If you want to lower your cholesterol, you don’t need to completely eliminate fat from your diet. Research shows that a low-fat diet actually lowers low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or “bad” cholesterol. At the same time, the level of “good” cholesterol – high density lipoproteins (HDL) – decreases.
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Monounsaturated fats, on the other hand, lower bad cholesterol and do not affect good. They also inhibit the oxidation of LDL, which makes atherosclerotic plaques grow more slowly.
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Monounsaturated fats are abundant in olive and rapeseed oil, tree nuts (almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, cashews) and avocados.
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Eat polyunsaturated fat
Polyunsaturated fats lower bad cholesterol (LDL) and reduce the risk of heart disease.
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For example, in one experiment Norwegian scientists from the University of Oslo replaced saturated fats with polyunsaturated fats in the diet of 115 adults. After eight weeks, her total and LDL cholesterol levels dropped by 10%.
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In a different research Harvard Medical School was attended by 13,614 adults. They replaced 15% of their total calories with polyunsaturated fats. The risk of developing ischemic heart diseases decreased by almost 20%.
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Polyunsaturated fats also reduce the risk of metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes. It is enough to replace 5% of the calories of the entire diet with polyunsaturated fats to reduce the risk of this disease.
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There are a lot of polyunsaturated fats in walnuts, fish (salmon, tuna, trout) and vegetable oils: soybean, corn and sunflower.
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What to eat to reduce your risk atherosclerosis? Find out in our gallery:
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Avoid trans fats
Transgender Are solid fats that are made from liquid vegetable oils using a chemical hydrogenation procedure. They are also called that: hydrogenated fats. They are very unhealthy: they increase bad cholesterol and lower good cholesterol.
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A 2016 study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association found that trans fats are responsible for 8% of deaths from cardiovascular disease.
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Other study Claims New York’s Trans Fat Law Will Reduce Heart Disease Deaths By 4.5%
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Trans fats include margarine and spreads. There are also many of them in baked goods and confectionery products.
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Add soluble fiber to your food
It is needed by the beneficial bacteria that live in the intestines. These microorganisms reduce the levels of low and very low density lipoproteins.