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By Sandra Hoedemaker

There are many ways to lower cholesterol quickly and naturally without resorting to medication including having a regular exercise routine, reducing stress levels, and losing those last 10-15 pounds of stubborn belly fat, but the food you eat can also make a drastic difference in your cholesterol levels for better or for worse. Using natural approaches to lower cholesterol can show results in just a few months time.

Below is my secret list of foods to help lower cholesterol fast. Included in the following list are what I hope are a few foods with which you may not be familiar. It is important to experiment with new foods to keep the eating experience interesting and varied. If you do, you will be less likely to rely on unhealthy foods for your eating excitement, and you will be more likely to obtain the proper nutrients in your diet.

Most people who incorporate the following foods into their diet on a daily basis will see results particularly if they also greatly reduce or eliminate sugar, flour, and trans fats which are all ingredients that will affect cholesterol levels negatively. Saturated fat doesn’t need to be eliminated from the diet but don’t overindulge.

One thing that you will notice with regard to the following foods is that all of them contain soluble fiber which has been shown to help lower cholesterol levels significantly. Most Americans eat way too few foods containing soluble fiber and this is one of the key reasons so many Americans suffer from high cholesterol.

So take a look at the following list and begin eating more of these foods starting today.

Vegetables and Fruits

: All kinds of vegetables and fruits can help lower your cholesterol levels because of the soluble fiber they contain. Two interesting vegetables with significant levels of soluble fiber are artichoke and jicama (pronounced HICK-ah-mah). Most of us have heard of artichoke but many of us do not eat them regularly. Jicama is probably less known. This is a root vegetable that also has a low glycemic index so it won’t spike blood sugar levels quickly. It is somewhat similar to a turnip and is turning up in health food stores more regularly now. As for fruits, the kiwi is a good-tasting and less commonly eaten choice to lower cholesterol.

Legumes

: Replacing some meat protein with legumes is an effective way to lower cholesterol. Legumes are low in fat, low in calories, and high in soluble fiber. Lentils are one of my favorite legumes because they require no pre-soaking, are very quick to cook, and taste great. Most people are familiar with green lentils but try the tiny red lentil variety too. They are the quickest cooking variety of lentil and are a delightful color. Lima beans are a less commonly eaten legume that you may want to re-familiarize yourself with now that you are an adult. Freshly cooked lima beans taste so much better than the mushy frozen lima beans I ate as a child.

Cooked whole grains

: Instead of eating whole grain cold cereal, bread and pasta choose cooked whole grains. The whole grains in most cold cereals, bread and pasta are pulverized which means that the whole grain is not intact. Eating pulverized gains will spike blood sugar levels when eaten. Foods that spike blood sugar quickly can also raise triglycerides and total cholesterol. Try incorporating steel cut oats into your diet instead which are less processed than traditional rolled oats or instant oats. Steel cut oats will break down into your body’s blood sugar slowly compared to the more heavily processed grains. Another good whole grain choice that is often overlooked in terms of lowering cholesterol is barley. Cooked whole grains not only spike blood sugar less than processed whole grains they also contain cholesterol-lowering soluble fiber.

Nuts and seeds

: Not only do nuts and seeds contain soluble fiber, they are also a good source of mono-unsaturated fats. Unlike saturated fats which raise the ‘bad’ LDL cholesterol, mono-unsaturated fats lower it. A tasty nut to try that has a reasonable amount of soluble fiber is the Brazil nut. As for seeds, the flax seed is a wonderful choice; however, don’t forget to incorporate some less common seeds into the diet like pumpkin and sunflower seeds. They contain soluble fiber too.

As you start incorporating the above foods into your diet on a regular basis, be sure to make this change slowly. Going from a low fiber to a high fiber diet too quickly can lead to intestinal discomfort and flatulence. Eventually, your body will adapt, and you will be able to digest high fiber foods with ease.

About the Author: Sandra is a Heart-Healthy Food Coach. She received her nutrition training from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in NYC. For a free audio that will tell you how to lower your cholesterol naturally in no time flat visit

“Top 3 Secrets to Lower Your Cholesterol Fast Without Drugs or Drastic Dieting”

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