Barley
Filed Under Lower cholesterol Remedies | Leave a Comment
Man has been growing and eating barley since the dawn of civilization. Yet here in the United States, barley, which has been called the world’s oldest grain, is virtually unknown-overshadowed by rice and wheat and grown mostly to feed livestock and brew beer.
But you don’t have to be a chicken farmer or a home brewer to appreciate barley, especially if you’re watching your cholesterol: A number of studies have found that this tasty grain can help push down elevated cholesterol levels.
The reason? Fiber. Barley is especially rich in soluble fiber-the gluey, sticky stuff that hinders the body’s ability to absorb fat and cholesterol-particularly beta-glucans, the same type of fiber found in oats that has been shown to lower blood cholesterol. The oils in barley may help poke holes in high cholesterol levels as well.
A Fiber Gold Mine
Here’s what researchers have discovered about the cholesterol battling properties of barley. Investigators at Texas A & M University in College Station had 79 people with blood cholesterol readings of 230 milligrams/deciliter or higher follow a low-fat, low-cholesterol diet for a month. These individuals also consumed either 30 grams of barley bran flour or 3 grams of barley oil extract each day. After 30 days, total cholesterol dipped about 7 percent in both groups. What’s more, “bad” LDL cholesterol fell by 6.5 percent in the barley flour group and by 9.2 percent in the barley oil group.
Interestingly, “good” HDL cholesterol dropped in the barley flour group by 7.8 percent but not in the group taking the barley oil. “That’s probably because the barley oil group had a fall in triglycerides (another blood fat implicated in heart disease), which may have increased in the barley flour group,” says William P. Castelli, M.D., medical director of the Framingham Cardiovascular Institute, a wellness program at Metro West Medical Center in Framingham, Massachusetts. In a study led by Rosemary K. Newman, Ph.D., professor of foods and nutrition at Montana State University in Bozeman and a leading researcher of barley, 22 men and women with elevated blood cholesterol consumed either oat or barley flour, both of which were added to bran muffins, breakfast cereals and flatbreads. After six weeks, both groups’ total cholesterol fell 12 points. But the barley-eaters’ LDL cholesterol slid 24 points, from 173 to 149 milligrams/deciliter. By contrast, the oat-eaters’ LDL cholesterol declined 11 points, from 157 to 146 milligrams/deciliter.
KNOW YOUR BARLEY
Here’s a barley glossary to help you distinguish between the most common forms of this versatile grain.
Pearl barley. The most readily available form of barley, added to soups, salads, pilafs and casseroles. In processing, the grain’s double outer husk and its bran layer (along with some nutrients) are removed, and the kernels are steamed and polished. Hulled barley Only the outer husk of the grain is removed, which preserves more of its nutrients. Most people use hulled barley in soups and stews. Pot barley. Part of the grain’s bran layer is left intact. And as its name implies, pot barley is usually added to soups and stews.
Barley flakes. These flattened barley grains are usually prepared as a form of hot cereal but can also be mixed into baked goods.
In an Australian study, 21 men with elevated cholesterol alternated between eating barley bran and eating wheat bran for four weeks each. Both types of bran were added to foods such as breads, spaghetti, biscuits and muesli (a type of cereal). Researchers found that the men’s average total cholesterol was 6 percent lower, and their LDL cholesterol 7 percent lower, when they consumed the barley diet
than when they followed the wheat plan.
Roughage Up Your Diet
Barley boosters insist that the taste of their favorite grain is second to none. “Barley has a nutty flavor that some people really enjoy,” says Dr. Newman. You’ll find the most common form of barley, called pearl barley, in the pasta and rice aisle of many supermarkets. You can find other types of barley, such as pot barley and barley flakes, in health food stores. And if you think the only way to use barley is to add it to soups, think again. You can add this versatile grain to salads, casseroles and side dishes. “You can use barley like any other grain,” says Janet Lepke, RD., a dietitian in Santa Monica, California, and a spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association. Here are a few ideas to get you started.
• Not ready to buy-or cook-barley on your own? Conduct a taste test first. Barley is found in a variety of prepared foods, including soups, cookies, crackers and rice pilaf mix. (Read labels to make sure that the product doesn’t contain lots of fat, sodium or sugar.) Or try breakfast cereals that contain barley, such as Multi Grain Cheerios or Quaker Multi Grain Oatmeal.
• You can substitute barley in almost any recipe that calls for rice, says Linda Van Horn, RD., Ph.D., associate professor of preventive medicine at Northwestern University Medical School in Chicago. That means using it in recipes for stuffed peppers and rice pilaf, for example. Suggests Lepke, “Instead of serving a vegetarian stew over long-grain rice, try using a mixture of barley and couscous.”
• Add pearl barley to rice and to macaroni salad, says Lepke. “Try adding cold barley to a tomato salad flavored with dill,” she suggests.
• For a tasty side dish, the National Barley Foods Council suggests combining 3 cups of hot cooked barley with 1 cup of plain yogurt, 13 cup of sliced green onions and two to three teaspoons of curry powder. Or mix in Y2 cup of crumbled feta cheese, two tablespoons of minced sweet onions, three tablespoons of fresh mint and one tablespoon of fresh lemon juice.
• Add a small amount of cooked barley to meat loaf, suggests Mary Donkersloot, RD., a dietitian in Beverly Hills, California, a spokesperson for the California Dietetic Association and author of 17Je Fast Food Diet. You’ll boost your consumption of fiber while you slash your intake of artery-clogging animal protein.
• If you enjoy baking bread, add barley flour to your favorite bread recipe, says Dr. Newman. But take note: Barley contains very little gluten, the substance that helps give bread its volume. “So the barley flour shouldn’t be more than % to 13 percent of the total amount of flour,” advises Dr. Newman.
• Similarly, if you make your own fresh pasta, try using barley flour, suggests Dr. Newman, by substituting barley flour for part of the wheat flour.
Avocados contain zero dietary cholesterol
Filed Under Lower cholesterol Remedies | Leave a Comment
Avocados contain zero dietary cholesterol, which is found only in animal-derived foods such as eggs, milk and meats. But don’t gobble avocados with abandon: From 71 to 88 percent of this fruit’s calories come from fat. “Using one-eighth of an average avocado in a salad adds about five grams of fat,” says Janet Lepke, R.D., a dietitian in Santa Monica, California, and a spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association. Most people don’t eat more than half of an avocado at a time,
however. “You shouldn’t consume too much of any fat, saturated or unsaturated,” says Wahida Karmally, R.D., director of nutrition at the Irving Center for Clinical Research at Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center in New York City and a member of the American Heart Association’s nutrition committee. So substitute avocados for foods high in saturated fat rather than add avocados to an already high-fat diet, recommends Karmally.
A Little Goes a Long Way
Many people stud their salads with chunks of avocado or add a few slices of the fruit to a sandwich. But you might try these serving suggestions, too.
• Try topping your baked potato with mashed avocado, suggests =:~e California Avocado Commission. A tablespoon of butter contains l 0 calories, mostly from saturated fat. A tablespoon of mashed avo”:J.do, on the other hand, contains 20 calories, mostly from rnonoun saturated fat.
• To perk up baked chicken, “top it with slices of avocado before
Serving, suggests Tammy Baker, R.D., a nutritionist in Cave Creek, rizona, and a spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association .
• The next time you make potato salad, use less mayonnaise and add some mashed avocado instead. You’ll consume less saturated fat “end dietary cholesterol and more heart-healthy monounsaturated fat.
• Slice an avocado in half, remove the seed and stuff the fruit with chicken, seafood or pasta salad prepared with low-fat or cholesterol:ree mayo. To keep the avocado from turning brown, rub the flesh with a little lemon juice.
Note: If you buy avocados that aren’t yet ripe enough to eat, you can speed up the ripening process by putting them in a paper bag and setting them aside for a few days.
Avocados
Filed Under Lower cholesterol Remedies | Leave a Comment
Fattening. Oil-soaked. Hell on the waistline.
If you’re like many people, you might use epithets like these to describe the otherwise tasty avocado. But hold the name-calling for a second. If you’re trying to lower your blood cholesterol, you may want to indulge in this green fruit once in a while: Avocados are high in monounsaturated fat, which is known to reduce LDL, or “bad,” cholesterol. Avocados are especially rich in oleic acid, the same cholesterol-busting monounsaturate found in olive and canola oils.
The only catch: Avocados are extremely high in fat. And consuming too much of any fat, even monounsaturated fat, isn’t a good idea, say experts. Eaten sparingly, however, avocados just might help you chip a few points off your cholesterol count-deliciously.
Going Down, Down, Down
The connection between avocados and lower blood cholesterol began with a hunch: A team of Australian researchers suspected the link and decided to test their theory. In this study, 15 women alternated between a low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet (21 percent fat calories) and an avocado-enriched diet (36 percent fat calories) in which they ate from Y:z to 1 Y:z avocados per day.
After three weeks on the avocado-rich diet, the women’s total cholesterol fell from an average of 236 to 217 milligrams/deciliter, or 8.2 percent, compared with 4.9 percent after three weeks on the low-fat plan. More significantly, however, “good” HDL cholesterol plummeted an average of 14 percent on the low-fat plan and not at all on the avocado diet. As a result, the ratio of total cholesterol to HDL increased 10.4 percent in the women on the low-fat plan but decreased 1–±.9 percent in the avocado-eaters. Avocados may also be a dietary asset for people with non-insulindependent (or Type II) diabetes, for whom consuming too many carbohydrates can cause triglyceride and blood sugar problems. A Mexican study found that partially replacing carbohydrates with monounsaturated fat lowered triglycerides in 16 women with Type II diabetes. In this study, the women ate a baseline diet for one month. They then alternated between two diets. The first diet was high in monounsaturated fat 40 percent total fat calories, derived primarily from avocados. The second food plan was high in complex carbohydrates 20 percent total fat calories. Both diets lowered the women’s total cholesterol slightly. But their
triglycerides fell 20 percent on the avocado-enriched diet, compared with 7 percent on the high-carbohydrate plan. The women’s blood sugar levels were not affected by either diet.
The Great Debate Food or Supplements?
Filed Under Lower cholesterol Remedies | Leave a Comment
Some researchers, including Dr. Blumberg, believe that the DVS set at levels designed to prevent nutritional deficiencies-are too 10w to help fight disease. “Going by only the nutritional deficiency criteria, the DVs are absolutely correct,” says Dr. Blumberg. “But if you ask ‘How much vitamin C do I need to reduce my risk of heart disease, cancer or cataracts?’ you’d get a much different answer than the DVs.” What’s more, some people may find it difficult to even reach the
GOOD FOOD SOURCES OF ANTIOXIDANTS
What do clams, kale and cantaloupe have in common? They’re all orimming with antioxidant vitamins. Here’s a short list of other antioxidant-rich fare,
VITAMIN C
- Broccoli Mangoes
- Brussels sprouts Oranges
- Cantaloupe Papaya
- Cauliflower Peppers
- Clams Potatoes
- Grapefruit Watermelon
- Green peppers
VITAMIN E
- Asparagus Sunflower seeds
- Cereal (fortified) Sweet potatoes
- Kale Vegetable oil
- Liver Wheat germ
- Nuts Whole-grain products
- Pumpkin seeds
BETA-CAROTENE
- Apricots Peaches
- Cantaloupe Spinach
- Carrots Sweet potatoes
- Mangoes Tomatoes
- Papaya Yellow squash
JVs. In fact, a government survey found that just 9 percent of Americans eat the recommended minimum of five servings of fruits and vegetables a day. And it’s difficult to consume potentially therapeutic amounts of some antioxidants through diet alone, say experts.
An important part of the answer, according to Dr. Blumberg, is an.ioxidant supplements. He recommends consuming between 250 and 1,000 milligrams of vitamin C, between 100 and 400 interna.ional units of vitamin E and between 6 and 30 milligrams of beta carotene a day in supplement form. These doses are safe, says I Blumberg. Consuming large amounts of beta-carotene may give L skin a yellow or orange tint in some people, however. Also, taki: large amounts of vitamin C has been reported to cause diarrhe while extremely high doses of vitamin E may cause headaches ar. diarrhea. So be sure to check with your doctor before taking antiox dant supplements.
Because supplements can’t compensate for bad dietary habits, i: crucial to follow a healthy diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grair; low-fat or nonfat dairy products and small amounts of meat, poult:and fish. “Rather than rely on supplements, eat foods rich in antiox dants,” says Dr. Bersot. “They’ll provide antioxidant vitamins as we as other nutritional substances that may be beneficial.”
Pumping Up HDL
Filed Under Lower cholesterol Remedies | Leave a Comment
The studies above did not specifically explore the relationship between blood cholesterol levels and antioxidants. But other research has examined the possibility that antioxidants may help raise HDL cholesterol and interfere with the oxidation of LDL.
“Several studies have shown that if you progress from consuming a relatively low amount of vitamin C-below 60 milligrams a day-up to about 200 to 300 milligrams a day, you’ll experience a dose-relatec increase in HDL cholesterol,” says Jeffrey Blumberg, Ph.D., chief at the Antioxidants Research Laboratory at the Jean Mayer USDA Humar. Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University in Boston. “This might account for some of the benefits of vitamin C in heart dis-
ease.”
A study published by the New York Academy of Sciences in New
York City, which compared the heart disease risks of 696 men and women ages 60 and over, found that consuming more than 180 milligrams of vitamin C a day-over three times the DV-was associated with higher HDL cholesterol and lower blood pressure than consuming less than the DV of vitamin C a day. And at the Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts, researchers found that higher blood vitamin C (ascorbic acid) levels were associated with elevated HDL cholesterol and lower LDL cholesterol in over 1,200 people. Researchers at the University of California, San Diego, conducted two studies to determine the effects of vitamin E and beta-caroteneused individually, in combination and together with vitamin C-on the oxidation of LDL. In the first phase of the study, eight people consumed 60 milligrams of beta-carotene per day for three months. Then for another three months, these folks added 1,600 international units of vitamin E a day to the beta-carotene. And for yet another three months. these individuals added 2,000 milligrams of vitamin C to the vitamin E and beta-carotene. In the second phase of the study, these individuals consumed only vitamin E supplements 0,600 international units a day) for five months. Researchers concluded that long-term use of vitamin E in high doses hindered the oxidation of LDL by 30 to 50 percent. Betacarotene did not seem to affect LDL’s resistance to oxidation.
E-liminating Heart Disease
Filed Under Lower cholesterol Remedies | Leave a Comment
A number of studies have demonstrated an association between a higher intake of antioxidant supplements-particularly vitamins C and E-and a lower risk of heart disease.
Researchers in the Health Professionals Study, conducted at Harvard Medical School and Harvard School of Public Health, followed 40,000 healthy male health care workers for four years, tracking how many developed heart disease during that time. They found that the men who consumed the most vitamin E had a lower risk of heart disease. Men who took 100 or more international units of vitamin E for It least two years cut their risk of heart disease by 37 percent, relative to the men who did not take any supplements.
A parallel Harvard study evaluated more than 87,000 healthy female nurses for eight years. Women who consumed the most vitamin E were found to have a 34 percent reduced risk of developing heart disease compared with women who consumed the least vitamin E. Women who had taken vitamin E supplements for at least two years had a 41 percent lower chance of developing coronary disease than those who didn’t. And women who consumed the most beta-carotene had a 22 percent reduced risk of heart ailments compared with women who consumed the least amount of this nutrient.
Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles, found that men who consumed the most vitamin C had a 45 percent reduced risk of dying of heart disease; women, a 25 percent reduction in risk. The researchers used data from the first National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, which included information about the vitamin intakes of more than 11,000 people.
Antioxidants
Filed Under Lower cholesterol Remedies | Leave a Comment
Low in fat, high in fiber and cholesterol-free, fruits and veggies are crucial components of a heart-healthy diet. But there may be another reason to load up on produce. There’s evidence that the antioxidant nutrients-vitamins C and E and beta-carotene, which converts to vitamin A in the body-may protect against high blood cholesterol levels. These “supernutrients,” which are abundant in fresh fruits and vegetables, may even help prevent heart disease.
Many studies that associate a high intake of antioxidant vitamins with a lower risk of coronary heart disease and improvement in cholesterol have found these benefits in dosages that are more than the Daily Values (DVs) for these nutrients. The DV for vitamin C is 60 milligrams. The DV for vitamin E is 30 international units. There is nc DV for beta-carotene, but most experts recommend consuming 5 to t milligrams of this nutrient per day. Some authorities recornmenc taking antioxidant supplements to bridge the gap between the DV5 and these theoretically therapeutic doses of antioxidants. Other experts consider supplements a “promising but unproven” means or lowering the risk of cardiovascular disease. But gulping down antioxidant supplements won’t compensate for c high-fat, artery-clogging diet, say experts. The best way to lower your cholesterol-and protect your heart-is to follow a low-fat, low-cholesterol diet, they say. Here’s what’s known about the antioxidant; cholesterol link.
Antioxidants to the Rescue
Experts believe that antioxidants help thwart a number of chronic illnesses, including heart disease, by foiling the activity of free radicals. These cell-damaging chemical compounds are produced both inside and outside the body. Free radical damage can eventually lead to disease, including heart disease. Antioxidant vitamins may help stem this cellular damage.
Further, antioxidants may help boost “good” HDL cholesterol and help artely-clogging LDL cholesterol resist oxidation. This chemical process, researchers believe, increases the likelihood of LDL collecting in the arteries.”LDL is the major cholesterol-carrying molecule in the bloodstream,” says Thomas Bersot, M.D., associate professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. Oxidized LDL is more likely to be “trapped” by macrophages, certain cells in the walls of the arteries. When LDL starts to collect inside the macrophages, it sets up a chemical chain reaction that can accelerate oxidation and other artery-clogging processes. “The accumulation of LDL in the macrophages initiates the entire cascade of events in atherosclerosis,” says Dr. Bersot. “If you can prevent LDL from oxidizing, you may reduce the risk of developing hardening of the arteries.”
Booze No Magic Bullet
Filed Under Lower cholesterol Remedies | Leave a Comment
If you think that simply hoisting a beer stein or sipping your favorite Bordeaux will have a beneficial effect on your cholesterol .evel, think again. “Two glasses of wine a day will have a modest ef.ect upon your HDl, and even that modest effect is beneficial,” says Dr. Castelli. “But if you’re looking for a magic bullet, this isn’t it.”
Further, overimbibing to benefit your cholesterol level is risky, say experts. “Alcohol is like coffee-it has some theoretical benefits and some potential risks,” says Neal Barnard, M.D., president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine in Washington, D. C. Risks include developing certain cancers and provoking cardiac arrhythmias, cirrhosis of the liver and high blood pressure, says Dr. Castelli. “It appears that women have an increased risk of breast cancer from increased alcohol consumption, even at the moderate levels recornmended as potentially beneficial for heart disease,” says Marla Iendelson, M.D., assistant professor of medicine at Northwestern University Medical School in Chicago. “So women who have a significant risk of developing breast cancer have to think twice about drinking.”
There are other issues to consider. “If you have high blood pressure, alcohol can raise it more,” says Frederic J. Pashkow, M.D., cardiologist at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation in Cleveland and author of 50 Essential Things to Do When the Doctor Says It’s Heart Disease.
What’s more, alcohol can actually raise triglycerides by lowering the concentration of an enzyme used to break them down. “Even having a glass of wine with dinner every night can substantially raise .riglycerides in people who are overweight or who have hereditary Triglyceride problems,” says Thomas Bersot, M.D., associate professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco.The bottom line? If you choose to imbibe, do so in moderationand if you don’t drink, don’t start, says Margo Denke, M.D., associate professor of medicine in the Center for Human Nutrition at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. Dr. Barnard agrees. “I suggest that people follow a low-fat diet. I’m not sure that adding alcohol to that would be helpful.”
ALCOHOL
Filed Under Lower cholesterol Remedies | Leave a Comment
Drinking protects your heart. Right?
Wrong. Or at least not quite right. But that’s the message some Americans came away with some vears ago, when a few studies indicated that moderate drinking is associated with reduced risk of coronary heart disease. The truth is, deciding whether to imbibe to protect your heart isn’t as simple as Jledging to eat less saturated fat and more soluble fiber. On the one hand, there’s evidence that moderate consumption of alcohol can help reduce the risk of coronary heart disease as well as .ielp raise levels of “good” HDL cholesterol. On the other hand, many experts question the wisdom of encouraging people to drink for their health, In fact, some health professionals suggest that the decision to drink moderately to benefit heart health be made with the guidance Jf a physician. Experts are equally clear on another point: If you don’t drink, don’t start. This post can help you make an informed decision about the benefits-and risks-of moderate drinking to raise HDt~ and lower heart disease risk.why does moderate alcohol consumption seem to raise HDL cho.esterol? Experts aren’t sure. “We don’t entirely understand the effect of alcohol on HDL,” says Peter O. Kwiterovich, Jr., M.D., professor of medicine and director of the Lipid Research andAtherosclerosis Unit :ct Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore and au.hor of The Johns Hopkins CompleteGuide for Preventing and Reversing Heart Disease. “But it’s pretty clear from epidemiological studies that people who drink moderately do better than people who don’t drink at all.” “The data are clear that a drink or two a day lowers your heart attack risk,” agrees William P. Castelli, M.D., medical director of the Framingham Cardiovascular Institute, a wellness program at Metro West Medical Center in Framingham, Massachusetts.
According to data from the second National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, average levels of HDL cholesterol were higher among drinkers than among abstainers, no matter what their age, sex or race. Also, as alcohol consumption increased, so did HDL levelsan average increase of 5.1 milligrams/deciliter for daily or weekly use. This study suggests reducing your risk of coronary heart disease by means other than alcohol consumption, however.
For seven years, the Multiple Risk Factor Intervention Trial followed a subgroup consisting of 11,688 middle-age men who were at high risk for heart disease. During that time, those who consumed about two drinks per day (with each drink equal to 4 ounces of wine, 12 ounces of beer or 1.5 ounces of 80-proof spirits) had higher HDL levels than nondrinkers. This alcohol intake seemed largely responsible for a 22 percent reduced chance of death from heart disease, researchers said. Researchers at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Oakland, California, studied the alcohol consumption patterns of nearly 129,000 people. Those who had one to two drinks a day were 30 percent less likely to die from coronary heart disease than those who did not drink. But people who had six or more drinks a day had a 60 percent greater risk of death from noncardiovascular causes than nondrinkers.
Dr. Kwiterovich and his colleagues had 56 men with low levels of HDL either drink one beer a day or abstain from alcohol. After two months, there were no differences in HDL levels between the two groups. But the beer drinkers experienced a 10 percent increase in apoprotein A-I, the major protein component of HDL. This protein is believed to help extract cholesterol from the cells and move it to the liver for excretion. Alcohol also makes blood platelets less sticky, which cuts the risk of clot formation and reduces the risk of heart attack, and raises blood levels of an enzyme called tissue-type plasminogen activator, or HPA, which helps keep blood clots from
forming. Researchers at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s hosspital in Boston measured blood levels of HPL in 631 male doctors.hese doctors-participants in the Physicians’ Health Study, a study 22,000 American doctors-gave blood samples and reported on There drinking habits. Researchers found that tPA levels rose witht thinking frequency. The doctors who consumed two or more drinks day had 35 percent higher levels of tPA than doctors who rarely or ever drank. What’s more, the doctors who drank more had significantly higher levels of HDL cholesterol than the doctors who didn’t.
Five Tips for Controlling Cholesterol
Filed Under cholesterol | Leave a Comment
So now you know what it takes to shape up your total cholesterol reading: You want to pare down your LDL cholesterol while making sure that your HDL level holds steady or even goes up a few points. And really, it’s not as hard-or as painful-as you may think. Experts say that you can get the upper hand on cholesterol simply by adapting the following five strategies. In fact, these make sense for anyone who wants to lead a healthy lifestyle, whether or not high cholesterol is a concern.
Eat less fat.
We now get about 37 percent of total calories from fat, down from 42 percent in the 1960s. This is great news, since consuming too much fat, particularly saturated fat, has been linked to an increased risk of coronary heart disease. But we still have a ways to go: The American Heart Association recommends getting no more than 30 percent of calories from fat. Other experts suggest 25 percent or even lower. The menu plan in part III (page 217) and the recipes in part IV (page 251) will help you begin a no-cholesterol, low-fat eating program.
Lose weight.
Folks who follow low-fat, low-cholesterol diets and lose excess weight tend to have easier times reducing their total and “bad” LDL cholesterol than people who don’t drop the extra pounds, says Margo Denke, M.D., associate professor of medicine in the Center for Human Nutrition at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas.
One study of 150 people who were overweight concluded that folks who lose just 10 to 15 percent of excess body weight-and keep it off-may help afford themselves long-term protection from coronary heart disease. Dropping extra pounds may also boost “good” HDL cholesterol. In a study of 2,400 people, women experienced a 2 percent increase in LDL and a 2 percent drop in HDL for every five pounds they gained. “Being ovenveight is the most common cause of low HDL in women,” says Dr. Denke. “It’s important to get down to an ideal body weight to bring HDL back up.”
Exercise.
The Framingham Heart Study found that people who were physically active for more than an hour a week had significantly higher HDL levels than those people who exercised less than an hour a week.
Stop smoking.
Smoking can lead to atherosclerosis and can deflate HDL by as much as 15 percent. So quitting can significantly improve your cholesterol profile. “Quitting smoking can reverse the negative effect on HDL in just 60 days,” explains Robert Rosenson, M.D., director of the Preventive Cardiology Center at Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke’s Medical Center in Chicago.
Reduce your stress level
Several studies suggest that emotional stress can elevate cho1estero11eve1s, so keeping cool may help keep the lid on your cholesterol.