The Two Most Trusted Ways to Lower Cholesterol

There are two general ways to lower cholesterol:

• Reduce it through your diet.
• Increase your amount of exercise.

Ways to Lower Cholesterol – Diet

What should you eat? Remember FVW:

• Fruits
• Vegetables
• Whole grains

But unless you live on a farm or in the country, you may be regularly including what you think are FVWs in your daily diet but are really unhealthy variations. To be safe, use as much fresh produce as possible, rather than getting it out of a can.

Also, watch the fat you use when you cook. If you can't seem to bring yourself to eat steamed veggies week after week, try broiling. A great way to eat veggies would be in a kebab with fish or chicken breast fillet. Imagine the yummy mix of colors and textures you can alternate with broiled fish or chicken meat!

If you have to cook indoors and don't own a smokeless, indoor grill, you can use a nonstick pan or spray a thin film of nonstick spray over your regular pan.

You can also choose to use EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) or healthier vegetable or sunflower oil. But keep in mind that too much of ANY kind of fat is bad for you and can pack on the pounds.

Needless to say, no matter what age you are or shape you're in, stay away from saturated fat. Excess dietary fat's a leading cause of hypertension, harmful cholesterol levels, and colon or breast cancer.

So the next time you pick up the knife to butter your bread, why not open a jar of jam or marmalade instead?

Here's a rundown of what you should be looking for in the foods you eat:

• Soluble fiber (oats, bran, peas, dried beans, etc.)
• Vitamin C (oranges, grapefruit)
• Vitamin E (if in supplement form, don't take Vitamins C and E together)
• Beta-carotene (carrots, enriched food)

If there is one thing you should stay away from, it should probably commercial baked products like doughnuts, brownies, and cookies. These will not only create a spike in your cholesterol level but a spike in your sugar level as well.

Ways to Lower Cholesterol – Exercise

Even if the best ways to lower cholesterol have to do with changing your dietary habits, getting into a regular exercise routine is important as well.

Exercise burns fat. The more fat you burn, the less of it stays in your body with the potential to do a lot of harm. If you occasionally binge on cookies and doughnuts, or like an occasional t-bone steak, then you're playing dice with your health if you don't exercise regularly.

The best exercises are those that use the biggest muscles of your body (e.g., leg muscles), which need more oxygen. Popularly known as aerobic exercises, these are great fat burners! Examples are:

• brisk walking, jogging, or running
• swimming or rowing
• biking, skating, or skiing

Finally, if you're lowering your cholesterol for a healthy heart, then you may want to stop smoking (if you haven't already) as well. Three ways to drive down your risk of getting a heart attack are to:

• Quit smoking.
• Minimize sodium/salt in your diet.
• Keep a healthy body weight.