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, the 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 should not abandon such a diet, because in this case you need to adhere to a therapeutic diet for the rest of your life.
What does High Cholesterol Mean?
Cholesterol (cholesterol) is an important steroid for the human body. It plays an important role in lipid metabolism, is involved in the production of hormones. This substance is found in all cells of the body, even in the brain. However, this condition is dangerous when cholesterol levels rise.
The transport of cholesterol molecules to tissues is carried out with the help of proteins. They consist of several types:
- High density lipoprotein (HDL). This is what is called "good" cholesterol. They take in 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 send the molecules to the tissue. With high levels of LDL, 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 high LDL levels and "bad" cholesterol that needs to be reduced.
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 remove all foods that contain cholesterol from the diet. Recent studies show that if you exclude it completely, the condition will lead to neurological and endocrine disorders.
Basic principles of nutrition:
- Eat at least 400 g of fruits and vegetables daily. Their share can even be increased. Starchy vegetables such as potatoes and pumpkin are allowed to be eaten, but in limited quantities, not exceeding physiologically accepted norms. Their cholesterol load is low, but it contains carbohydrates.
- Consumption of vegetable protein at the expense of legumes, in the absence of kidney disease.
- Fractional nutrition, in which the amount of food is divided into 5-6 servings. This will help ensure gallbladder drainage.
- Limit salt intake to 5 g per day.
- Exceptions are pickled, salty and smoked foods, sweet sodas.
- Consumption of sugar at the level of 5 teaspoons. in a day. The amount is considered as a whole, with all drinks and meals.
- Weight control.
If necessary, you can spend the day fasting vegetables, apples or kefir. When overweight, start with cottage cheese or a low-cholesterol diet of fruits and vegetables, and then move on to an anti-cholesterol diet plan.
Prohibited Products
A standard LDL -lowering diet limits or completely eliminates fat -rich foods. Prohibited ones include:
- fatty meats and fish;
- intestines;
- cream and fat milk;
- margarine.
Just because of this, you can reduce cholesterol levels by 10-15%. Sometimes a diet is not necessary. It is enough to reject the listed products, include in the menu for each 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 fats. Their proportion is determined individually, depending on the severity of the disease. Sometimes it needs to be reduced by 20%, but usually the restrictions are not so significant. Vegetable oil should also be used with caution, no more than usual, as it contributes to the accumulation of harmful substances in the body.
With high sugar levels, reduce the amount of carbohydrates. But with normal weight and glucose levels, you can slightly increase the portion of complex carbohydrates to supply the body with energy.
To reduce the content of fat and cholesterol in the daily menu, you must follow the following rules:
- the fat is cut from the meat, the skin must be removed from the chicken;
- vegetables are never cooked with meat, as it absorbs fat;
- any recipe 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 useful are cold sea fish, which contain omega-3 acids that affect fat metabolism.
- Vegetable oils that bind and remove cholesterol (this is not only olive, but also soybean oil or rapeseed).
- Dairy products, including cottage cheese, sour cream, low -fat cheese.
- Nuts, especially walnuts and almonds, because they are high in vitamins, folic acid, magnesium, and arginine. However, it contains a lot of calories, so you need to consume it in small quantities.
- Cereals - buckwheat, rice, oats.
- Eggs - no more than 2-4 a week, depending on health conditions.
- Soy products. They are very useful, but we are only talking about high -quality stuff, for example, you can eat tofu.
- Foods that contain dietary fiber are wheat and oat bran.
- Fruits, especially apples and citrus fruits, as they help lower blood pressure and prevent blood clots.
Bread is edible, but only baking overnight or in the form of toast. Tea is also included in the daily diet. But to reduce the potential danger, it should be weak and with a minimum amount of sugar.
Meal recipes
The need to follow an anti-cholesterol diet does not mean that one has to eat the same meals all the time.
Using cholesterol -lowering foods, you can create a healthy and delicious menu for proper nutrition.
citrus 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 a fruit salad, and marmalade is also made from them.
For its preparation take:
- orange - 1 pc. ;
- grapefruit - 1 pc. ;
- lemon - 1 pc. ;
- sugar - 0. 5 kg;
- air - 500 ml.
Cooking:
- Citrus fruits are washed, squeezed from the fruit juice with the pulp.
- The coarse white fibers are cut from the skin and cut into thin strips.
- The raw material is put into the pot.
- Add juice and water.
- Boil for 12-20 minutes.
- Add sugar and continue over low heat until the dough becomes viscous. When it cools, it will turn into marmalade.
White bean soup with herbs
Beans - lentils, legumes, beans - 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 a variety of dishes with beans. For example, you can cook white bean soup with herbs.
For this you need to:
- dried white beans - 1 tbsp;
- menthol - 1 pc. ;
- carrots - 1 pc. ;
- chopped stalks of celery - 1 pc. ;
- weak chicken broth - 0. 5 l;
- air - 0. 5 l;
- salt and spices - to taste.
Cooking:
- Beans are soaked overnight and then boiled for 2 hours. It turns out that about 500-600 g of finished product.
- Onions, carrots and celery are boiled for 8-10 minutes.
- Pour the beans into the pan and add the vegetables.
- Pour in the soup and water.
- Add salt and spices.
- Bring to a boil.
- Leave on low heat for another 15 minutes.
- Half of the bean-vegetable mass is removed from the broth, whipped in a blender, returned to the remaining ingredients.
It turned out to be a very thick soup, in which a variety of fresh herbs were added before being served.
cut the carrots
Carrots are another product that can lower cholesterol, including due to the pectin contained in them. From it you can cook meatballs.
Need:
- simple carrots - 3 pcs. ;
- eggs - 3 pcs. ;
- flour-about 5-6 tbsp. l. with slides;
- salt - to taste.
Cooking:
- Carrots are crushed on a coarse grater.
- Add eggs, flour and salt.
- Everything is mixed.
- Cutlets are shaped and cooked in a non -stick pan without oil or in the oven, flipped several times.
sweet pepper salad
Sweet pepper helps strengthen blood vessels and remove cholesterol. You can make a healthy salad out of it.
For this you need:
- pepper - 2 pcs. ;
- onions - 2 pcs. ;
- vegetables - to taste;
- vegetable oil - for dressing.
Cooking:
- Cut vegetables.
- Sprinkle with herbs.
- Filled with vegetable oil.
Baked eggplant with ham
These vegetables contain a lot of potassium and normalize metabolism. You can cook baked eggplant with low -fat ham.
This requires:
- eggplant - 2 pcs. ;
- ham - 100 g;
- low -fat sour cream - 3 tbsp. l. ;
- grated cheese - 70-80 g;
- green - to taste.
Cooking:
- Eggplant washed, cut in half, spread on a baking sheet.
- Ham is crushed, mixed with chopped herbs.
- Add sour cream.
- Spread the batter over the eggplant and bake for 15 minutes.
You can try any common recipe, changing the ingredients in it for a more useful one.
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 harmful. Therefore, it is necessary to know the indicators on which the diet is indicated. For women, the norms are shown in the following table:
| age | Total cholesterol, mmol/l | "Bad" cholesterol, mmol/l | "Useful" cholesterol, mmol/l |
| 35-40 years | Up to 6. 27 | Not higher than 4. 45 | Not higher than 2. 12 |
| 40-45 years | Up to 6. 53 | Not higher than 4. 51 | Not higher than 2. 28 |
| 45-50 years | Up to 6. 66 | Not higher than 4. 82 | Not higher than 2. 25 |
| 50-55 years | Up to 7. 15 | Not higher than 5. 21 | Not higher than 2. 38 |
| 55-60 years | Up to 7. 77 | Not higher than 5. 44 | Not higher than 2. 35 |
| 60-65 years | Up to 7. 69 | Not higher than 5. 80 | Not 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 has been followed for a long time. Depending on the health condition, it may be needed for a lifetime.
An example of a 7 -day menu for women looks like this:
| Days 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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| Sunday |
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The menu is adjusted to reflect age and other chronic conditions. For example, women over the age of 60 should limit meat in favor of fish and dairy products. This is especially true for those with arthritis and arthrosis, as meat contains substances that promote inflammation of the joints. With high sugar, you need to limit carbs.
Characteristics of 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 | Up to 6. 99 | Not higher than 4. 90 | Not higher than 1. 60 |
| 40-45 years | Up to 6. 94 | Not higher than 4. 82 | Not higher than 1. 73 |
| 45-50 years | Up to 7. 15 | Not higher than 5. 23 | Not higher than 1. 66 |
| 50-55 years | Up to 7. 17 | Not higher than 5. 10 | Not higher than 1. 63 |
| 55-60 years | Up to 7. 15 | Not higher than 5. 26 | Not higher than 1. 84 |
| 60-65 years | Up to 7. 15 | Not higher than 5. 44 | Not higher than 1. 91 |
An example of a week -long menu for a man might look like this:
| Days 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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| Sunday |
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Men also have age-related nutritional characteristics associated with the fact that physical activity gradually decreases, so less protein is needed compared to intense exercise.
Nutritional age characteristics
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
The metabolic rate is still high, but gradually begins to decline. The main task of the diet is to speed up metabolic processes.
Currently, animal protein is still important, so you need to maintain the consumption of lean meat at least 3-4 times a week.
At the age of 40-50 years
During this time, hormonal changes begin in the body, the animal's protein requirements decrease.
It is recommended to reduce meat consumption to 2 times a week, including 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, 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 a week. The body may be deficient in iron and iodine, so it is recommended to consume more buckwheat, sea fish and other foods that contain this substance.
diet for overweight
Dietary nutrition, starting from a certain age, is necessary for everyone, regardless of weight. But if a person is severely obese, a low -carb program is needed.
Therefore, sweets, pastries, some fruits (grapes and dates) are eliminated from the diet, leaving only the healthy carbohydrates contained in cereals, vegetables, etc.