How to Reduce Cholesterol Naturally.

Cholesterol is made in your liver and has many important functions. For example, it helps keep the walls of your cells flexible and is needed to make several hormones.

However, like anything in the body, too much cholesterol (or cholesterol in the wrong places) creates concerns.

Like fat, cholesterol does not dissolve in water. Instead, to move around the body, it depends on molecules called lipoproteins. These carry cholesterol, fat, and fat-soluble vitamins in your blood.

Different kinds of lipoproteins have different effects on health. For example, high levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) results in cholesterol deposits in blood vessel walls, which can lead to ( 1):

clogged arteries
stroke
heart attack
kidney failure

In contrast, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) helps carry cholesterol away from vessel walls and helps prevent these conditions (2).

There are many natural ways to increase HDL (good) cholesterol and lower LDL (bad) cholesterol.

1. Focus on monounsaturated fats

As opposed to saturated fats, unsaturated fats have at least one double chemical bond that changes the way your body uses them. Monounsaturated fats have only one double bond.

Some recommend a low fat diet for weight loss, but research is mixed on its effectiveness in controlling blood cholesterol.

One research report acknowledged that lower fat intake is an effective way to reduce blood cholesterol levels. However, researchers were concerned over potential negative effects of low fat diets, such as lowering HDL (good cholesterol) and increasing triglycerides (10).

In contrast, research has shown that a diet high in monounsaturated fats, such as the Mediterranean diet, helps reduce levels of harmful LDL and increase levels of healthy HDL (11).

Monounsaturated fats may also reduce the oxidation of cholesterol, according to research. Oxidized cholesterol can react with free radicals and contribute to clogged arteries. This can lead to atherosclerosis or heart disease (12).

Overall, monounsaturated fats are healthy because they decrease harmful LDL cholesterol, increase good HDL cholesterol and reduce harmful oxidation (13, 14).

Here are a few great sources of monounsaturated fats. Some are also good sources of polyunsaturated fat:

olive oil
nuts, such as almonds, cashews, pecans, and macadamias
canola oil
avocados
nut butters
olives

2. Use polyunsaturated fats, especially omega-3s

Polyunsaturated fats have multiple double bonds that make them behave differently in the body than saturated fats. Research shows that polyunsaturated fats reduce LDL (bad) cholesterol and decrease the risk of heart disease.

For example, one study replaced saturated fats in 115 adults’ diets with polyunsaturated fats for 8 weeks. By the end of the study, total and LDL (bad) cholesterol levels were reduced by about 10% (15).

Polyunsaturated fats also may reduce the risk of metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes.

Another study changed the diets of 4,220 adults, replacing 5% of their calories from carbohydrates with polyunsaturated fats. Their blood glucose and fasting insulin levels decreased, indicating a decreased risk of type 2 diabetes ( 16).

Omega-3 fatty acids are an especially heart-healthy type of polyunsaturated fat. They’re found in seafood and fish oil supplements. Especially high amounts occur in fatty fish like:

salmon
mackerel
herring
deep sea tuna like bluefin or albacore
shellfish (to a lesser degree), including shrimp

Other sources of omega-3s include seeds and tree nuts, but not peanuts.

3. Avoid trans fats

Trans fats are unsaturated fats that have been modified by a process called hydrogenation. This is done to make the unsaturated fats in vegetable oils more stable.

The resulting trans fats are not fully saturated and are called partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs).

They are solid at room temperature, which gives more texture than unsaturated liquid oils to products like spreads, pastries, and cookies. Their increased texture, as well as shelf stability, is what makes trans fats so attractive to food companies.

But partially hydrogenated trans fats are handled differently in the body than other fats, and not in a good way. Trans fats increase total cholesterol and LDL but decrease beneficial HDL (17 ).

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) banned artificial PHOs, better known as trans fats, in processed foods in the United States as of 2018. The deadline was extended to January 1, 2020, to allow products already produced to work through distribution (18).

The World Health Organization (WHO) made a global call for the elimination of industrially produced trans fats from the global food supply by 2023 (19).

Foods that commonly contain trans fats include:

margarine and shortening
pastries and other baked goods
some microwaveable popcorn
fried fast foods
some pizzas
nondairy coffee creamer

A study of global health patterns found that consumption of excess trans fats, coupled with insufficient polyunsaturated fats and excess saturated fats, are a significant cause of coronary heart disease mortality globally (20).

In the United States, and in an increasing number of other countries, food companies are required to list the amount of trans fats in their products on nutrition labels.

However, these labels can be misleading, because companies are allowed to round down when the amount of trans fat per serving is less than 0.5 grams per serving. This means some foods contain trans fats even though their labels say “0 grams of trans fat per serving.” (21)

To avoid being misled, be sure to read the ingredients list in addition to the nutrition label. If a product contains “partially hydrogenated” oil, it contains trans fats and should be avoided.

4. Eat soluble fiber

Soluble fiber is a group of different compounds in plants that dissolve in water and that humans can’t digest.

However, the beneficial bacteria that live in your intestines can digest soluble fiber. In fact, they require it for their own nutrition. Research has shown that these good bacteria, also called probiotics, can help reduce LDL levels (22).

A research review confirmed earlier findings that whole grains, which contain substantial amounts of fiber, decrease both total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels compared with control groups. The good news is that the whole grains were not shown to decrease levels of the good HDL cholesterol (23).

Soluble fiber can also help increase the cholesterol benefits of taking a statin medication.

One study published in 2014 suggested that, in a group of adults over 45, the use of statins combined with an increase in eating whole grain foods rich in fiber was associated with healthier lipoprotein profiles (24).

The benefits of soluble fibers stretches to many other diseases. A large review of several studies found high fiber intakes of both soluble and insoluble fiber reduced the risk of death over 17 years by nearly 15% (25).

Some of the best sources of soluble fiber include: