Another type, HDL , is sometimes called the "good" cholesterol. It carries cholesterol from other parts of your body back to your liver. Then your liver removes the cholesterol from your body.

The treatments for high cholesterol are heart-healthy lifestyle changes and medicines. The lifestyle changes include healthy eating, weight management, and regular physical activity.

Heart-healthy lifestyle changes include a diet to lower your cholesterol. The DASH eating plan is one example. Another is the Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes diet, which recommends that you.

Choose healthier fats. You should limit both total fat and saturated fat. Depending upon how many calories you eat per day, here are the maximum amounts of fats that you should eat:.

Saturated fat is a bad fat because it raises your LDL bad cholesterol level more than anything else in your diet. It is found in some meats, dairy products, chocolate, baked goods, and deep-fried and processed foods. Trans fat is another bad fat; it can raise your LDL and lower you HDL good cholesterol.

Trans fat is mostly in foods made with hydrogenated oils and fats, such as stick margarine, crackers, and french fries. Instead of these bad fats, try healthier fats, such as lean meat, nuts, and unsaturated oils like canola, olive, and safflower oils.

Limit foods with cholesterol. If you are trying to lower your cholesterol, you should have less than mg a day of cholesterol. Cholesterol is in foods of animal origin, such as liver and other organ meats, egg yolks, shrimp, and whole milk dairy products.

Eat plenty of soluble fiber. Foods high in soluble fiber help prevent your digestive tract from absorbing cholesterol. These foods include:. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables. Omega-3 and fish oil supplements are available. Talk to your doctor before taking any supplements.

Almonds and other tree nuts can improve blood cholesterol. Studies have shown that walnuts, which have omega-3 fats, may help protect the heart and lower the risk of heart attack for people who already have heart disease.

All nuts are high in calories, so a handful added to a salad or eaten as a snack will do. Avocados are a good source of nutrients as well as monounsaturated fatty acids MUFAs.

Research suggests that the fiber from avocados can improve HDL cholesterol levels and the quality of LDL cholesterol. Adding two servings of avocado per week to a heart-healthy diet can lower your risk of heart disease. People tend to think of avocados in guacamole, which often is eaten with high-fat corn chips.

Try adding avocado slices to salads and sandwiches or eating them as a side dish. Also try guacamole with raw cut vegetables, such as cucumber slices.

Replacing saturated fats, such as those found in meats, with MUFAs are part of what makes the Mediterranean diet heart healthy. Try using olive oil in place of other fats in your diet. You can saute vegetables in olive oil, add it to a marinade or mix it with vinegar as a salad dressing.

You can also use olive oil as a substitute for butter when basting meat or as a dip for bread. Extra virgin olive oil also reduces the risk of heart attacks.

Sterols and stanols are substances found in plants that help block the absorption of cholesterol. Foods that have been fortified with sterols or stanols are available.

Margarines and orange juice with added plant sterols can help lower LDL cholesterol. It's not clear whether food with plant sterols or stanols lowers your risk of heart attack or stroke — although experts assume that foods that lower cholesterol do cut the risk.

Plant sterols or stanols don't appear to affect levels of triglycerides or of high-density lipoprotein HDL cholesterol, the "good" cholesterol. Whey protein, which is found in dairy products, may account for many of the health benefits attributed to dairy.

Studies have shown that whey protein given as a supplement lowers both LDL and total cholesterol as well as blood pressure. You can find whey protein powders in health food stores and some grocery stores. Getting the full benefit of these foods requires other changes to your diet and lifestyle.

One of the most helpful changes is limiting the saturated and trans fats you eat. Saturated fats — such as those in meat, butter, cheese and other full-fat dairy products — raise your total cholesterol. Trans fats, sometimes listed on food labels as "partially hydrogenated vegetable oil," are often used in margarines and store-bought cookies, crackers and cakes.

Trans fats raise overall cholesterol levels. The Food and Drug Administration banned the use of partially hydrogenated vegetable oils in processed foods sold after January 1, There is a problem with information submitted for this request.

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Cholesterol: Top foods to improve your numbers Diet can play an important role in lowering your cholesterol. By Mayo Clinic Staff.

Thank you for subscribing! Moderate use of alcohol has been linked with higher levels of HDL cholesterol — but the benefits aren't strong enough to recommend alcohol for anyone who doesn't already drink. If you drink alcohol, do so in moderation. For healthy adults, that means up to one drink a day for women of all ages and men older than age 65, and up to two drinks a day for men age 65 and younger.

Too much alcohol can lead to serious health problems, including high blood pressure, heart failure and strokes. Sometimes healthy lifestyle changes aren't enough to lower cholesterol levels. If your doctor recommends medication to help lower your cholesterol, take it as prescribed while continuing your lifestyle changes.

Lifestyle changes can help you keep your medication dose low. There is a problem with information submitted for this request. Sign up for free and stay up to date on research advancements, health tips, current health topics, and expertise on managing health. Click here for an email preview.

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Top 5 lifestyle changes to improve your cholesterol Lifestyle changes can help improve your cholesterol — and boost the cholesterol-lowering power of medications. By Mayo Clinic Staff.

Thank you for subscribing! Sorry something went wrong with your subscription Please, try again in a couple of minutes Retry. Show references Your guide to lowering your cholesterol with TLC. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. pdf Accessed May 22, Kumar P, et al. Lipid and metabolic disorders.

In: Kumar and Clark's Clinical Medicine. Philadelphia, Pa. Accessed May 22, Tangney CC, et al. Lipid lowering with diet or dietary supplements. Catapano AL, et al. Department of Health and Human Services and U.

Department of Agriculture. Final determination regarding partially hydrogenated oils removing trans fat. Food and Drug Administration. Accessed June 28,

How to lower your cholesterol - High cholesterol Contents What is high cholesterol? Getting tested Cholesterol levels How to lower your cholesterol Medicines for high cholesterol. Ways to lower your cholesterol Eat less fatty food To reduce your cholesterol, try to cut down on fatty food, especially food that contains a type of fat called saturated fat.

Check labels on food to see what type of fat it has in it. Try to eat more: oily fish, like mackerel and salmon brown rice, wholegrain bread and wholewheat pasta nuts and seeds fruits and vegetables Try to eat less: meat pies, sausages and fatty meat butter, lard and ghee cream and hard cheese, like cheddar cakes and biscuits food that contains coconut oil or palm oil Exercise more Aim to do at least minutes 2.

Some good things to try when starting out include: walking — try to walk fast enough so your heart starts beating faster swimming cycling Try a few different exercises to find something you like doing.

Barley and other whole grains. Like oats and oat bran, barley and other whole grains can help lower the risk of heart disease, mainly via the soluble fiber they deliver. Beans are especially rich in soluble fiber.

They also take a while for the body to digest, meaning you feel full for longer after a meal. That's one reason beans are a useful food for folks trying to lose weight. With so many choices — from navy and kidney beans to lentils, garbanzos, black-eyed peas, and beyond — and so many ways to prepare them, beans are a very versatile food.

Eggplant and okra. These two low-calorie vegetables are good sources of soluble fiber. A bushel of studies shows that eating almonds, walnuts, peanuts, and other nuts is good for the heart. Nuts have additional nutrients that protect the heart in other ways.

Vegetable oils. Using liquid vegetable oils such as canola, sunflower, safflower, and others in place of butter, lard, or shortening when cooking or at the table helps lower LDL. Apples, grapes, strawberries, citrus fruits. These fruits are rich in pectin, a type of soluble fiber that lowers LDL.

Foods fortified with sterols and stanols. Sterols and stanols extracted from plants gum up the body's ability to absorb cholesterol from food. Companies are adding them to foods ranging from margarine and granola bars to orange juice and chocolate.

As such, garlic supplements may be more effective than other garlic preparations. Soybeans are a type of legume that may be beneficial for heart health. However, research on how they affect cholesterol is mixed. For example, a review suggests that soybean oil may help lower LDL cholesterol when it replaces saturated fats.

Similarly, a review of 35 studies linked soy foods to reduced LDL and total cholesterol, as well as increased HDL cholesterol. To add more soy in your diet, try replacing meat with tofu or cooking with soybean oil. A review found that eating more than three servings of fruits and vegetables per day helped lower levels of tryglicerides, blood pressure, and LDL and total cholesterol.

A review of 37 guideline documents found that most of them suggested eating a diet high in vegetables. Some ways to get more vegetables in your diet include making soups, cauliflower pizza crusts, and smoothies. You can also add vegetables to casseroles, sauces, and burgers.

For example, a review of 31 studies found that green tea helps lower LDL and total cholesterol levels. The primary compound in green tea responsible for these effects is catechins. These help lower inflammation, oxidation, and carcinogen levels.

Black tea and white tea have similar properties and health effects on cholesterol. Dark leafy greens, such as kale , spinach , and Swiss chard contain lutein and other carotenoids, which are linked to a lower risk of heart disease.

Dark leafy greens may also help lower cholesterol levels. The authors of a study in rats suggest that this is done because they bind to bile acids and help your body excrete more cholesterol. A study in guinea pigs also found that lutein lowers levels of oxidized LDL cholesterol and could help prevent cholesterol from binding to artery walls.

Extra virgin olive oil is one of the most important foods in the heart-healthy Mediterranean diet. A review compared the effects of olive oil with other plant-based oils on cholesterol levels. The researchers found that olive oil had a bigger impact on increasing HDL cholesterol. Similarly, a review found that consuming 20 grams per day of olive oil helped increase HDL cholesterol.

However, overall, the authors concluded that olive oil had minimal impacts on LDL, triglycerides, and total cholesterol. More research is needed to fully support olive oil as a cholesterol-friendly food.

However, some foods that may help lower your LDL cholesterol include dark leafy greens, legumes and beans, and green tea. Some ways to lower your cholesterol include:. Some foods to avoid eating if you have high cholesterol include:.

High cholesterol levels are a major risk factor for heart disease. However, you may lower this risk by incorporating certain foods into your diet. Upping your intake of these foods will put you on the path to a balanced diet and keep your heart healthy.

Our experts continually monitor the health and wellness space, and we update our articles when new information becomes available. While they're not typically able to prescribe, nutritionists can still benefits your overall health.

Let's look at benefits, limitations, and more. A new study found that healthy lifestyle choices — including being physically active, eating well, avoiding smoking and limiting alcohol consumption —…. Carb counting is complicated. Take the quiz and test your knowledge! Together with her husband, Kansas City Chiefs MVP quarterback Patrick Mahomes, Brittany Mohomes shares how she parents two children with severe food….

While there are many FDA-approved emulsifiers, European associations have marked them as being of possible concern.

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Foods fortified with sterols and stanols. Sterols and stanols extracted from plants gum up the body's ability to absorb cholesterol from food. Companies are adding them to foods ranging from margarine and granola bars to orange juice and chocolate.

They're also available as supplements. Eating soybeans and foods made from them, like tofu and soy milk, was once touted as a powerful way to lower cholesterol. Fatty fish. Eating fish two or three times a week can lower LDL in two ways: by replacing meat, which has LDL-boosting saturated fats, and by delivering LDL-lowering omega-3 fats.

Omega-3s reduce triglycerides in the bloodstream and also protect the heart by helping prevent the onset of abnormal heart rhythms. Fiber supplements. Supplements offer the least appealing way to get soluble fiber.

Two teaspoons a day of psyllium, which is found in Metamucil and other bulk-forming laxatives, provide about 4 grams of soluble fiber. When it comes to investing money, experts recommend creating a portfolio of diverse investments instead of putting all your eggs in one basket.

The same holds true for eating your way to lower cholesterol. Adding several foods to lower cholesterol in different ways should work better than focusing on one or two.

A largely vegetarian "dietary portfolio of cholesterol-lowering foods" substantially lowers LDL, triglycerides, and blood pressure. The key dietary components are plenty of fruits and vegetables, whole grains instead of highly refined ones, and protein mostly from plants.

Add margarine enriched with plant sterols; oats, barley, psyllium, okra, and eggplant, all rich in soluble fiber; soy protein; and whole almonds. doi: Hyperlipidemia adult. Mayo Clinic; Department of Health and Human Services and U. Department of Agriculture.

Final determination regarding regarding partially hydrogenated oils removing trans fat. Food and Drug Administration. Mozaffarian D, et al. Dietary fat. Accessed March 15, Mahmassani HA, et al.

Avocado consumption and risk factors for heart disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Products and Services A Book: Mayo Clinic Family Health Book, 5th Edition Nutritional Supplements at Mayo Clinic Store Newsletter: Mayo Clinic Health Letter — Digital Edition.

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News Network. Price Transparency. Medical Professionals. Clinical Trials. Mayo Clinic Alumni Association. This leads to a narrowing and hardening of the arteries, which increases the risk of heart attacks and stroke. Many Australians don't know they have high cholesterol, because there are no symptoms.

High cholesterol can only be detected through a blood test. Some people have a condition called familial hypercholesterolaemia — where a genetic problem leads to high cholesterol.

If you have a family history of high cholesterol or of heart disease at a young age, ask your doctor about your risk. FIND A HEALTH SERVICE — The Service Finder can help you find doctors, pharmacies, hospitals and other health services.

This measures total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol and LDL cholesterol, as well as triglycerides — another type of fat in the blood. You will normally be asked to fast not eat anything and only drink water for about 10 hours before the test. Adults should have their blood lipids measured every 5 years, starting at 45 years.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should start lipid blood tests at 35, because on average heart and blood vessel disease — such as heart attacks and stroke — happen 10 to 20 years earlier in Indigenous people. All Australians in these age groups are eligible for a regular minute heart health check with their doctor.

This checks your blood pressure , cholesterol and blood sugar levels. Your doctor can then assess your risk of having a heart attack or stroke in the next 5 years. Too much LDL bad cholesterol in the blood can increase your risk of heart and blood vessel disease cardiovascular disease.

The excess LDL cholesterol leads to fatty deposits called plaque forming in the artery walls. Over time, the plaque causes narrowing and hardening of the arteries known as atherosclerosis. A high level of HDL cholesterol is good because HDL cholesterol helps remove other forms of cholesterol from the blood, taking them back to the liver — where they're removed from the blood and passed out of the body.

ARE YOU AT RISK? Use the healthdirect Risk Checker to find out. You can lower your cholesterol levels by making lifestyle changes, and through taking medicines if that's what your doctor advises.

Some people will only need to improve their lifestyle and diet to get their cholesterol to a safe level. Others may need to take cholesterol-lowering medicines, as well. A diet high in these fats can raise levels of LDL cholesterol in the blood. Saturated fat is usually solid at room temperature.

Read more about saturated fat-rich foods here. Trans fats or, trans fatty acids are found in store-bought baked goods, snack foods and deep-fried foods. There is strong evidence that trans fats increase levels of LDL cholesterol in the blood, while decreasing levels of HDL good cholesterol.

Foods that contain cholesterol include liver, pate, kidneys, prawns and egg yolks. Foods that contain saturated fats have a greater effect on blood cholesterol levels than foods that contain dietary cholesterol.

Replacing foods that contain mainly saturated fats with foods that contain unsaturated fats — such as polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats — will help reduce your cholesterol level. Soluble fibre can reduce the absorption of cholesterol into your blood and it slows down digestion, making you feel fuller for longer.

Foods that are high in soluble fibre include:. Plant sterols are compounds that can lower LDL cholesterol. They occur naturally in plants, fruits, vegetables, nuts and grains and are added to some packaged foods, such as table spreads, cereals, low-fat yoghurt and low-fat milk.

Plant sterols that occur naturally in foods are only present in small amounts, compared with plant sterols that are added to foods. Adding plant sterol-enriched foods to your diet is the most effective dietary change you can make to reduce your LDL cholesterol.

Vigorous aerobic exercise is best. Moderate-intensity exercise is a level that increases your heart rate and breathing but allows you to keep talking. Vigorous intensity exercise makes your heart rate higher and makes you breathe more heavily.

Resistance training using weights, resistance bands or your own body weight and muscle-toning exercises can increase HDL cholesterol. Aim to do this twice a week. If you are obese or overweight, losing weight can help reduce your levels of LDL cholesterol and triglycerides, while increasing your levels of HDL cholesterol.

Alcohol can increase your levels of triglycerides.

It carries cholesterol from other parts of your body back to your liver. Then your liver removes the cholesterol from your body. There are steps that you can take to lower your LDL bad cholesterol and raise your HDL good cholesterol.

By keeping your cholesterol levels in range , you can lower your risk of heart diseases. For some people, making lifestyle changes alone does not their lower cholesterol enough. They may also need to take medicines.

There are several types of cholesterol-lowering drugs available. They work in different ways and can have different side effects. Talk to your health care provider about which medicine is right for you.

Even if you take medicines to lower your cholesterol, you still need to continue with lifestyle changes. Familial hypercholesterolemia FH is an inherited form of high cholesterol.

Some people who have FH may get a treatment called lipoprotein apheresis. This treatment uses a filtering machine to remove LDL cholesterol from the blood.

Then the machine returns the rest of the blood back to the person. Some companies sell supplements that they say can lower cholesterol. Researchers have studied many of these supplements, including red yeast rice, flaxseed, and garlic.

At this time, there isn't conclusive evidence that any of them are effective in lowering cholesterol levels. Also, supplements may cause side effects and interactions with medicines.

Always check with your health care provider before you take any supplements. The information on this site should not be used as a substitute for professional medical care or advice.

Contact a health care provider if you have questions about your health. How to Lower Cholesterol. What is cholesterol? What are the treatments for high cholesterol? The main treatments for high cholesterol are lifestyle changes and medicines.

Lifestyle changes to lower cholesterol Heart-healthy lifestyle changes that can help you lower or control your cholesterol include: Heart-healthy eating. A heart-healthy eating plan limits the amount of saturated and trans fats that you eat. It recommends that you eat and drink only enough calories to stay at a healthy weight and avoid weight gain.

It encourages you to choose a variety of nutritious foods, including fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean meats. Examples of eating plans that can lower your cholesterol include the Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes diet and the DASH eating plan.

Weight Management. If you are overweight, losing weight can help lower your LDL bad cholesterol. This is especially important for people with metabolic syndrome.

Overall, weight loss has a double benefit on cholesterol by decreasing harmful LDL and increasing beneficial HDL.

Consider working with a doctor to determine a nutrient-dense diet and sustainable weight management plan that works for you. Smoking tobacco increases the risk of heart disease in several ways, including:. Giving up smoking, if possible, can help reverse these harmful effects.

According to a review of studies , some research indicates that when consumed in moderation, alcoholic drinks can increase good HDL cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart disease.

Yet the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CDC and AHA disagree. The AHA does not recommend drinking wine or any other alcoholic beverage specifically to lower your cholesterol or improve heart health. If you drink, the CDC suggests you consume only two drinks per day for males or one drink per day for females on days that you drink.

Multiple types of supplements show promise for managing cholesterol. Plant stanols and sterols are plant versions of cholesterol. According to a research review, clinical studies show that taking 1. Small amounts of plant stanols and sterols are naturally found in vegetable oils and are added to certain oils and butter substitutes.

You may also consider taking certain types of supplements. But speak with a healthcare professional before starting or changing your supplement regimen. Although food companies often advertise products as being low in cholesterol, research from shows that dietary cholesterol has only a small influence on the amount of cholesterol in your body.

That said, some foods high in soluble fibers, omega-3 fatty acids, or monounsaturated fats may help lower cholesterol, including:. Typically, there are no symptoms of high cholesterol. However, signs or symptoms of high cholesterol may include:. Eating foods with cholesterol may not raise your blood cholesterol levels.

Eggs may be part of a healthy, balanced diet. However, if you are at risk for cardiovascular disease, you may want to limit the number of eggs you eat each week.

Exercise and weight loss can also help. Read this article in Spanish. Our experts continually monitor the health and wellness space, and we update our articles when new information becomes available. VIEW ALL HISTORY. This article is based on scientific evidence, written by experts and fact checked by experts.

Our team of licensed nutritionists and dietitians strive to be objective, unbiased, honest and to present both sides of the argument. This article contains scientific references. The numbers in the parentheses 1, 2, 3 are clickable links to peer-reviewed scientific papers.

Men and women may experience different symptoms of a heart attack. Coronary heart disease CHD is the leading cause of death among adults in the United States. Learn about the causes and risks factors of CHD.

Follow these tips to prevent heart disease. Discover 28 ways to power up, wind down, and have fun — all in the name of a healthy heart. Work these heart-healthy habits into your lifestyle.

A Quiz for Teens Are You a Workaholic? How Well Do You Sleep? Health Conditions Discover Plan Connect. Nutrition Evidence Based 10 Natural Ways to Lower Your Cholesterol Levels. Medically reviewed by Megan Soliman, MD — By Matthew Thorpe, MD, PhD and Karen Lamoreux — Updated on December 7, Eat monounsaturated fats Use polyunsaturated fats Limit trans fats Eat soluble fiber Exercise Keep a healthy weight Avoid smoking Drink in moderation Consider plant sterols Try supplements FAQ Takeaway Limiting saturated fats in your diet, along with getting regular exercise and engaging in other healthy practices, may help lower the amount of low-density lipoprotein LDL in your blood.

Focus on monounsaturated fats. Prioritize polyunsaturated fats, especially omega-3s. Limit trans fats. Eat soluble fiber.