4 Foods That Lower Cholesterol and Protect the Heart

Diet is a major factor in the development of cardiovascular disease. These four delicious foods have been shown to lower cholesterol and protect the heart.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 71 million Americans, or 33.5 percent of the total population, suffer from high LDL cholesterol. Only one in three of these individuals has their condition under control, while less than half of them choose to treat it at all. Moreover, the average total cholesterol for adult Americans is around 200 mg/dL, which is borderline high risk. (1) We are, in short, at greater risk of heart disease than ever before.

Though doctors love to throw statins and other drugs at people with high cholesterol, an improvement in diet is a far safer and more effective long-term solution to the problem. Most whole foods are likely to reduce LDL and total cholesterol to some degree, but the foods listed below are especially effective in this regard. Read more