| | | August 1, 2024
Julie Corliss, Executive Editor, Harvard Heart Letter
How do I lower my cholesterol? Many of them hope to avoid taking drugs, while others are interested in
natural cholesterol-lowering medications...
there are three main ways to lower LDL to the recommended 100 mg/dL or lower: diet, a dietary supplement,
or a prescription medication, such as a statin.
Dietary changes:
Eat plenty of plant foods (like vegetables, fruits, beans, and whole grains — especially oats) that are rich in
fiber, which helps lower your cholesterol by making dietary cholesterol harder to absorb from your gut.
Supplements:
Psyllium husk-- thought to absorb bile acids and cholesterol, which are then eliminated from the body during
bowel movements. The suggested daily dose is 5 to 10 grams. An April 2024 review article in the journal
Nutrients found that taking psyllium daily for a month or two can lower LDL by about 6 points, on average.
Plant sterols-- nuts, soybeans, peas, and rapeseed... Phytosterols are also available in capsule form.
Red yeast rice.
...
health.harvard.edu |
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