5 Tips To Reduce Cholesterol Naturally

Before we get to our tips to reduce cholesterol naturally, it’s important to first understand what cholesterol is.
On it’s own cholesterol is not necessarily unhealthy. In simple terms, cholesterol is the boat that transports lipids (fats) along the blood. If you’ve ever dropped oil into water, you’ll know that it repels. The result is that fats and essential fatty acids are not able to travel efficiently through the blood like sugar is able to (as sugar is water soluble).
Most cell membranes consist of cholesterol and it’s an important part of our biological process. High cholesterol combined with high blood sugar can be dangerous. There are “good” and “bad” types of cholesterol indicated by the density of the cholesterol molecule in the blood. HDL are high density and considered healthier (we want more of them) and LDL are low density and considered unhealthy (we want less of them).
The good news is that you can reduce cholesterol naturally by making small modifications to your lifestyle mainly through diet and exercise. Here our 5 tips to reduce cholesterol naturally.
 

1. Lower your carbohydrate intake

 
I know it’s confusing to talk about carbohydrates when it comes to cholesterol, but high blood sugar and high cholesterol are a dangerous combination. Therefore, to reduce the problems associated with high cholesterol (as well as getting tonnes of other benefits) you should consider reducing your carbohydrate intake.
All carbohydrates are eventually broken down into sugar and an excess amount of blood sugar can cause artery walls to become damaged which in turn causes a response from the cholesterol to repair the damaged cells in the artery wall. The buildup of cholesterol can increase the risk of a stroke or heart attack but the cholesterol would not cause a problem if it were not for the high blood sugar.
You can reduce your carbohydrate intake by lowering your consumption of low nutrient starch such as bread, rice and potatoes. Sweet fruits such as mangos and bananas are also high in carbohydrates and reducing the intake will usually make a big difference to your blood sugar. If you’ve recently done a blood test, look for the result on “fasting glucose” or “HbA1c” which give an indication if you have elevated blood sugar.
 

2. Eat more fish

 
Fish, especially Salmon, are full of essential fatty acids known as omega-3. These fatty acids are essential because your body needs them, but has no way of producing them by itself. Your body therefore requires you to supply omega-3 through your diet. 
By eating more oily seafood like Salmon, Mackerel, Oysters etc you will increase your omega-3 intake and reduce cholesterol naturally. If you can’t do seafood at least try and supplement with fish oil tablets however we believe that natural, whole foods are always best. 
 

3. Eat more nuts & seeds

 
Nuts need to be part of every healthy diet. They supply omega-3 as well as alleviate hunger and help you lose weight. But more specifically, increasing your intake of nuts is an amazing tool at your disposal to help you reduce cholesterol naturally. 
We recommend choosing nuts and seeds that have a high fat:carbohydrate ratio like walnuts, pecans macadamia nuts, chia seeds and flaxseeds.
 

4. Get on the vegetable train but go easy on the fruit

 
Not all vegetables are created equal. You’ll want to lean heavily on dark leafy greens. Spinach is an amazing source of nutrients, fibre and all around goodness with very little negative consequences. Additionally, salads are your new best friend. Even if you think you’re too cool for salad, think of your heart and overall health and create the new normal. You can add walnuts, olives, cucumber or carrots to spruce up your salad and make it a little more exciting. It’s good for you so find a combination that will work for you. 
Most of time fruits and vegetables go hand in hand, but that’s one of the biggest misconceptions that’s been spread around. Fruits are like cake – use only in very strict moderation. The days of 2 mangoes in one sitting or half a watermelon on a warm day should be long gone if you’re serious about reducing cholesterol naturally. It might be a little bit daunting to let go of glorious fruit but just enjoy them once or twice a week rather than every day. You’ll enjoy them more anyway, and so will your health. 
 

5. Exercise!

 
Please note that these are not in order of priority. Exercise might as well be the most important thing. It’s likely that if your cholesterol is elevated then you’re not doing enough intense exercise. Our perspective is that walking is not enough for you to be considered “active.” We recommend resistance training (training with weights) to get the most benefit for your time.
Not only will exercise help to reduce cholesterol naturally, it will also help you prevent many other common conditions. The added bonus: exercise will help make all your biological processes more efficient. Keep in mind that 100 years ago our activity levels were so much greater than they are today. We just need to tap into our body’s natural preference to move in order to regulate cholesterol and all the systems of the body.