Eating healthy foods like fruits and vegetables is good for your cholesterol, but what are the worst foods for high cholesterol?
Almost 1 in 3 adults in the United States have high cholesterol, a condition that increases your risk of heart disease, stroke, and more. While genetics do affect your cholesterol levels, you can make a big impact on your health through lifestyle habits.
If you really want to improve your cholesterol health, then it’s time to make a list of foods to avoid. “Limit or avoid excessive amounts of refined carbohydrates, vegetable oils, and saturated fats,” says registered dietitian Lexi Endicott, RD, LD.
Instead of eating foods with high cholesterol levels and high saturated fats, you should focus on eating healthy. “Switch to more healthful plant choices, such as beans, lentils, peas, tofu… vegetables and whole grains,” says Sharon Palmer, MSFS, RDN.
While having an occasional cheeseburger or pizza slice here and there may not break your health, don’t overindulge. The following are foods you need to limit in your diet if you want to have healthy cholesterol levels.
1. Coconut Oil
While coconut oil may sound healthy, it’s not one of the best choices if you want to manage your cholesterol. “Coconut and palm fat is high in saturated fat, so [keep] these food choices to a minimum,” says Palmer.
2. Bacon
A lot of people love the smell of bacon in the morning, but it is better to limit its intake. According to Palmer, bacon (as well as other fatty meats) are high in saturated fat, which increases your cholesterol.
3. Fatty Pork Sausage
If you want to effectively manage your cholesterol levels, you need to limit your fatty pork product intake. Moreover, Briana Baker (a Texas-based registered dietitian) suggests that you replace these with lean options like pork loin.
4. White Bread
Some of the most important foods to avoid when you have high cholesterol are refined carbohydrates, says Endicott. In other words, if you usually eat white bread, replace it with fiber-rich food like whole-grain bread instead.
5. Frozen Pizza
“Those with high cholesterol should avoid foods with trans fats, which raise your bad cholesterol and lower your good cholesterol,” explains Theresa Gentile, MS, RDN, a Brooklyn-based registered dietitian. For this reason, you should check the nutrition label of your frozen pizza, as some are high in trans fats.
The Outlook
Taking care of your cholesterol health means taking care of your heart as well as your overall health. If you want to age healthily, then you need to start reducing the number of unhealthy foods in your diet.
In addition, you can give your heart health an extra boost by taking supplements like L-arginine Plus. Its ingredients can effectively promote your circulation, cholesterol health, blood pressure health, and more.
Give your cholesterol and heart health the support they deserve and take L-arginine Plus.