10 Steps to Better Health

Battling high cholesterol?  Your best line of defense, as well as offense, lines up in the kitchen.

“If you eat a predominantly plant-based diet—with lots of fruits and vegetables plus some fish—you are on the right track to keeping your cholesterol at a healthy level,” says Lisa Dorfman, spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association.

Certain Super Foods can actually help lower the bad cholesterol and/or increase the good cholesterol. What you’re aiming for is total cholesterol under 200, with LDL (the bad one) under 110 and HDL (the good one) greater than 35.

The Dos, The Don’ts, and The Don’t Even Think About its:

1. Eat more almonds.  Either snack on them throughout the day or throw them into:  Oatmeal, cereal, yogurt, mixed fruit, green beans, tossed salads, chicken salads, and pasta salads.  Just 1/4 cup of almonds a day can lower your LDL by 4.4 percent.
2. Eat more oatmeal.  You read it all the time, and there’s a reason for it - oatmeal reduces cholesterol dramatically. If you don’t eat oatmeal often because you think it takes too long to make, get this:  The instant variety is just as good for you.  You know, the little packets you tear open and add boiling water to? They come in a lot of really delicious flavors - peach, maple and brown sugar, honey nut, strawberry, regular, apple and cinnamon, etc.  Throw a little almonds on top and you’re set.
3. Eat fish regularly - as often as possible.  Omega 3 fatty acids are thought to be the best of the “good” fat. The best place to find them is in fish—especially fatty fishes like salmon, halibut and tuna. You can also get these fatty acids from walnuts and flaxseed (two tablespoons of flaxseed provides 3.5 grams) and in fish oil supplements.
4. Have more red grape juice and dark cocoa.  The flavanoids in each have anti-inflammatory properties that may help lower cholesterol and stave off heart disease.
5. Eat more soybeans, soy nuts, edamame, and products made from soy (tofu, soy milk).  Doing so helps to reduce the production of new cholesterol.  Aim for only about 25 grams of soy protein a day.  (If you have an increased risk for breast or prostate cancer, you might want to skip the soy.  Ask your doctor, and read up on it for yourself, but I’ve read that people in these risk groups should avoid too much soy.)
6. Get away from whole milk dairy products.  Ice cream and cheese are home to saturated fat, which clogs arteries and increases LDL levels.  Saturated fat is the No. 1 cholesterol-boosting culprit.  Switch to frozen yogurt, and throw some almonds on top.  (I know, I’ve got to get past the almonds.)
7. Processed meats are also no-nos.   Bacon and sausage are also very guilty of housing artery-clogging saturated fat. Try lower-fat options, like bacon and sausage made from turkey and other lean protein sources. With enough co-stars, like fresh tomatoes, lettuce, red onion - you can pull it off and make it work. 
8. Don’t even think about french fries!  Even worse than saturated fats are the dreaded trans fats. Fast food french fries are as bad as it gets when it comes to trans fats.  Lisa Dorfman (quoted above) puts it bluntly, “You might as well take a gun and shoot yourself.”
9. Don’t use Tropical oils (Palm kernel and coconut oils ) when you cook at home, and try to avoid them when you eat out.  Use heart-healthy oils like olive, canola and safflower instead.
10. Read Labels!  Whether they’re soup labels or labels on baked goods - you’ll be surprised at the number of places trans and saturated fats turn up.  Take the time to educate yourself.  It’s THAT important.

Joi

It’s all about the Almonds! (Click for great recipes, including one for Roasted Sweet Garlic and Almond Soup - Garlic’s a super food, itself.)

~ Did you know there is as much calcium in an ounce of almonds as in quarter cup of milk?  I just read that.  On the site.  Thought you’d want to know.  Moving on. I’ve become an almond stalker.