Five food that fight cholesterol

There`s no denying that a healthy diet is first line of defense against rising cholesterol. If you eat a predominantly plant-based diet - with lots of fruits and vegetables plus some fish - you are on the right track to keeping your cholesterol at a healthy level food. That said, certain so-called super-foods can actually help lower bad cholesterol and/or increase the good cholesterol. Ideally, you want to shoot for total cholesterol under 200, with LDL (the bad one) under 110 and HDL (the good one) greater than 35. Try to incorporate more of these foods into your daily diet :


ALMONDS

Study have found that eating just a quarter cup of almond a day can lower your LDL by 4.4 percent, according to experts. Eating nuts, especially almond, which are high in good-for-you monounsaturated fat, is better than simply eating a low-fat snack like pretzels. Of course, they can also be high in calories, so stick with a small serving and choose almonds that are dry roasted without oil.


OATMEAL

You`ve seen the commercials with people proclaiming dramatic drops in their cholesterol numbers thanks to a daily serving of this hot cereal. Those great results are due to the high levels of soluble fiber found in oatmeal. The soluble fiber binds to the bile acids that are the precursor to the development of cholesterol and help flush it out. It does`t matter how you get you oats - those instant , just-add-water packets are just as good for you as traditional, slow-cooked version


FISH

Omega-3 fatty acids are widely considered to be the best of the "good" fats, and the best place to fine them is in fish - especially fatty fishes like salmon, halibut and tuna. According to experts at the American Diabetes Association (ADA), you want to get 1.5 to 3g per day of omega - 3. A 4-ounce piece of salmon will give you close to 3g, and you can also get these fatty acids from walnuts and flax seed (two tablespoon of flax seed provides 3.5g) and in fish oil supplements.


RED WINE

Not everything that`s good for you has to feel virtuous. A glass of red wine, which is contains flavanols, has been shown to have anti-inflammatory properties that may help lower cholesterol and stave off heart disease. But in this case, more is definitely not better. For women, the recommendation is one of drink a day and for men it`s two. More than that will, literally, dilute any potential benefits. These flavonals can also be found in red grape juice and dark cocoa.


SOY

Soy beans, soy nuts and edamame, plus any products made from soy (like tofu, soymilk, etc.) can help to reduce the production of new cholesterol. A little can go a long way - aim for about 25g of sot protein a day (the amount in a cup of edamame). And those who are at an increased risk of breast or prostate cancer may want to skip it since too much of soy`s phyto-oestrogens can act similarly to the body`s own oestrogens (which has been shown to feed some hormone-dependent tumors)