If you’re at risk for heart disease, low cholesterol foods should be a part of your everyday diet. These foods work to either lower your current cholesterol, or help it from getting too high in the first place.

Our bodies produce cholesterol, it is a fatty material called a lipid. It is made by your liver and can be over-produced by the unhealthy fatty foods that we all-too-often eat. Cholesterol is actually necessary for our bodies to perform properly. However, too much cholesterol is quite bad and is a widespread cause of heart attacks and can increase the possibility of stroke.

So what are the best five low cholesterol foods which you should be eating on a daily basis to sustain healthy cholesterol levels?

Fruit and Vegetables

It’s hard to deny the heart-healthy, low fat low cholesterol properties of fruit and vegetables. Vegetables particularly (since they don’t have as much natural sugar as fruit does). It’s very important not to add cream, butter or fatty dressings to them. While the dressings and sauces taste divine, by adding them, you’ve just erased the health-giving benefits of the fruits and vegetables.

Go for the Grains

Grains are apt to be ignored, which is a shame. These wonder foods are high in soluble fiber and typically low fat. What are these wonderful foods? Think of items like oats, barley, pulses and some fruits.

Go Nuts!

Seeds and nuts are a double-edged sword, if roasted in oils and slathered in salt or even dark chocolate they drop off the list of low cholesterol foods. But plain nuts and seeds are wonderful. A good way of using these is to toss a handful into your soups, stews and salads. The seeds and/or nuts provide a crunchy quality and are a fantastic way to get used to eating low cholesterol foods.

Consider Adding Fish

Fish are the exception to the “go lean” rule; in this case, fatty is better! Cold-water fish such as salmon, trout and tuna are all fatty but they are excellent, as is most fish in general. Make sure that any canned fish isn’t packed in oil, and does not have a lot of added salt.

Meat is Good for You

Meat, opposite to popular opinion, actually isn’t bad for you.. Clearly, you do not want to eat fatty meat, but lean meat is all right.. Did you know that lean pork without any fat is as low in cholesterol as cottage cheese? Just skip the crispy bacon (sigh).

If you are planning to enjoy some red meat, be sure to add a good-sized salad or steamed vegetables (without butter) to your meal. The healthy benefits of salads and vegetables help to negate some of the fat remaining in red meat.

Keep it Healthy

Now that you are more familiar with the kinds of foods you really should be consuming, consider about how they are prepared. I’ve already mentioned several “gotchas” such as tuna packed in oil or nuts covered with chocolate.

You only have one heart, and if you’re trying to help it by eating low cholesterol foods, make sure they stay that way! Become used to looking at labels, and ask what is in the sauce (or make do without it).

Keep your body and heart protected with low cholesterol meals. It will thank you for it!

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