All-round meat menus may be your main-course meal as for tomorrow considering that day being in celebration of Eidiladha. It must be fun with a lot of delicous food that was served.
Although it looks delicious, you have to be prepared with your cholesterol levels. Actually, cholesterol plays an important role, including the production of hormones, vitamin D, and bile to digest fat.
But when levels are excessive, cholesterol – especially low-density lipoprotein (LDL) – will clog arteries and cause cardiovascular disorders. To prevent that possibility from happening to you, it’s a good idea to prepare cholesterol-lowering foods.
Here are five types of food that will lower your cholesterol
1. Oatmeal
Oatmeal is a cholesterol-lowering food that you can treat either as sweet or salty snacks. You can also make oatmeal a healthy breakfast menu.
Oatmeal consumption can provide the body with fiber intake which will bind cholesterol in digestion and remove it from the body.
Quoting from the Harvard Health Publishing, in a bowl of oatmeal, you can get 1-2 grams of fiber intake. Add pieces of fruit for extra fiber intakes such as bananas, strawberries, or blueberries.
2. Salmon
Add fish menus such as salmon, tuna, and mackerel so that the body gets omega 3 acid intake. Launching from Healthline omega 3 acids can increase levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) or often called good cholesterol.
A study found consumption of tuna or other fish at least once a week can reduce 27 percent risk of stroke.
We recommend that if the fish by steaming, boiling or roasting with low temperatures. Fried fish processed will increase the risk of heart disease and stroke.
3. Olive oil
Olive oil is also known as a natural cholesterol-lowering agent. Although it contains fat, fat in olive oil is monounsaturated fat and can reduce LDL levels in the blood and increase HDL levels.
Insert olive oil in the menu as a salad dressing or oil for sauteing. The content of vitamin E in olive oil also functions as an antidote to free radicals thereby protecting body cells.
4. Dark chocolate
After enjoying salty foods, it’s time to eat dessert. In order for cholesterol to go down, you should choose dark chocolate or dark chocolate as a dessert. This might sound strange, but scientific research seems to make you more confident.
One study examined adults who drank cocoa drinks twice a day a month. Researchers found participants experienced a decrease in bad cholesterol by 6.5 mg/dl, decreased blood pressure, and an increase in good cholesterol levels.
For the record, check the chocolate packaging label again because sometimes there is added sugar which will actually cause problems. Choose dark chocolate with cocoa content of about 75-85 percent.
6. Almond dan walnut
In between eating heavy food, fill your stomach with nuts as a snack. Choose walnuts or almonds if you want to lower cholesterol.
Walnuts are rich in omega 3 acids which nourish the heart and reduce LDL levels. While almonds are rich in L-arginine, an amino acid that helps the body produce nitric oxide so it helps stabilize blood pressure.
Sources: CNN Indonesia