If you have recently learned that you have high cholesterol, your physician most likely has pointed you toward cholesterol lowering drugs.
This simply does not make sense to me given the fact that certain foods lower LDL cholesterol levels just as effectively, and sometimes better than medication.
As a matter of fact, I recently read an article in U.
S.
News & World Report that talked about a doctor who was unable to tolerate the side effects of the very statin medications that he was giving his patients.
Because of this, he put himself on a cholesterol lowering diet and increased the amount of exercise he was receiving.
Surprisingly, he was able to reduce his cholesterol readings just as effectively as what medication had done for him.
In reality, this should not surprise anyone.
The fact that foods such as vegetables, fruit, whole grains and nuts help lower cholesterol effectively is not new, nor is it rocket science.
The very diet that was the typical American diet generations ago was one that kept cholesterol levels low.
It contained much less saturated fat than what is found in our diet today and contained many more nourishing foods than what most Americans now eat.
We have come to a point in our society that we need to relearn what it is to eat right.
A cholesterol lowering diet that contains those foods that are high in soluble fiber and plant sterols can quickly reduce high cholesterol and triglycerides.
Eliminating foods that are high in saturated fats are also very important.
Saturated fat is quickly converted into LDL cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood stream, but fortunately the opposite is also true.
Elevated levels of LDL cholesterol and triglycerides come down as beef and pork and other high-fat foods are removed from the diet.
I encourage you to visit my website where I discuss which foods lower LDL cholesterol and the best ways to maintain healthy cholesterol levels.