How to Reduce Cholesterol Naturally: What Foods Should Be Eaten & Avoided?

 

Eat Heart-healthy Foods

A large body of evidence shows there were once enormous swaths of the world where the coronary heart disease epidemic seemed to be almost non-existent, such as rural China and sub-Saharan Africa. It’s not genetics: When people move from low- to high-risk areas, their disease rates appear to skyrocket as they adopt the diet and lifestyle habits of their new homes. The extraordinarily low rates of heart disease in rural China and Africa have been attributed to the extraordinarily low cholesterol levels among these populations. Though Chinese and African diets are very different, they are both centered on plant-derived foods, such as grains and vegetables. By eating so much fiber and so little animal fat, their total cholesterol levels averaged under 150 mg/dL, similar to people eating contemporary strictly plant-based diets.

Calorie Restriction

In The Benefits of Calorie Restriction for Longevity I discuss the CALERIE study (the Comprehensive Assessment of Long-term Effects of Reducing Intake of Energy). It was the first clinical trial to test the effects of caloric restriction. Hundreds of non-obese men and women were randomized to two years of 25 percent calorie restriction. They only ended up achieving half that but lost about 18 pounds and three inches off their waists, wiping out more than half of their visceral abdominal fat. That translated into significant improvements in cholesterol levels, triglycerides, insulin sensitivity, and blood pressures

 

What Foods Lower Your Cholesterol Fast?

 

1. Oats

The fiber in oatmeal can lower our blood cholesterol levels so less gets stuck in our arteries. There are also anti-inflammatory and antioxidant phytonutrients in oats that can help prevent atherosclerotic buildup and then help maintain arterial function. Check out my video Can Oatmeal Reverse Heart Disease? for more on this.

2. Barley

As I discuss in Whole Grains May Work as Well as Drugs, just a single serving a day of barley may lower your cholesterol.

3. Beans

In a randomized crossover trial, adding two servings a day of lentils, chickpeas, beans or split peas cut cholesterol levels so much that many participants moved below the range for which statin drugs are typically prescribed. Learn more about this in Beans, Beans, They’re Good for Your Heart.

4. Amla (Indian gooseberries)

As discussed in the video Amla vs. Drugs For Cholesterol, Inflammation, & Blood-Thinning, 500 milligrams (which is like a tenth of a teaspoon) of powdered amla works just as well as Zocor, a leading cholesterol-lowering drug. 

5. Brazil nuts

A single serving of Brazil nuts may bring cholesterol levels down faster than statin drugs and keep them down even a month after that single ingestion. I go into more detail on this in Four Nuts Once a Month. 

 

What Foods Should Be Avoided?

To drastically reduce LDL cholesterol levels, it appears we need to drastically reduce our intake of: 

1. trans fat, which comes from processed foods and naturally from meat and dairy
2. saturated fat, found mainly in animal products and junk foods
3. dietary cholesterol, found exclusively in animal-derived foods, especially eggs.

For those who have tried eating a whole food plant-based diet and still have high LDL, you should make sure you’re not eating plant sources of saturated fat, such as palm kernel oil, palm oil, coconut oil, and cocoa butter (found in chocolate). Of course if you were you wouldn’t be eating a whole food plant-based diet, but you’d be surprised how many people tell me they are and they’re like “Yeah, and I eat a spoonful of coconut oil a day.” I’d also cut out unfiltered coffee. Then once you have gotten rid of the things that increase your cholesterol you need to pack your diet with foods that actively lower your cholesterol. 

 

What About The “Cholesterol Myth”?

I wrote about the cholesterol “skeptics” in my book Carbophobia (now available free, full text online).

I think the issue was best summarized in a medical journal editorial entitled Cholesterol Myth Club on Par with Flat Earth Society that read: “as mixed up as Flat Earth Society members obviously are, at least you can laugh their dumb idea off, and if you want to believe the Earth is flat, this view is not going to cause serious problems like… coronary artery disease.”

 

Lastly, here are some of the best videos to help understand more about diet and cholesterol. Sometimes folks will ask questions like does cholesterol have a lower limit, or, what about the size of LDL particles does that matter? ​Thankfully Dr. Greger addresses this in his video: Does LDL size matter? and Cholesterol does not appear to have a lower limit. A few concerns with dietary cholesterol is that there’s a plateau effect issue and the postprandial (after eating) issue. These videos explain the issues further: When Low Risk Means High Risk and Eggs and Arterial Function. Find out what’s an Optimal Cholesterol Level to shoot for. 

Is Almond Milk Better Than the Moo?

 

Milk from Almonds vs. Milk from Cows

Almond milk is more healthful than dairy milk, which contains saturated animal fat, cholesterol, and hormones. Cows’ milk has been found to stimulate the growth of prostate cancer cells in vitro, for instance, producing an average increase in cancer growth rate of more than 30 percent. In contrast, almond milk suppressed the growth of these cancer cells by more than 30 percent.

Sweetened vs. Unsweetened Almond Milk

The difference between these two types of almond milk is added sugar in the sweetened variety. In general, I favor cutting down on the intake of empty calories whenever possible. Since we get only about 2,000 in our calorie bank each day, why not make each one count? But, if the only way you’ll drink green tea is with sweetened almond milk, then, overall, it would be healthier for you to choose the variety with added sugar. (Your taste buds would likely adapt to the unsweetened kind, though, so give it a try for a couple weeks.)

Is Almond Vanilla Milk Good for You?

Many almond milks are fortified with calcium, vitamin D, and vitamin B12, which benefit us, but what about the vanilla? That’s an interesting question.

Given vanilla’s popularity, I was surprised to find that there isn’t much science published on the health effects of vanilla orchid fruit phytonutrients. There are two in vitro studies that suggest vanillin, one of the many aromatic compounds in vanilla, may be protective against colorectal and cervical cancers, but, to my knowledge, no clinical or epidemiological studies have been published.

The most unusual study on vanilla may be one that was published out of Germany in 1999. Researchers wanted to know if our olfactory memory goes back even further than our verbal memory. Do we subconsciously remember tastes and smells from our infancy before we could even put them into words? There was a time when certain German infant formulas were flavored with vanilla, so the researchers challenged a group of adults with a vanilla-containing food. Since they couldn’t just use a typical vanilla-flavored confection as it could introduce too many other new variables, they had to choose something no one would have ever associated with vanilla, so they concocted a vanilla-flavored ketchup. Their findings? Two-thirds of those who had been bottle-fed with vanilla-flavored formula as infants preferred the vanilla ketchup, whereas two-thirds of the those who hadn’t been exposed to vanilla at that early age chose the regular ketchup.

Are There Any Downsides to Almond Milk?

Many almond milks available to us in grocery stores often contain added salt and thickeners of questionable safety, such as carrageenan. (For more on that, see my video Is Carrageenan Safe?.)

Kids shouldn’t drink too much almond milk. There have been a few case reports of young children drinking four cups a day and running into problems with kidney stones due to almond milk’s relatively high oxalate content, which averages about five times more than soy milk.

Making Almond Milk at Home

It’s so easy to make your own almond milk. Simple add 2 tablespoons of smooth, raw almond butter and 2 cups of water in a high-speed blender, then blend until smooth. Transfer the almond milk to a glass bottle or jar with a tight-fitting lid, and chill until ready to serve. Shake well before using and enjoy.

How can I boost my metabolism naturally?

 Drinking two cups of water increases the metabolic rate of men and women by 30 percent.

The metabolic boost starts within ten minutes of drinking water and reaches a maximum within an hour. In the 90 minutes after drinking a single, tall glass of water, study subjects burned about an extra 25 calories. Do that four times throughout the day, and you could wipe out 100 extra calories.

Is Oatmeal Really Good For You?

 

A 2015 analysis found that people who eat more whole grains, which includes oats, tend to live significantly longer lives independent of other measured dietary and lifestyle factors.

The Different Types of Oats

Oats are available in many forms: instant, rolled, steel-cut, Scottish, and oat groats.

Rolled vs. Steel-Cut Oats

The physical form of food alters carbohydrate absorption. Rolled oats have a significantly lower glycemic index than instant oatmeal, which is just oats, but in thinner flakes, and oat flakes cause lower blood sugar and insulin spikes than powdered oats. Indeed, the same single ingredient—in this case, oats—can have different effects in its different forms.

Why do we care? Well, the overly rapid absorption of carbohydrates after eating a high-glycemic index meal can trigger a sequence of hormonal and metabolic changes that may promote excessive eating. Researchers fed a dozen obese teen boys different meals, each with the same number of calories, and followed them for the next five hours to measure their subsequent food intake. Those who ate the instant oatmeal went on to eat 53 percent more than the boys who ate the same number of calories of steel-cut oatmeal. The instant oatmeal group was snacking within an hour after the meal and went on to consume significantly more calories throughout the rest of the day. The same food but in different forms had different effects.

The Wholiest of All Whole Grains

Beyond focusing just on whole grains rather than refined grains, the wholiest of all are intact grains. Instant oats are better than powdered oats, rolled oats are better than instant, steel-cut oats are better than rolled, and intact oat groats are the best of all.

How Many Daily Servings Should We Strive For?

Consistent with recommendations from leading cancer and heart disease authorities, my recommended Daily Dozen includes at least three daily servings of whole grains, such as oats. Harvard University’s preeminent twin nutrition studies—the Nurses’ Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study—have so far accumulated nearly three million person-years of data. A 2015 analysis found that people who eat more whole grains tend to live significantly longer lives independent of other measured dietary and lifestyle factors.

The Many Benefits of Whole Grains

A diet rich in whole grains, for example, may yield the same benefits as taking high blood pressure medications without the adverse side effects commonly associated with antihypertensive drugs, such as electrolyte disturbances in those taking diuretics; increased breast cancer risk for those taking calcium-channel blockers; lethargy and impotence for those on beta blockers; sudden, potentially life-threatening swelling for those taking ACE inhibitors; and an increased risk of serious fall injuries for apparently any class of these blood pressure drugs.

Indeed, eating whole grains appears to reduce the risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and stroke. Eating more whole grains could potentially save the lives of more than a million people around the world every year. Take note of the whole, however. While whole grains, such as oats, whole wheat, and brown rice, have been shown to reduce our risk of developing chronic disease, refined grains may actually increase risk.

People who ate the most whole grains had significantly slower narrowing of two of the most important arteries in our body: the coronary arteries that feed the heart and the carotid arteries that feed our brain. Since atherosclerotic plaque in the arteries is our leading killer, we should not just slow down the process but actually stop or even reverse it altogether, and eating more whole plant foods, including whole grains like oats, can help.

Oatmeal and Weight Control

Some of oatmeal’s proven health benefits include aiding in weight control. Oatmeal helps to keep us feeling full for longer. Researchers randomized individuals into three different breakfast groups—oatmeal made from quick oats, the same number of calories of Frosted Flakes, or just plain water—then measured how much they ate for lunch three hours later. Not only did those who ate the oatmeal feel significantly fuller and less hungry, but they then went on to eat significantly less lunch. Overweight participants ate less than half as many calories at lunch after eating the oatmeal for breakfast—hundreds and hundreds of fewer calories. In fact, the breakfast cereal was so unsatiating that the corn flakes group ate as much as the breakfast-skipping, water-only group. The soluble fiber in oatmeal forms a gel in the stomach, which delays stomach emptying and makes one feel full for a longer period, helping with weight loss.

Lowering Our Cholesterol and Helping Our Arterial Function

The fiber in oatmeal can lower our blood cholesterol levels so less gets stuck in our arteries. There are also anti-inflammatory and antioxidant phytonutrients in oats that can help prevent atherosclerotic buildup and then help maintain arterial function.

Improving Liver Function

In a double-blind, randomized trial of overweight and obese men and women, almost 90 percent of the participants given real oatmeal had reduced body weight (compared to no weight loss in the control group), as well as –a slimmer waist on average, a 20-point drop in cholesterol, and an improvement in liver function.

What are the side effects of turmeric?

 Turmeric has myriad benefits, but there are some side effects to be aware of.

1. DNA Damage: If you combine high-dose curcumin with black pepper, you get a 2,000 percent bioavailability boost. That kind of intake could elevate peak blood levels to the point where you start seeing some significant DNA damage–at least in vitro. So, simply incorporating turmeric into our cooking may be better than taking curcumin supplements, especially during pregnancy.
2. Painful Contractions for Those with Gallstones: Curcumin may help protect liver function and actually help prevent gallstones by acting as a cholecystokinetic agent—meaning it facilitates the pumping action of the gallbladder to keep the bile from stagnating. It takes about a third of a teaspoon of turmeric every day to get a 50 percent contraction. That’s some incredibly powerful stuff! What if you had a gallbladder obstruction, though? If you had a stone blocking your bile duct and you ate around that much turmeric, your gallbladder would squeeze down hard, which could hurt like heck! So, patients with biliary tract obstruction should be careful about consuming curcumin.
3. Kidney Stones: Too much turmeric, though, may increase the risk of kidney stones. It’s high in soluble oxalates, which can bind to calcium and form insoluble calcium oxalate, which is responsible for approximately three-quarters of all kidney stones. The consumption of even moderate amounts of turmeric would not be recommended for people with a tendency to form kidney stones.

In summary, those who are pregnant, have gallstones, or are susceptible to kidney stones may want to moderate their turmeric consumption. For everyone else, though, my Daily Dozen recommends at least ¼ teaspoon of turmeric a day so you can benefit from its antioxidative, anti-inflammatory, anti-carcinogenic, and even neuroprotective properties.

Are Nuts and Peanut Butter Linked to a Longer Life?

 Why are nuts associated with decreased mortality, but not peanut butter?

According to the largest study of risk factors for death in human history, a poor diet causes more deaths than anything. Cigarettes only kill about 8 million people a year, whereas humanity’s diet kills millions more, as you can see below and at 0:20 in my video Do the Health Benefits of Peanut Butter Include Longevity?.

What are the worst aspects of our diet? Processed meat? Twinkies? Soda? No, the five deadliest things about our diet are: not enough fruit, not enough whole grains, not enough vegetables, too much salt, and not enough nuts and seeds.

Nuts should come as no surprise since interventional trials have shown that eating nuts improves artery function, and arterial diseases like heart disease are among our leading killers. But that’s not all nuts can do. They may also improve blood sugar control, lower cholesterol, suppress inflammation, reduce oxidative stress, and feed our friendly gut flora. Do all nuts do that, or just tree nuts?

What about peanuts and peanut butter? About half of peanut consumption in the United States is from peanut butter, but the link between peanut butter consumption and mortality has not been evaluated thoroughly. To get that specific, we can call on the National Institutes of Health-AARP study, the largest prospective health and diet study in history that followed more than half a million people since the 1990s.

Researchers found that nut consumption in general appeared to protect against all-cause mortality, meaning nut-eaters live—on average—longer lives. Specifically, they are less likely to die from cancer, cardiovascular disease, liver disease, respiratory disease, kidney disease, and infectious causes (so, maybe nuts help immunity as well). However, no such associations were found for peanut butter. So, when it comes to living longer, peanut butter doesn’t seem to count. Why?

Well, we know peanut butter consumers tend to eat more meat, smoke cigarettes, and are less likely to exercise, but the researchers controlled for all those factors, as well as their alcohol consumption, fruit and veggie intake, education, and more. So, it’s not like the peanut butter eaters were just eating more white bread sandwiches or something. (The researchers didn’t control for sugar, though, so it’s possible they could have been eating more sugary jelly.)

Another explanation: It could be the processing that goes into making peanut butter—the added trans fat, oil, salt, and sugar. But regular nuts are also often eaten with added oil, sugar, and salt.

Could it just be the peanuts themselves? Technically, they aren’t nuts, so maybe they don’t have the same benefits. But no, a meta-analysis of all such studies found the same nut-like benefits for whole peanuts, but not peanut butter.

Well, one thing missing from even no-salt, oil-free, sugar-free nut and seed butters is intact cellular structure. As I noted in How Not to Diet, no matter how well we chew whole or chopped nuts, some of the nutrients remain trapped in tiny particles that deliver a bounty of prebiotic goodness to our friendly gut flora. That makes me wonder if there would have been any difference between chunky and smooth peanut butter.

Meanwhile, there is “compelling evidence” to recommend eating nuts (preferably raw nuts over salted or toasted, and whole or chopped nuts rather than nut butters) at least three times a week to maximize our chance of living a longer and healthier life.

How to Reduce Cholesterol Naturally: What Foods Should Be Eaten & Avoided?

 

Eat Heart-healthy Foods

A large body of evidence shows there were once enormous swaths of the world where the coronary heart disease epidemic seemed to be almost non-existent, such as rural China and sub-Saharan Africa. It’s not genetics: When people move from low- to high-risk areas, their disease rates appear to skyrocket as they adopt the diet and lifestyle habits of their new homes. The extraordinarily low rates of heart disease in rural China and Africa have been attributed to the extraordinarily low cholesterol levels among these populations. Though Chinese and African diets are very different, they are both centered on plant-derived foods, such as grains and vegetables. By eating so much fiber and so little animal fat, their total cholesterol levels averaged under 150 mg/dL, similar to people eating contemporary strictly plant-based diets.

Calorie Restriction

In The Benefits of Calorie Restriction for Longevity I discuss the CALERIE study (the Comprehensive Assessment of Long-term Effects of Reducing Intake of Energy). It was the first clinical trial to test the effects of caloric restriction. Hundreds of non-obese men and women were randomized to two years of 25 percent calorie restriction. They only ended up achieving half that but lost about 18 pounds and three inches off their waists, wiping out more than half of their visceral abdominal fat. That translated into significant improvements in cholesterol levels, triglycerides, insulin sensitivity, and blood pressures.

What Foods Lower Your Cholesterol Fast?

 

1. Oats

The fiber in oatmeal can lower our blood cholesterol levels so less gets stuck in our arteries. There are also anti-inflammatory and antioxidant phytonutrients in oats that can help prevent atherosclerotic buildup and then help maintain arterial function. Check out my video Can Oatmeal Reverse Heart Disease? for more on this.

2. Barley

As I discuss in Whole Grains May Work as Well as Drugs, just a single serving a day of barley may lower your cholesterol.

3. Beans

In a randomized crossover trial, adding two servings a day of lentils, chickpeas, beans or split peas cut cholesterol levels so much that many participants moved below the range for which statin drugs are typically prescribed. Learn more about this in Beans, Beans, They’re Good for Your Heart.

4. Amla (Indian gooseberries)

As discussed in the video Amla vs. Drugs For Cholesterol, Inflammation, & Blood-Thinning, 500 milligrams (which is like a tenth of a teaspoon) of powdered amla works just as well as Zocor, a leading cholesterol-lowering drug. 

5. Brazil nuts

A single serving of Brazil nuts may bring cholesterol levels down faster than statin drugs and keep them down even a month after that single ingestion. I go into more detail on this in Four Nuts Once a Month.