A diet with high cholesterol by itself usually does not give the desired effect, it only helps in combination with taking medication. However, without it, treatment will not work.
When compiling a menu, it is necessary to take into account not only the level of cholesterol in a person's blood, but also his gender and age. You do not need to abandon such a diet, because in this case you will have to follow a therapeutic diet for the rest of your life.
What is high cholesterol?
Cholesterol (cholesterol) is a very important steroid for the human body. It plays an important role in lipid metabolism, is involved in the production of hormones. This substance is in all cells of the body, even in the brain. However, the situation is dangerous when cholesterol levels rise.
Transport of cholesterol molecules to the tissues is carried out with the help of proteins. They are of several types:
- High density lipoprotein (HDL). This is called "good" cholesterol. They take excess fat, transport it to the liver, where it is processed into bile acids, which are then excreted through the intestines.
- Low density lipoprotein (LDL). This is "bad" cholesterol. They deliver the molecules to the tissues. With an increase in LDL levels, excess of this substance is deposited, forming plaque, which leads to cardiovascular disease.
- very low density lipoprotein (VLDL). They are considered the most dangerous type, as they transport fats such as triglycerides from the liver to the tissues.
If you need a low-cholesterol diet, this means that a person has a high level of LDL and "bad" cholesterol that he needs to reduce.
Diet Basics
Hypocholesterolemic diets with high cholesterol levels are observed throughout life. This is not a completely cholesterol-free diet, as it is impossible to eliminate all cholesterol-containing foods from the diet. Recent studies show that if you exclude it completely, the situation will lead to neurological and endocrine disorders.
The basic principles of food nutrition:
- Eat at least 400 g of fruit and vegetables daily. Their share can even be increased. Starchy vegetables such as potatoes and pumpkin are allowed to be consumed, but in limited quantities, no more than the physiologically acceptable norm. Their cholesterol load is low, but they contain carbohydrates.
- The use of vegetable protein at the expense of legumes, in the absence of kidney disease.
- Fractional nutrition, in which the total amount of food is divided into 5-6 meals. This will help ensure gallbladder drainage.
- Limit salt intake to 5 grams per day.
- The exception of pickled, salty and smoked foods, sweet soda.
- Consumption of sugar at the level of 5 tsp. in a day. The amount is considered the total, with all drinks and dishes.
- Weight control.
If necessary, you can spend the days fasting on vegetables, apples or kefir. When overweight, start with a low-cholesterol diet of cottage cheese or fruit and vegetables, and then move on to an anti-cholesterol nutrition plan.
Prohibited Products
Standard LDL-lowering diets limit or eliminate fat-rich foods altogether. What is prohibited include:
- fatty meat and fish;
- innards;
- cream and fat milk;
- margarine.
Just because of this, you can lower cholesterol levels by 10-15%. Sometimes it's not even necessary to follow a diet. It is enough to refuse the listed products, include in the menu for every day more vegetables and fruits, fish and seafood, vegetable fats.
When compiling a diet, it is important to remember that in order to lower cholesterol, it is not necessary to completely exclude fat. Their proportion is determined individually, depending on the severity of the disease. Sometimes it has to be reduced by 20%, but usually the limitation is not too significant. Vegetable oils should also be used with caution, no more than usual, as they contribute to the accumulation of harmful substances in the body.
With high sugar content, reduce the amount of carbohydrates. But with a normal weight and glucose level, you can slightly increase the proportion of complex carbohydrates to provide your body with energy.
To reduce the fat and cholesterol content in the daily menu, you must follow the following rules:
- fat is cut from meat, skin must be removed from poultry;
- vegetables are never cooked with meat, because they absorb fat;
- any recipe is adapted to this diet, reducing the fat content in it (for example, they take sour cream with a lower fat content);
- rice dishes, mashed potatoes, pasta cooked without butter.
You should also use non-stick cookware to avoid frying.
Approved Products
The hypocholesterolemic diet allows the following products to be listed:
- Lean meat and fish. The most beneficial are cold-sea fish, which contain omega-3 acids that affect fat metabolism.
- Vegetable oil that binds and removes cholesterol (this is not only olive, but also soybean or rapeseed oil).
- Dairy products, including cottage cheese, sour cream, low-fat cheese.
- Nuts, especially walnuts and almonds, are rich in vitamins, folic acid, magnesium and arginine. However, they contain a lot of calories, so you need to eat them in small amounts.
- Cereals - buckwheat, rice, oatmeal.
- Eggs - no more than 2-4 per week, depending on the state of health.
- Soy products. They are very useful, but we are talking only about high-quality items, for example, you can eat tofu.
- Foods that contain dietary fiber are wheat and wheat bran.
- Fruits, especially apples and citrus fruits, as they help lower blood pressure and prevent blood clots.
Bread can be consumed, but only baked yesterday or in the form of toast. Tea is also included in the daily diet. But to reduce the potential for harm, it should be weak and with a minimum amount of sugar.
recipes
The need to follow an anti-cholesterol diet does not mean that a person is forced to eat the same dishes all the time.
By using cholesterol-lowering foods, you can create a healthy and tasty menu for proper nutrition.
marmalade
Citrus fruits contain a lot of pectin which is involved in the digestive process. It forms a very viscous mass that helps remove cholesterol from the body before it enters the bloodstream. Citrus fruits are good in any form. They can be eaten raw, as part of fruit salads, and marmalade is also made from them.
For its preparation take:
- orange - 1 piece;
- grapefruit - 1 piece;
- lemons - 1 piece;
- sugar - 0. 5 kg;
- water - 500 ml.
Cook:
- Citrus fruits are washed, squeezed from fruit juice with pulp.
- Coarse white fibers are cut from the rind and cut into thin strips.
- Raw materials are placed in a pan.
- Add juice and water.
- Boil for 12-20 minutes.
- Add the sugar and keep on low heat until the mixture reaches a thick state. When it cools, it will turn into marmalade.
White bean soup with spices
Legumes - lentils, chickpeas, peas - contain dietary fiber that is useful for the cardiovascular system. They are high in protein and can replace fatty meats in the diet. They are prepared in different ways. Mediterranean cuisine includes many types of dishes with nuts. For example, you can cook white bean soup with herbs.
For this you will need:
- dry white beans - 1 tbsp. ;
- bulb - 1 piece;
- carrots - 1 piece;
- chopped celery sticks - 1 pc. ;
- weak chicken broth - 0. 5 l;
- water - 0. 5 liters;
- salt and spices - to taste.
Cook:
- The beans are soaked overnight and then boiled for 2 hours. It turns out about 500-600 g of the finished product.
- Boil the onions, carrots and celery for 8-10 minutes.
- Pour the beans into the pan and add the vegetables.
- Pour in the broth and water.
- Add salt and spices.
- Bring to a boil.
- Let it simmer for another 15 minutes.
- Half of the pea-vegetable mass is removed from the soup, beaten in a blender, returned to the remaining ingredients.
It turned out to be a very thick soup, to which various types of fresh herbs were added before serving.
carrot slices
Carrots are another product that can lower cholesterol, including the pectin they contain. From there you can cook meatballs.
Required:
- medium carrots - 3 pieces;
- eggs - 3 pieces. ;
- flour - about 5-6 tbsp. l. with slides;
- salt to taste.
Cook:
- Carrots are crushed on a coarse grater.
- Add eggs, flour and salt.
- Everything is mixed.
- Slices of meat are shaped and cooked in a non-stick frying pan without oil or in the oven, turning several times.
sweet pepper salad
Peppers help strengthen blood vessels and remove cholesterol. You can make a healthy salad out of it.
For this you will need:
- pepper - 2 pieces;
- onion - 2 pieces;
- green - to taste;
- vegetable oil - for sauces.
Cook:
- Cut vegetables.
- Sprinkle with spices.
- Fill with vegetable oil.
Grilled eggplant with ham
This vegetable contains a lot of potassium and normalizes metabolism. You can cook baked eggplant with low-fat ham.
This will require:
- eggplant - 2 pieces;
- meat - 100 grams;
- low-fat sour cream - 3 tbsp. l. ;
- grated cheese - 70-80 g;
- green - to taste.
Cook:
- Eggplant is washed, cut in half, sprinkled on a baking sheet.
- Ham is crushed, mixed with chopped herbs.
- Add sour cream.
- Spread the mixture over the eggplant and bake for 15 minutes.
You can experiment with familiar recipes, changing the ingredients for more useful recipes.
diet for high cholesterol in women
With normal cholesterol levels in the blood, there is no need for an anti-cholesterol diet, it can even be dangerous. Therefore, it is necessary to know the indicators in which these nutrients are indicated. For women, the norms are reflected in the following table:
| Age | Total cholesterol, mmol/l | "bad" cholesterol, mmol/l | "Useful" cholesterol, mmol/l |
| 35-40 years old | Up to 6. 27 | No higher than 4. 45 | No higher than 2. 12 |
| 40-45 years old | Up to 6. 53 | No higher than 4. 51 | No higher than 2. 28 |
| 45-50 years | Up to 6. 66 | No higher than 4. 82 | No higher than 2. 25 |
| 50-55 years old | Up to 7. 15 | No higher than 5, 21 | No higher than 2. 38 |
| 55-60 years old | Up to 7. 77 | No higher than 5. 44 | No higher than 2. 35 |
| 60-65 years old | Up to 7. 69 | No higher than 5, 80 | No higher than 2. 38 |
It is necessary to pass the appropriate blood tests and act on the results. If "bad" cholesterol is higher than normal, an anti-cholesterol diet is necessary. It's been a long time following. Depending on the state of health, it may take a lifetime.
An example menu for 7 days for women looks like this:
| Day of the week | diet |
| Monday |
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| Tuesday |
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| Wednesday |
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| Thursday |
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| Friday |
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| Saturday |
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| week |
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This menu is adapted to age and other chronic conditions. For example, women over 60 should limit meat in favor of fish and dairy products. This is especially true for those who suffer from arthritis and arthrosis, because meat contains substances that provoke inflammation of the joints. With high sugar, you need to limit carbohydrates.
Features of the anticholesterol diet in men
The table of cholesterol norms for men is as follows:
| Age | Total cholesterol, mmol/l | "bad" cholesterol, mmol/l | "Useful" cholesterol, mmol/l |
| 35-40 years old | Up to 6. 99 | No higher than 4. 90 | No higher than 1. 60 |
| 40-45 years old | Up to 6. 94 | No higher than 4. 82 | No higher than 1. 73 |
| 45-50 years | Up to 7. 15 | No higher than 5. 23 | No higher than 1. 66 |
| 50-55 years old | Up to 7. 17 | No higher than 5, 10 | No higher than 1. 63 |
| 55-60 years old | Up to 7. 15 | No higher than 5. 26 | No higher than 1. 84 |
| 60-65 years old | Up to 7. 15 | No higher than 5. 44 | No higher than 1. 91 |
An example menu for a week for men might look like this:
| Day of the week | diet |
| Monday |
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| Tuesday |
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| Wednesday |
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| Thursday |
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| Friday |
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| Saturday |
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| week |
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Men also have an age-related dietary feature associated with the fact that physical activity is gradually reduced, so less protein is required compared to intense exercise.
Nutrition age features
With an increase in bad cholesterol, you need to monitor your diet, but it is important to do this taking into account age-related characteristics.
Up to 40 years old
The metabolic rate is still high, but gradually begins to decrease. The main task of the diet is to speed up metabolic processes.
Today, animal protein is still important, so you need to keep lean meat consumption at least 3-4 times a week.
At the age of 40-50 years
At this time, hormonal changes begin in the body, the need for animal protein decreases.
It is recommended to reduce meat consumption to 2 times a week, include more fish dishes in the diet. Instead of coffee, it is better to drink herbal tea or ginger.
At the age of 50-60 years
The rate of metabolic processes continues to slow down, which also reduces the role of cholesterol, which is no longer needed in such quantities.
At this time, whole milk should be abandoned completely, replacing it with sour-milk products.
After 60 years
Meat can be eaten no more than once a week, eggs - a maximum of 3 per week. The body may lack iron and iodine, so it is recommended to consume more buckwheat, sea fish and other foods that contain these substances.
diet for overweight
Dietary nutrition, starting at a certain age, is necessary for everyone, regardless of weight. However, if a person is severely obese, a low-carb program is needed.
Therefore, sweets, pastries, some fruits (grapes and dates) are removed from the diet, leaving only the healthy carbohydrates contained in cereals, vegetables, etc.