5 Ways to lower your cholesterol AND lose weight + bonus recipes

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6

Cholesterol in itself is not necessarily a bad thing. Cholesterol helps your body produce hormones, vitamin D and is even part of the digestive process

Your body is actually able to produce all of the cholesterol it needs to perform optimally. The problem comes when we add 'bad' cholesterol through the food we eat. This can end up clogging your arteries and increasing your risk of coronary heart disease.

So what is 'bad' cholesterol?

The way that cholesterol moves through your body is via two types of lipoprotein – low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL).

• LDLs increase when we eat food high in saturated fats like meat, dairy produce, palm oil, hydrogenated vegetable oil etc…
• HDLs increase when we eat things like beans and legumes, whole grains, high-fibre fruit, fatty fish, flax, nuts, avocado, and even red wine!

When they are available in balance, these two types of lipoprotein are not harmful. HOWEVER, a build-up of LDLs is very unhealthy for us, and for our cholesterol levels.

So here are the top five ways you can manage your 'bad' cholesterol levels, lose weight, and get healthier all at the same time:

1. 'Good' vs 'Bad'

As I’ve described, when your cholesterol is measured, you get two numbers. One is HDL (good) and the other is LDL (bad).

The body does need some cholesterol in the blood for proper functioning, however most Western people get too much bad LDL which comes mainly from animal products containing saturated fat - these should be avoided or eaten in moderation. HDL helps to clear your blood of LDL.

Thankfully, we can still eat very tasty food to help lower our levels of LDL. Not all great-tasting meals are deep-fried and covered in cheese sauce.

Here is a tasty recipe to help lower your levels of LDL, while drinkers can still enjoy a glass of red wine (click page 2 below for more tips to lower LDL and view another heart-healthy, delicious recipe):

Quinoa Salad with Black Beans recipe:

 

1. Prev:Dont DEPRIVE yourself - Lose weight with these 6 CALORIE-SLASHING tips
2. Next:Top habits of successful dieters: Do THIS for long-term weight loss