Cholesterol Free Foods

When seeking cholesterol free foods, one rule is simple:

Cholesterol is a fatty substance. It is produced only in animals and is never found is foods that come from plants.

So, if a diet composed completely of plant-based food appeals to you, you've got the battle with high cholesterol at least half won.

However... 

That's not going to work for most people, especially Americans who love their burgers, hot dogs, chicken wings, and all those delectable accompaniments like french fires, which seem to taste best when cooked in animal fats ("animal fats," for purposes of our discussion, doesn't necessarily include fish. More on that later).

So how do you lower your cholesterol without completely foregoing those goodies you've grown to love through the years--goodies that are almost impossible to avoid during the holidays or, for that matter, on the menus of most restaurants?

Cholesterol Free Vs. Cholesterol Friendly

The first step is to find out who you heart's enemy really is. "Cholesterol" has become a dirty word among many health conscious people, but in fact, not all cholesterol is bad for you.

The type of cholesterol consisting high density lipoproteins, or HDL cholesterol, is actually "good cholesterol." It's generally accepted that HDL cholesterol carries fats through the bloodstream and back to the liver, where they're processed for excretion.

Low density lipoproteins, or LDL cholesterol, make up what has become known as "bad cholesterol." This is the type of cholesterol that clogs up your arteries and can lead to high blood pressure (a risk factor for heart attacks), coronary artery disease (heart disease), or atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries).

So the first step in lowering your cholesterol is to identify what's good for you and what's not. For a more detailed discussion, click on other articles on this website: LDL vs. HDL and Cholesterol Diet Tips.

Cholesterol Free Foods

Cholesterol free foods come from the plant world, and if you combine large portions of them with other foods you crave--but may have some bad cholesterol in them--you'll help keep your bad cholesterol levels low without sacrificing all the foods that make life fun.

As a general rule, vegetables, fruits, nuts and grains are healthier for you than animal fats. But some of these contain sugars which your body will eventually turn into fat, meaning you should do some further investigation.

Research has shown the following foods to be extremely user-friendly for anyone trying to exclude as much bad cholesterol as possible from their diet.

Oat bran: Oatmeal is a great, easy way to receive the benefits of soluble fibre. You can also find recipes for oat bran pancakes.

Beans. There are lots of different varieties you can add to your diet. Cooked beans, such as pinto and kidney beans are among the options. So are garbanzo beans or chick peas.

Carrots. A recent study revealed that one raw carrot a day at breakfast could lower total cholesterol by as much as 11 percent.

Olive Oil and Canola Oil. These contain a lot of monounsaturated fatty acids, which are helpful as part of a low-fat, low cholesterol diet.

Soy. This is found in tofu, tempeh, soymilk, roasted soy nuts.

Anti-Oxidents and Fatty Acids

Eating cholesterol free food is important. But remember, your own body also produces cholesterol--it doesn't just come from outside food sources. Because of hereditary factors and other causes, some people produce more cholesterol in their body than others. So eating foods that combat bad cholesterol can be as important as eating foods that are cholesterol free.

That's why you need to know about antioxidants and certain fatty acids.

LDL becomes almost toxic when it is oxidized. So foods that fight the body's natural oxidation processes (which take place during cell formation) can help reduce LDL's bad effects. Nutrients like vitamins C and E, beta carotene and lycopene are among the best of these.

Many nutritionists highly recommend certain fruits like blueberries, strawberries, blackberries and raspberries.

Essential fatty acids are necessary fats that humans cannot synthesize, and must be obtained through diet. Essential fatty acids, or EFAs, improve the performance of the cardiovascular, reproductive, immune, and nervous systems. Our cells need EFAs to obtain optimum nutrition and expel harmful waste products.

EFAs include cold pressed oils like flax seed, lecithin, GLA from borage seed, nuts and seeds.

A type of fatty acid known as Omega 3 has been in the nutritional news a lot lately, and for good reason. Omega-3 fatty acids have been shown by research to be especially heart healthy and helpful in keeping cholesterol levels low.

Many kinds of fish offer high levels of Omega 3. They're a good source of protein and don't contain the high saturated fat that fatty meat products do. Fish like albacore tuna, herring, lake trout, mackerel, sardines and salmon are especially high in two kinds of omega-3 fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).
 

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