Lipid Disorders and Cholesterol-Lowering Diet

The primary goal of this diet is to lower your levels of LDL, or “bad” cholesterol. This diet may also raise your levels of HDL, or “good” cholesterol. Having too much bad cholesterol—and/or not enough of the good kind—can cause plaque to build up in your arteries. Over time, this build-up narrows your arteries, increasing your risk of having a heart attack or stroke.

Diet is one of several factors that affect cholesterol levels. (Other factors include heredity, age, sex, physical inactivity, and being overweight.) The main dietary components that impact cholesterol levels are fat, cholesterol, and fiber. This diet works by focusing on these components, helping to reduce levels of LDL ("bad" cholesterol) and increase levels of HDL ("good" cholesterol).

Read more details about Cholesterol-Lowering Diet.

For more information and practical tips and how-to's, see the Cholesterol-Lowering Diet article.

Modifying your diet can be worthwhile but challenging, especially if you need to make big changes. In addition to consulting with your physician, consider working with a nutritionist, dietitian or health coach to help customize meal plans, find suitable and exciting recipes, and build new, healthy habits.

Modifying your diet to make it more healthful should have few, if any, side effects. If you have a serious health condition, consult with your physician or another trusted health provider before you make any drastic changes.

A low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet might actually increase triglycerides. If you have high triglycerides, you might do better on a low-carbohydrate diet. Talk to your doctor about the right kind of diet for you.

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Lowering your cholesterol with TLC. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute website. Available at: http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/chol/chol_tlc.pdf . Accessed December 29, 2009.

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