We all know someone who has high cholesterol. You yourself may have been advised by your doctor to work on lowering your cholesterol. So, what does this mean? Why should we be concerned about cholesterol levels? What even is cholesterol? It’s surprising how little we talk about the details of such a common diagnosis.
Cholesterol is not pure evil. In fact, we need it to survive. Cholesterol is a fat-like substance that plays an essential role in many crucial bodily functions such as building cell membranes, producing hormones and digesting fats. The helpful cholesterol that we need for these processes is made by our liver.
Where we run into trouble is when we have too much of the harmful, unhealthy cholesterol floating around in our blood. This type of cholesterol is called low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and can cause cholesterol to build up in our arteries which increases our risk of heart disease and stroke.
While LDL is the villain in this scenario, another type of cholesterol — high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol is the hero. HDL helps to prevent clogging of our arteries, thus lowering the risk of heart disease and stroke. Confused yet? For simplicity’s sake, just remember that LDL is Lousy and HDL is Healthy. The goal is to keep LDL levels low and HDL levels high. So, how do we do this?
Diet plays a major role in managing cholesterol levels. Dietary cholesterol and saturated fat can increase LDL levels, while unsaturated fat, omega-3 and fibre can decrease LDL levels and increase HDL levels. Food sources of dietary cholesterol and saturated fat include meat, poultry, eggs and dairy (including butter). Tropical oils such as palm oil and coconut oil also contain high levels of saturated fat and can lead to increased LDL.
On the other hand, unsaturated fat is found in vegetable oils such as olive, canola and avocado as well as nuts and seeds. Fatty fish (like salmon, trout and tuna), walnuts, ground flaxseed and chia seeds are sources of omega-3. Fibre sources include fruits, vegetables, beans, legumes and whole grains. Replacing harmful saturated fats with healthy unsaturated fats and omega-3s and increasing fibre intake can significantly improve cholesterol levels.
This doesn’t have to mean becoming a vegan, or even a vegetarian. Choosing lean meat and poultry will help to reduce saturated fat intake while still getting the benefits of protein, iron and B vitamins that these foods provide. Similarly, choosing low fat dairy will help lower saturated fat intake while still getting the benefits of vitamin D, calcium and protein.
Look for lean cuts of meat, skinless white meat poultry and low-fat yogurt, cottage cheese, sour cream and milk (2% M.F. or lower in all cases). Limiting baked goods and packaged foods that contain butter, lard, shortening and/or coconut/palm oil will also decrease saturated fat intake.
High cholesterol is not only manageable, it can be correctable. Making informed dietary choices can help get those cholesterol levels back in target.
Amanda Turner has been a Registered Dietitian since 2016. She has experience in several practice areas and is the owner of Navigate Your Plate Nutrition Services.