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What’s the best way to lower cholesterol?
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MediZine's Healthy Living
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Richard Stein, M.D., is a professor of cardiology at the NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City. | Dr. Stein offers these smart tips:
• Cut back on foods that are high in saturated fat, such as red meat, whole dairy products, eggs and tropical oils such as palm and coconut, and high in trans fat, such as certain fast foods and baked goods. Instead, eat more fruits, vegetables and whole grains. “When you reduce the fat in your diet, you reduce the liver’s production of LDL cholesterol.”
• Exercise at least 30 minutes or more on most days. Exercise helps stabilize plaque: “The rush of blood over tissues inside artery walls makes the lining healthier."
• Lose weight: It helps lower LDL and bump up HDL.
• If you smoke, quit. Smoking increases the growth of plaque and makes blood more likely to clot. If you really change your eating and exercise habits and start to lose weight, you could see an improvement in your cholesterol levels within two to three months.
If your cholesterol doesn’t respond to lifestyle changes, you may be a candidate for a cholesterol-lowering drug.
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