TOP 9 is an effective diet for high cholesterol

17 March 2022

A therapeutic diet for high cholesterol is the main link in the treatment of this disease. Consider how to avoid excess fat and cholesterol in your diet. We will figure out how to choose the right healthy food for ourselves every day and an approximate menu for a week if we are facing hyperlipidemia.

20 basic dietary rules for high cholesterol

Elevated cholesterol levels can be a cause of coronary heart disease, lower extremity vein thrombosis, stroke, and heart attack. By following the simple rules listed below, you can prevent the serious consequences of chronic hyperlipidemia.

The diet for hypercholesterolemia should be fragmented. Try to eat 5-6 small meals a day. Thus, the risk of appetite and overeating does not increase after a long fast.
Eat vegetables and fruits at any time and in large quantities. Dietary fiber speeds up the excretion of excess cholesterol from the body.
In case of bad cholesterol, the diet should contain mainly foods containing vegetable fats. When cooking, try using olive oil instead of butter.
Try to eat lean meat no more than a few times a week. Recipes and menus made from poultry, veal, rabbit and lamb are best for high cholesterol.
Adequate nutrition with high cholesterol is supported by sports. Gentle walks of at least three kilometers a day are recommended for people with elevated low-density lipoprotein levels.
The diet for hypercholesterolemia should consist mainly of steamed, fried, cooked foods. Baking should be completely avoided.
If you have high cholesterol, avoid foods high in animal fat. You do not need to eat pork fat, pork, bacon, smoked meats. Replace these products with cooked poultry, fish, and seafood.
In case of high blood pressure and atherosclerosis, increased salt content in foods is contraindicated. Try to eat no more than 5 grams of salt a day. It is best to leave this product completely.
Drink at least two liters of water a day, especially for thick blood and increased bilirubin. Elevated levels of these indicators usually indicate impaired liver and gallbladder function, leading to hyperlipidemia. The increased viscosity of the blood provokes the fixation of blood clots on the lipid deposits in the vessels. You should consume sour berries that can dilute the blood, such as cherries and gooseberries.
A bad combination of sweet cakes and high cholesterol. Milk chocolate should also be avoided. As an alternative dessert, sugar-free oatmeal biscuits, dried fruit, nuts and honey are suitable. Sometimes you can treat yourself to Eastern Turkish delights.
The daily caloric needs of women and men vary - an average of 2, 200 kcal and 2, 600 kcal, respectively. Increased caloric intake is also necessary for those who do heavy physical work. These factors are important in diet design.
Make sure you refrain from alcohol abuse. Red wine is allowed, but no more than two glasses a week.
Coffee is a controversial ally in the fight against high cholesterol. It contains Cafestol, which increases the production of endogenous cholesterol in the liver. But some experts, on the contrary, recommend drinking 1-2 cups of coffee a day, as it strengthens the cardiovascular system. So you can drink coffee, but don’t abuse it. An alternative is chicory drink or green tea.
Cook porridge every day. If possible, do not boil the grain, let it crumble. If your cholesterol is high, don’t season the finished food with a lot of butter. For example, honey and dried fruits are suitable as flavorings for oatmeal.
Hyperlipidemia precludes the use of fatty dairy products. Replace them with nonfat yoghurts and kefir. Use low-fat yogurt and kefir as a substitute.
Products containing harmful trans fats, such as fast food, are strictly contraindicated. Avoid chips and other snacks.
When cooking poultry, remove the skin from its surface. Because it makes food fatter and contains harmful ingredients.
Semi-finished products and hypercholesterolemia are mutually exclusive concepts. Such products do not contain useful vitamins and minerals. Such foods do not bring enough energy, they just clog the body with ballast calories and fats.
Try not to eat too overnight. Dine at least two hours before bed. To quench your appetite, you should drink a glass of kefir before bed or eat a few dates, a handful of almonds.
Your doctor will tell you how best to eat. After considering all the risks and comorbidities, an experienced professional will help you develop the most effective diet plan. Self-treatment of high cholesterol is not recommended.

Elevated cholesterol is a reversible process if you follow the above recommendations and have regular medical check-ups.

Popular diets to lower cholesterol among women and men

A cholesterol-lowering diet can be based on a combination of different foods. To significantly reduce blood cholesterol levels, it is important to follow the recommended diet for a long period of at least six months.

A comparative description of the most popular ones will help you understand the different diets that control high cholesterol.

Mediterranean diet

The cholesterol-lowering Mediterranean diet is recommended for people with atherosclerosis, high blood pressure and the overweight. Such a diet is based on plenty of cheese, meat, fish and spices. Nevertheless, these products combine perfectly and have a positive effect on high cholesterol. List of foods in the diet:

Spices and herbs.
Soft cheeses such as feta.
Olive oil.
Fish, mussels, shrimp.
Bird, lamb.
Red wine in moderation.
Unleavened bread made from wheat flour.
Vegetables and fruits.
Greek yogurt.
Cereals.

Fatty meats, lard, sausages, sweet drinks with gas are categorically excluded from the diet. Because these products can cause high cholesterol in the blood. As an example, we present the following menu for high cholesterol for one week:

One day

For breakfast: three slices of lentil glue flavored with yoghurt.
For lunch, refresh yourself with creamy brussels sprouts; fruit plate and salad with olives and tofu.
You can have pita for dinner, stuffed with feta cubes and salad (cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, a couple of olives).

2 days

A good start to the day is the cottage cheese-bucket zrazy.
Lunch snack - light soup with lentils and risotto vegetables.
Roasted salmon flavored with olive oil with Provencal herbs provides a good evening atmosphere.

3 days

Breakfast meal - buckwheat cooked in vegetable soup.
At lunch, fried tuna with vegetables restores strength; tomato puree soup.
For dinner: salad with chicken breast and avocado, flavored with olive oil and pita.

4 days

Breakfast: yogurt with minced hazelnuts and almonds, we can add a little honey.
Light lunch: soup with fish stew and fried potatoes with tomatoes.
Dinner: vegetable salad with an egg, lemon juice and olive oil.

5 days

Breakfast: oatmeal with water, honey and raisins.
Gives energy to lunch - soup-puree of spinach leaves and asparagus with liquid cream; lightly cooked salmon with wild rice.
Dinner: fry pie with a little cherry tomato and feta on a wholemeal crust, optionally crumble tofu cubes.

6 days

Breakfast: dried fruit souffle, green tea.
For lunch - cabbage soup with chicken stew and vegetables, a pita.
For dinner - zucchini with feta in the oven, pita with avocado and olive oil.

7 days

For breakfast: pour fried pumpkin with yogurt and honey.
Lunch: cream soup with champignons and chanterelles; grated chicken with garlic and sweet peppers in the oven.
Dinner: wild rice with roasted mussels and shrimp.

You can use dates, prunes, raisins and almonds for snacks between main meals. Such a diet not only helps to fix high cholesterol but also to reduce weight.

Diet Table 10

The method of cooking is primarily cooking and baking. Because high cholesterol precludes the use of fried foods. It is recommended to eat at least five meals a day in small portions. Evening snack no later than two hours before bedtime. Consumable products:

Freshly squeezed vegetable juices, jelly.
Whole wheat bread.
Fresh vegetable salads.
Without egg yolk.
Fish: tuna, salmon, carp.
Fat-free cottage cheese, kefir and yogurt.
Kashi.

The following products must be rejected: butter, fatty meat, and in particular red, salted and smoked fish delicacies, fatty cheeses, pickled vegetables, mustard. If you have high cholesterol, a weekly sample menu might look like this:

Early breakfast: buckwheat cooked in 1% milk, soft-boiled eggs, weak green tea with milk.
Pre-dinner snack: a piece of cooked chicken or a fresh apple.
Lunch: vegetable soup with barley groats, mushrooms and chopped zucchini, fried salmon or carp with steamed vegetables (e. g. bell pepper, onion, zucchini), 1 glass of fresh apple juice.
Snack: Rosehip tea, nuts and dried fruits (such as prunes and almonds).
Dinner: low-fat cottage cheese, boiled grated beets with apples, 1 glass of low-fat milk.
Night: 1 glass of nonfat kefir.

During the week you can combine different variations of vegetables, white poultry and fish. Use nuts, fruits such as bananas or apples for snacks. Diet Table 10 is recommended not only for the prevention of vascular atherosclerosis but also for hypothyroidism. A regular diet of at least four months can significantly reduce high cholesterol.

Diet Table 10A

There are several limitations to this diet:

Bread - not more than 145 g per day.
Vegetable soup - not more than 180 ml.
The use of cheeses, pearl barley and millet is excluded.
Do not eat too hot or cold foods.

Diet Table 10, which has a positive effect on high cholesterol, looks like this every day:

Breakfast: chopped oatmeal with 1% milk, green tea, a small apple.
Snack: baked apple with cottage cheese.
Lunch: stewed chicken, mashed potatoes without oil, half a glass of fresh apple juice.
Afternoon snack: prunes or dates.
Dinner: oven-baked carrot-apple slices, half a glass of nonfat kefir.
Before going to bed: half a glass of rosehip tincture or chicory drink.

After the age of 50, more than 35% of people have high cholesterol levels. As a result, there is an increased risk of progression of atherosclerotic disease and myocardial infarction, stroke. Therefore, at this age, it is especially important to follow a proper diet combined with light physical activity.

Dietary table №10C

Table 10C is a therapeutic diet for lowering cholesterol. This diet is recommended for those who have been diagnosed with high blood pressure due to coronary heart disease and atherosclerosis. This menu is dominated by foods high in vegetable fats, dietary fiber, and high in B, PP, and vitamin C. The daily caloric content of the menu is about 2570 kcal. Take six portions a day.

Recommended foods that have a beneficial effect on high cholesterol include:

Bran.
Sea cabbage.
Vegetables and fruits can be eaten in large portions.
Fry or cook the eggs a little, up to three pieces a week.
Buckwheat, oatmeal, barley porridge.
Honey, a few spoons a day.
Durum spaghetti, try not to overcook.

Prohibited foods include Food-like Menu # 10. The approximate daily diet is as follows:

Breakfast: boiled buckwheat without oil, light curd with seasonal fruits, tea.
Snack: baked apples or dried apricots.
Lunch: stewed carrots, steamed beetroot slices, rice soup with lightly fried vegetables in olive oil, seasonal fruit compote.
Afternoon snack: unsweetened berry smoothie or honey with a handful of hazelnuts.
Dinner: Salad of seasonal vegetables with olive oil and seaweed, fried salmon (another oily fish) with lemon slices and thyme, weak green tea.
Before going to bed: a glass of 1% kefir.

A healthy lifestyle is not limited to diet. Because high cholesterol requires complex treatment. Don’t forget the physical exercises as well as the long walks in the fresh air.

low carb diet

The foods excluded from the low carb menu are:

Sweet pastries on white bread.
Sugar and fructose, honey.
Alcohol and sugary beverages with gas.
Macaroni and potatoes.
Milk chocolate.
Sweet fruits such as grapes.

Large amounts of animal protein should be present in the daily diet, such as fish, dairy products, lean meats. Here's what a low-carb menu might look like for a week:

Monday

Egg white omelette with chopped champignons and tomatoes;
Creamy chicken and broth. Two wholemeal breads;
Pear;
Stewed veal with bell peppers.

Tuesday

Thin pancakes with kefir curd and raisins.
Salmon ears. Two slices of cereal bread.
Green apple.
Stewed chicken fillet with spinach.

Wednesday

Cheesecake with low-fat sour cream.
Buckwheat on the water and fried chicken.
Orange.
Cold chicken.

Thursday

Whipped cottage cheese.
Cheese soup with chicken breast. Two wholemeal toasts.
Half a grapefruit.
Unpolished rice. Stewed zucchini and carrot slices with fresh cucumbers.

Friday

A soft-boiled egg sprinkled with grated cheese.
Fish steamed in a light cream sauce.
Kiwi or an orange.
Boiled beans, mashed. Chicken rolls. A tomato.
Before going to bed - a glass of kefir.

Saturday

Cottage cheese and natural yogurt.
Stewed lamb dumplings and a cucumber.
Tangerines or apples.
Seafood. Arugula salad with olive oil.

Sunday

Steamy omelette with chicken breast.
Roasted turkey fillet with broccoli.
A glass of 1% kefir.
Rabbit stewed with vegetables (onions, zucchini, sweet peppers).

It is recommended to consume two liters of fluid a day while following this diet. In women, a low-carbohydrate diet may be a contraindication to breastfeeding and pregnancy. Elevated cholesterol levels can be successfully treated with timely nutritional correction. What diet you need to follow can only be decided by your doctor after a detailed analysis of your medical history.

paleo diet

The paleo diet includes foods that were consumed by our Stone Age ancestors before the development of agriculture. High levels of animal protein are the basis of prehistoric nutrition. However, much less carbohydrates and fats are used in the diet. The main product is meat, which contains animal protein. He is the one who speeds up metabolic processes and helps prevent the accumulation of excess fat.

The paleo diet is suitable for lowering blood cholesterol levels as the consumption of animal fats is reduced. It is recommended to eat every five hours, about three times a day. The main authorized products are:

Meat and poultry without fat.
Seafood, fish.
Oils: olive, flaxseed, sesame.
Mushrooms, nuts and seeds without heat treatment.
Fresh berries, vegetables and fruits.

Sugar and salt, legumes and cereals, dairy products, starchy vegetables (potatoes, sweet potatoes) are excluded from the diet in addition to such a diet. Consumption of food is usually recommended raw or after minimal heat treatment. This type of diet helps protect blood vessels from cholesterol and plaque formation. Elevated levels of low-density lipoprotein can be normalized if the principles of the paleo diet are followed.

Keto diet

The keto diet is based on minimal carbohydrate intake. In this regard, the body trains to produce more energy from fats and proteins. This high-cholesterol diet helps reduce low-density lipoproteins. However, "good" cholesterol levels rise.

Avoid bread, sugar, pasta, fruit and sweets during a ketogenic diet. In the case of carbohydrate deficiency, the body begins to break down fat reserves intensively.

This diet is similar to a low carb diet. When choosing the optimal menu, you should follow these rules:

Breakfast: In the morning, try to consume 15 g of carbohydrates. The source can be cheese or vegetables. It is recommended to eat an omelette in olive oil with tomatoes and bran toast. Calorie content - 500-600 kcal.
Carbohydrates should be restricted at lunch. Nutrition experts recommend consuming the soup with chicken dumplings (without potatoes, noodles). Note that high cholesterol suggests consuming vegetable soup. Second, you can eat brown rice with your breast and a piece of cheese.
Dinner should be high in protein and fiber. Poultry or lamb, veal and green vegetables will do. It is worth frying meat, making a salad of vegetables with a spoon of olive oil.

If the ketogenic diet is followed, the body works in an "emergency" and is in a state of ketosis due to the production of ketone bodies (fatty acid derivatives). Therefore, medical supervision is required during such a diet.

Some argue that diet lowers cholesterol levels, so they recommend taking statins. It is a very controversial statement. Many doctors and experts basically disagree on this.

Ornish's vegetarian diet

The diet was first created by Dean Ornish, Bill Clinton’s personal physician. And this is based on strict control of the fats consumed. A maximum of 20 grams of fat per day is allowed. This diet is recommended if someone is diagnosed with hyperlipidemia, atherosclerosis, and obesity. Basically the menu is vegetarian. This food is characterized by an increased percentage of carbohydrates in the foods consumed.

Ornish's diet should be combined with physical exercise and physical activity. The daily balance of fats, proteins and carbohydrates is 10, 25, 75%. Products recommended for use:

Vegetables, mostly green.
Lentils, beans, peas.
Apples and pears.
Buckwheat porridge made from corn, wheat and rice.

We eat eggs, dairy products, cheeses and cookies in moderation. Red meat, leafy and pasta products, butter, mayonnaise, olives, nuts, seeds should be categorically excluded.

The weekly sample menu can be compiled as follows.

First day

Breakfast: chicory drink with a tablespoon of wheat bran added to low-fat yoghurt.
Lunch: some big potatoes with tomatoes, a salad of cucumbers, greens and iceberg lettuce, a green apple.
Snack: apricot or plum (3 pieces), other seasonal fruits, low-fat cottage cheese.
Dinner: two wholemeal toasts, one apple or pear, durum wheat spaghetti sprinkled with low-fat cheese, berry compote.

The second day

Breakfast: freshly squeezed orange juice, rice porridge with low-fat milk, a glass of kefir.
Lunch: beans with mushrooms and onions, salad with tomatoes, carrots and cucumbers, smeared with olive oil.
Afternoon snack: strawberries, wheat bread.
Dinner: two slices of bran bread, half avocado, porridge stewed with mushrooms and carrots, green tea.

Third day

Breakfast: decaffeinated coffee, a cup of muesli with berries and low-fat milk.
Lunch: soup with pumpkin slices and spinach, couscous vegetables, vinaigrette without pickles.
Afternoon snack: a glass of kefir, low-fat cake.
Dinner: fried eggplant halves with onions and carrots, a bowl of seasonal berries, mint tea.

Fourth day

Breakfast: pomegranate juice, pancakes with pumpkin and zucchini.
Lunch: broccoli and cauliflower soup, rice steamed asparagus and chicken fillet.
Snack: low-fat cottage cheese with yoghurt, oatmeal cookies.
Dinner: stewed white cabbage with carrots and onions, any fruit, currant compote.

Fifth day

Breakfast: apple juice, porridge with cereal mixture.
Lunch: two slices of fish, mashed potatoes without adding milk, with a little butter.
Afternoon snack: a cup of low-fat kefir with a green apple.
Dinner: asparagus and green pea soup, weak tea.

Sixth day

Breakfast: chicory drink with fat-free cottage cheese with honey.
Lunch: boiled turkey breast with zucchini and pumpkin puree, orange juice.
Afternoon snack: oatmeal pudding, multi-grain bread.
Dinner: two cabbage rolls stuffed with rice and vegetables, mineral water.

Seventh day

Breakfast: a piece of curd with raisins and chicory.
Lunch: 2 lentils and carrot slices, rice.
Snack: 3 baked cheesecakes, orange juice.
Dinner: apples stuffed with cottage cheese and dried apricots, chamomile tea.

High cholesterol levels can return to normal if the canons of this diet are strictly adhered to. Regularity and self-control are very important to achieve results.

Fasting period

Fasting is used to lower blood cholesterol levels. Treating elevated cholesterol with a diet that includes elements of complete starvation is possible as follows: In the event of a food shortage, the body begins to use low-density lipoprotein reserves to gain energy for life. Cholesterol, as an alternative energy source, begins to be released into the bloodstream after as little as 12 hours of fasting and is broken down into energy.

Approximate pattern of cholesterol starvation for one week:

The first day - only freshly squeezed apple-carrot juice, diluted 1: 2 with water. On the second day, you can drink the juice without diluting it with water. You can eat 50 g of grated carrots for lunch. In the third - drink grape-apple and carrot juice. Dine with a hundred grams of vegetable puree and before going to bed - kefir.

On the fourth and fifth day, add grated vegetables and fruits, and at night light cottage cheese. On the sixth and seventh day, the breakfast should consist of grated vegetables and fruits, and for dinner and lunch, eat overcooked buckwheat or millet cereal. Such a strict diet should only be performed after consultation with a doctor and under medical supervision. Therapeutic fasting should be repeated regularly to control high cholesterol.

It is not easy to choose the optimal diet for high cholesterol - all the characteristics of a person’s body need to be studied in detail. It is very important to consider the accompanying diseases, gender, age. Only a well-designed menu can effectively prevent the serious consequences of hypercholesterolemia.