This bag of potato chips say cholesterol free, made with 100% vegetable oil, but my friend says that I shouldn't eat them. Why?  I've heard that by eating oatmeal, I can actually lower my cholesterol, is this true?  My doctor says my LDL is to high, and my HDL isn't high enough.  What should all this mean for me anyway?  These questions are all typical for many people today. Knowing about cholesterol and ways to lower it can literally save your life. by Collette Renstrom, RN, special to Mormonchic.com

Recently my husband, Reuben, came home with a grocery bill that was out of control.  He was diagnosed with high cholesterol and this was his way of dealing with the problem.  He sees things as black and white.  He is either going to diet all the way or not at all.  After his visit to the doctor, she told him he needed to lower his cholesterol by starting a healthy program of regular exercise and proper nutrition.  We as a family decided to make a commitment to lowering our cholesterol together.

Women were once previously thought to be at a lower risk for heart disease, but recent studies have shown that 1 in 3 women will die from this disease. The best prevention is to reduce your risk factors, which includes lowering your blood cholesterol levels.

Cholesterol is a fatty substance produced by our body that is very important for cells to function. Although necessary, too much of a good thing can be harmful.  Cholesterol as well as saturated fats are a major cause of arteriosclerosis (fat deposit built up in the blood vessels).  You will often hear about two main types of cholesterol. The "good" kind is High Density Lipoproteins (HDL) and the "bad" kind is Low Density Lipoproteins (LDL). HDL sweeps cholesterol out of the body and LDL leaves fatty deposits of cholesterol on the walls of the blood vessels possibly causing an artery to become clogged.  When the doctor measures your cholesterol levels, it is the fats in these particles which is being determined. 

What should my cholesterol levels be?

The National Institute of Health (NIH) now recommends that all American adults should strive for a total cholesterol below 200 mg/dl  (or LDL cholesterol less than 130 mg/dl).  A blood cholesterol level of 200-239 would be considered borderline high risk and 240 or greater (or LDL over 160) would be considered high risk and may require drug therapy.  An HDL Cholesterol level of over 40 mg/dl is acceptable. 

How can I lower my cholesterol levels?

As the dietitian told my husband, proper diet and exercise will help lower cholesterol.  Some people have an inherited tendency for higher cholesterol and may have more difficulty lowering their cholesterol without the aid of drug therapy.  The AHA stated, "The best way to help lower your blood cholesterol level is to eat less saturated fatty acids and cholesterol, and control your weight." 1995 An Eating Plan for Healthy Americans.

What Should I Eat?

The American Heart Association has the following ideas for Eating Plan Tips:

• Eat up to 6 ounces (cooked) per day of lean meat, fish* and skinless poultry (3 ounces equals about the size of 1 deck of cards)
• Try main dishes featuring pasta, rice beans, and/or vegetables. 
• Approximately 5-8 teaspoon servings of fats and oils per day may be used for cooking and baking, and in salad dressings and spreads.
• Use cooking methods that require little or no fat: boil, broil, bake, roast, poach, steam, sauté, stir-fry or microwave.
• Trim off the fat you can see before cooking meat and poultry.  Drain off all fat after browning.  Chill soups and stews after cooking so you can remove the hardened fat from the top.
• The 3 to 4 egg yolks per week included in your eating plan may be used alone or in cooking and baking (including store-bought products).
• Limit your use of organ meats such as liver, kidney, heart, and gizzard.
• Choose skim or 1% fat milk and nonfat or low-fat yogurt and cheeses.
• Eat 5 or more servings of fruit or vegetables per day.
• Eat 6 or more servings of bread, cereals or whole grains* per day.
  
  *Fish and oats have been found by recent scientific research to lower cholesterol levels.  If you don't prefer to eat fish a good supplement is 1000mg of Fish Oil per day.

Watch out for Fats

Meat is high in saturated fats. Your doctor can recommend how often you can eat "red" meat this number is usually around 2-3 servings per week. Good substitutes are Chicken, Turkey and Fish.

The USDA dietary guideline is a diet of 30% or less fat calories eaten each day. To calculate this:

1. Find the grams of fat in one serving.
2. Multiply the number of grams of fat by nine (since 1 gram of fat=9 calories).  
3. Divide the answer from step 2 by the calories per serving.

Start to read labels at the grocery store, choose polyunsaturated and monounsaturated vegetable oils such as corn, olive, canola, safflower, sesame, soybean or sunflower.  Avoid palm and coconut oil, these are both high in saturated fats. Mayonnaise and salad dressings should be used sparingly and watch out for those made with cheese or sour cream. 

Margarine containing plant sterol esters have been shown to lower cholesterol levels.  Two examples of this type of margarine would be Benecol and Control. If you can't stand the taste of either of these try a margarine that is easy to spread.

Avoid hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils. Many times foods that you believe to be a healthy choice, because the packaging says cholesterol-free, are not, because one of the main ingredients is hydrogenated oil.  These oils are used frequently in foods such as chips, crackers, and baked breads. Studies have shown that eating hydrogenated oils can increase LDL levels and lower HDL levels.

Exercise

If you are overweight try to get down to your ideal weight and stay there.  Regular exercise is a good way to lose weight.  This means 20 minutes of aerobic activity at least three times per week. Kelly France, a full time mom from the Lawrence, Kansas 2nd ward, found it easier to find time to exercise by volunteering to teach aerobics in the church gym two days a week. This way, when she doesn't feel like exercising she has a commitment that she has to keep. Not only is she getting her own physical benefits of being active, she is helping others too.

In our case, we bought a jogging stroller. Now my husband tries to jog several times a week, while our son takes in the scenery.

More Information

Fast food dining can be difficult. At www.fastfoodsfacts.com. Or 1-800-634-1993 you can order a pamphlet listing the different nutritional values of national chain restaurants for $5.95 + shipping.

Since high cholesterol tends to run in families teach your children good eating habits early.

If after six months of healthy eating and exercise, you don't see an adequate decrease in your cholesterol levels, be sure to consult your doctor it may be time for drug therapy.

The American Heart Association Cookbook, Fifth Edition., and the American Heart Association Low-Fat, Low-Cholesterol Cookbook are excellent resources for finding heart healthy recipes.