Low Cholesterol Diet Plan
If you had the chance to read the articles I wrote about High Cholesterol Foods to Avoid and Foods That Lower Cholesterol than you already know 90% of what you need to know about how to build yourself a Low Cholesterol Diet Plan.
But it seems that creating such a Low Cholesterol Diet Plan is not as easy as I thought since I am getting a lot of emails asking me about how to go about creating such a diet plan.
First thing you should know is that I am no expert and everything I write here is my own opinion and I can’t guarantee that it will work for you or that you should even do it. You MUST consult with your own doctor and/or a nutrition expert is order to get the best diet plan for YOU. Each individual is different and will require a different cholesterol lowering diet.
Low Cholesterol Diet Plan
I will provide you with some general tips for creating your cholesterol lowering diet plan.
Increase
You should focus on increasing the intake of foods that are low in saturated fat. Foods such as:
- Vegetables
- Fruits
- Fat free or 1% dairy products
- Whole grain foods
- Lean meats
- Fish
You should also add more foods that are high in soluble fiber to your diet. Foods such as:
- Oats and oatmeal
- Fruits – Citrus fruits, apples
- Vegetables – Brussels sprouts and carrots
- Dried peas and beans
Avoid
You should avoid or limit the intake of foods that are high in saturated fat. Foods such as:
- High fat processed meats (e.g., sausage, hot dogs, bologna, salami)
- Fatty, untrimmed red meats
- Bacon, ham and fatty pork cuts
- Most Fried foods. If it is deep fired, avoid it.
Cooking Tips
Aside from knowing which foods are good and which are bad, you should also pay attention to your cooking methods you use to prepare certain foods as they can have a huge impact on your cholesterol levels. Some methods are more conducive to high cholesterol than others because of the various components involved in the process.
For example, it shouldn’t come as a major shock that deep frying is not great for your cholesterol levels no matter how healthy of an ingredient you actually drop into the fryer. Whenever possible, using methods like poaching or steaming can help to lower cholesterol levels simply because you aren’t using as much hydrogenated cooking oil.
- Implement low-fat cooking methods like broiling, grilling, stir-fry, braising and steaming as they are much better than butter coating and deep frying as they help retain all the essential nutrients and flavors of the ingredients.
- Use lean cuts of meat and poultry as they are lower in fats.
- Remove visible meat fats before cooking them.
- Use pure vegetable oils like olive oil, sunflower oil and canola oil instead of lard or butter.
- Use more of organic spices like basil, cilantro and oregano rather than fatty additives for flavoring.
- For cooking low-cholesterol foods, opt for ingredients that have high fiber levels.
Additional Resources
In addition to the information I provided you I also did some research and found several sites that I feel will be good for you to check out and I’m sure you will be able to learn a thing or two from the information they share.
About.com
This page on About.com is probably one of the best resources you will find about Lowering Your Cholesterol Through Diet. This page covers just about anything you need to know including watching your fat intake, making the right diet choices, cholesterol-friendly, heart-healthy foods, easy ways to stay on track, types of cholesterol-lowering diets according to calorie content and according to country, low-fat recipes, exercise and heart-healthy cooking oils.
eDiets
This is another site that you can check out in order to find a Cholesterol-Lowering Meal Plan.
About Your Cholesterol.com
As you can figure out from the name of this site, it is all about your cholesterol and I am sure you will find some great information there and you will be glad to know that it covers the subject of a Low Cholesterol Diet Plan with great detail.