk only modestly. They’re nothing to write home about.”
Beckerman agrees. “Lifestyle modifications are important, but we should also be emphasizing the benefits of medicationwhen appropriate,” he says.
Several types of cholesterol-lowering medication are available, including niacin, bile acid resins, and fibrates. But statins are the treatment of choice for most individuals. “Statins can lower LDL cholesterol by 20% to 50%” says Pamela Peeke, MD, assistant professor of medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore.
۳٫ Get moving.
In addition to lowering LDL “bad” cholesterol, regular physical activity can raise HDL “good” cholesterol by up to 10%. The benefits come even with moderate exercise, such as brisk walking.
Robert Harrington, MD, professor of medicine at Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, N.C., urges his patients to go for a 45-minute walk after supper.
Peeke tells WebMD, “I ask people to get a pedometer and aim for 10,000 steps a day. If you work at a desk, get up and walk around for five minutes every hour.”
Whatever form your exercise takes, the key is to do it with regularity. “Some experts recommend seven days a week, although I think five days is more realistic,” Richman says.
۴٫ Avoid saturated fat.
Doctors used to think that the key to lowering high cholesterol was to cut back on eggs and other cholesterol-rich foods. But now it’s clear that dietary cholesterol isn’t the main culprit. “Eggs don’t do all that much [to raise cholesterol],” Beckerman says. “You don’t want to be throwing down six eggs a day, but recent data suggest that it’s really saturated fat” that causes increases in cholesterol. And if you cooked your eggs in a slab of butter, don’t overlook the fat in the butter.
“One of the first things to do when you’re trying to lower your cholesterol level is to take saturated fat down a few notches,” says Elaine Magee, MPH, RD, the author of several nutritionbooks, including the forthcoming Tell Me What to Eat If I Have Heart Disease. “The second thing to do is to start eating more ‘smart’ fats,” Magee says. She recommends substituting canola oil or olive oil for vegetable oil, butter, stick margarine, lard, or shortening while cutting back on meat and eating more fish.
۵٫ Eat more fiber.
Fruits and vegetables, including whole grains, are good sources not only of heart-healthy antioxidants but also cholesterol-lowering dietary fiber. Soluble fiber, in particular, can help lower cholesterol. Beckerman says it “acts like a sponge to absorb cholesterol” in the digestive tract. Good sources of soluble fiber include dried beans, oats, and barley, as well as fiber products containing psyllium.
۶٫ Go fish.
Fish and fish oil are chockablock with cholesterol-lowering omega-3 fatty acids. “Fish oil supplementscan have a profound effect on cholesterol and triglycerides,” Beckerman says. “There’s a lot of scientific evidence to support their use.” Fish oil is considered to be quite safe, but check with your doctor first if you are taking an anti-clotting medication.
Magee recommends eating fish two or three times a week. “Salmon is great, as it has lots of omega-3s,” she says. But even canned tuna has omega-3s, and it’s more consumer-friendly. The American Heart Association also recommends fish as the preferable source of omega-3s, but fish oil capsule supplements can be considered after consultation with your physician. Plant sources of omega-3s include soybeans, canola, flaxseeds, walnuts, and their oils, but they don’t provide the same omega-3s as fish. The biggest heart benefits have been linked to omega-3s found in fish.
۷٫ Drink up.
Moderate consumption of alcohol can raise levels of HDL “good” cholesterol by as much as 10%. Doctors say up to one drink a day makes sense for women, up to two a day for men. But given the risks of excessive drinking, the American Heart Association cautions against increasing your alcohol intake or starting to drink if you don’t already.
۸٫ Drink green.
Magee suggests green teaas a healthier alternative to sodas and sugary beverages. Indeed, research in both animals and humans has shown that green tea contains compounds that can help lower LDL cholesterol. In a small-scale study conducted recently in Brazil, people who took capsules containing a green tea extract experienced a 4.5% reduction in LDL cholesterol.
۹٫ Eat nuts.
Extensive research has demonstrated that regular consumption of nuts can bring modest reductions in cholesterol. Walnuts and almonds seem particularly beneficial. But nuts are high in calories, so limit yourself to a handful a day, experts say.
۱۰٫ Switch spreads.
Recent years have seen the introduction of margarine-like spreads and other foods fortified with cholesterol-lowering plant compounds known as stanols.
۱۱٫ Don’t smoke.
Smoking lowers levels of HDL “good” cholesterol and is a major risk factor for heart disease.
Learning how to lower cholesterol naturally is simple. And these 7 steps to lower cholesterol naturally have a much higher rate of success than the “prevention medications” usually prescribed to lower cholesterol.
Actually, you can probably lower cholesterol better by regularly petting your cat than taking cholesterol drugs. And you’ll avoid all these side effects.
Tiredness and irritability,
Muscle pain and weakness
Loss of memory and mental clarity
Liver inflammation, damage and abnormalities
Depletion of vitally important heart protection nutrients
And long term use can even lead to congestive heart failure.
Plus, “prevention medications” used to artificially lower cholesterol (un-naturally) only decrease heart attack death risk by less than 1½%.
How to Lower Cholesterol Naturally
These are the 7 steps you can take to lower cholesterol naturally. And if you follow all of them, you can count on a very high success ratio.
Eat a healthy cholesterol lowering diet.Some fats help lower cholesterol, while others can raise it. So get your fats right. Reduce overall fat intake, avoid trans fats, limit saturated fats and replace “bad” fats with “good” fats, such as olive oil and those found in whole grains and omega 3 fish. High fiber foodsalso help lower cholesterol naturally. They decrease “bad” LDL and increase “good” HDL cholesterol
Do regular healthy physical activity.At least 30 minutes of exercise a day has been shown to decrease total cholesterol and improve “good” HDL cholesterol levels, while lack of regular physical activitycan raise “bad” LDL cholesterol levels as well as lead to weight gain.
Reach and maintain a healthy weight.Being overweight can decrease “good” HDL levels and increase “bad” LDL and total cholesterol levels. Learn the healthiest weight to aim for by calculating your BMI here.
Eliminate sweets and refined foods.Few realize that eating sweets and other high glycemic foods increase triglycerides and cholesterol production. These foods are also addictive. Once you eliminate them, you’ll find that fruits, vegetables and whole grains actually taste sweet.
Cut out caffeine and alcohol – drink water.Both caffeine and alcohol have been shown to elevate cholesterol. So it’s best to switch to pure water and, at the very least, follow the “no more than one a day” rule.
Don’t smoke or use tobacco in any form.Smoking damages blood vessels, contributes to hardening of the arteries and is a major health risk for heart disease, stroke and other degenerative diseases.
Practice good healthy stress management.Just like cholesterol, a certain amount of stress is healthy – such as with exercise. But the link between excess stress and high cholesterol production is well established. So take time to relax, let go, meditate, enjoy yourself or do whatever it takes to keep your stress level under control.
Use the 7 steps to lower cholesterol naturally to reach optimum levels of:
Triglycerides less than 150 mg/dl.
Total cholesterol less than 200 mg/dl.
HDL “good” cholesterol over 40 mg/dl.
LDL “bad” cholesterol less than 100 mg/dl.
By Rock Sethi
Cholesterol is important for the body cells to function well and to keep them healthy. However, excessive amounts of low density lipoproteins, or the bad cholesterol as we know it, can lead to heart-related illnesses that can cost lives if left untreated. Prescription drugs can correct the problem but at a high cost of terrible side effects. Good news is that you can use foods for lowering cholesterol.
You will need to make a significant change in your lifestyle towards healthy living, selecting foods that lower cholesterol, on the other hand avoiding or limiting eating foods that increase cholesterol.
Drinking filter-brewed coffee can lower bad cholesterol significantly. Studies show that consuming an average of six cups of coffee everyday increases low density lipoproteins, which is bad for your health. Nevertheless, if you brew your coffee with a filter, you can remove the oils that increase the amount of bad cholesterol, making it good to be drunk.
You could have oatmeal for breakfast. Foods with high soluble fiber are great in lowering amounts of bad cholesterol. The dense and fiber-filled properties of oatmeal will help cleanse the walls of your arteries that may have cholesterol. Also, a bonus benefit that you can have from eating oatmeal and grains is that you will be filled up faster, which will help you lose weight at the same time.
Eat a variety of fruits to lower cholesterol everyday. It is very much recommended that you eat at least three fruit servings daily of fruits with different categories and nutritional values. This will make sure that you get all the benefits of lower cholesterol with enough variety in the fruits.
Also, try adding fish to your diet. Salmon, tuna and sardines can make great foods for lowering cholesterol, as they are rich in Omega-3 fatty acids. Eat fish at least twice a week to cut down cholesterol levels in your body.
Nuts can also lower bad cholesterol. Eat one serving of unsweetened walnuts everyday to reduce bad cholesterol levels. As you might not know, walnuts have many good properties in them that you can lose weight at the same time while getting rid of excess cholesterol.
You could also eat beans as foods for lower cholesterol. Beans can add significant amounts of soluble fiber to your daily diet. There are various kinds of beans that have cholesterol-lowering substances. Try adding up kidney beans, pinto, navy, lima, and soy beans to your meals in order to manage your intake of cholesterol.
Keep in mind that your main goal of getting rid of excess cholesterol in your body is to eat foods for lower cholesterol that have lots of omega-3 fatty acids and fiber in them. These foods will help in losing we
Anna Aronson
Anna Aronson began working as a journalist in 2000 and spent six years at suburban Chicago newspapers before pursuing freelance work. She enjoys writing about health care topics, in particular obstetrics, pediatrics and nutrition. She received a Bachelor of Arts in journalism from Eastern Illinois University and is now studying for a Master of Science in medicine degree to become a physician’s assistant.
By Anna Aronson, eHow Contributor
High cholesterol levels significantly increase your risk of developing heart disease, the number one killer of men and women in the United States each year, according to the National Institutes of Health. Too much cholesterol in the blood causes plaque to build up in the arteries, which slows the movement of blood to heart and causes heart trouble. Drug treatments are available to treat high cholesterol levels, but exercising regularly and eating a healthy diet can also help lower levels into a healthier range.
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TLC Diet
The TLC, or Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes, diet is designed to help lower cholesterol levels in people whose LDL cholesterol–or “bad” cholesterol–levels are too high. The diet, advocated by the American Heart Association, focuses on limiting fat intake so saturated fat accounts for no more than 7 percent of total calories and so less than 200mg of total cholesterol is consumed each day. Foods low in saturated fat include low-fat dairy products, fish, lean meats, poultry with the skin removed, fruits, vegetables and whole-grain breads and pastas. Foods high in cholesterol, such as eggs, liver and other organ meats, and full-fat dairy products should be eliminated from the diet. It’s also important for people with high LDL levels to eat only as many calories as they need to maintain a healthy body weight.
Omega-3 Fatty Acids
According to the American Heart Association, research indicates omega-3 fatty acids can help lower blood cholesterol. Natural sources of omega-3 fatty acids include many different types of fish, including salmon, albacore tuna, lake trout, herring and mackerel. Try regularly eating these foods to lower LDL levels. Fish oils containing omega-3 fatty acids are available, but these are generally not recommended for people with high cholesterol levels because of their high calorie count.
Fiber
Soluble fiber is an important part of a healthy diet, and research from the National Cholesterol Education Program has shown it can help lower blood cholesterol levels. You should try to eat between 20 and 30 of fiber each day. Good sources include beans, oats, oat bran, barley and fruits and vegetables such as strawberries, oranges, pears, carrots and brussel sprouts. You can also try using a fiber supplement to boost your daily intake.
Limit Empty Calories
When dealing with high cholesterol, your diet needs to be full of nutritious foods that provide the amount of calories needed to maintain a healthy body weight. Foods containing empty calories–high-calories foods with no real nutritional value–should be avoided. Examples of these foods include alcohol, cakes, cookies and other highly processed foods such as fast food, boxed cake and cookie mixes, convenience foods such frozen dinners and other food items with have preservatives added.
