Natural Cholesterol Management

At my practice, I see a lot of patients for high cholesterol. This one patient came in today with cholesterol numbers in the 300's and a high LDL. I often encourage healthy eating but most importantly cutting out the unnecessary fat - like the double quater pounder with cheese and whole milk latte at McDonald's. That alone would save him at least 50 grams of fat. Not only is it important to lower overall fat in the diet - but saturated and trans fat should be minimized. For a person on a 2000 calorie diet that translate into 65gms .

Increasing soluble fiber in the diet can also help reduce cholesterol levels. Soluble fiber binds with cholesterol and takes it out of the body. A good recommendation is about 9-10 gms soluble fiber per day. Cheerios has made a name for itself by claiming that eating cheerios reduces cholesterol. Unfortunatley, cheerios does not contain enough of the soluble fiber that one needs to effectively manage choleterol naturally. For a healthy dose of soluble fiber, I recommend Kashi cereals, Fiber One, or bran cereals containing at least 3gms soluble fiber per serving.

If you want to try a granola bara, I like the Kardea Gourmet Bars ... they are great snacks and contain only 150 kcals, 7 grams of fiber with 5 grams of soluble fiber. They have a delicious selection of banana nut, chai spice, cranberry almond and lemon ginger. Their products contain natural plant sterols which in adequate amounts (2-3g) effectively lower cholesterol. Some sources of plant sterols include Benecol, Kardea Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Gourmet Bars. I love their products and highly recommend them for anyone seeking to lower cholesterol naturally.