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Cholesterol is a waxy substance in your blood that your body uses to make hormones and digest fats. But your body doesn’t need much of the stuff to do these jobs. Extra cholesterol can build up inside your arteries. That can make it harder for blood to flow to major organs like your heart and brain. This raises your chances of heart disease, heart attack, and stroke.
If you smoke or have diabetes or high blood pressure, your risk is even higher.
But you don’t need to wait until you have high cholesterol to do something about it. Here are some steps you can take right now to keep your numbers in a healthy range.
Watch What You Eat
Diet is one of the best ways to keep your cholesterol under control. Saturated fats, found in fried foods, red meat, and full-fat dairy, can raise your cholesterol levels. Limit these and other high-fat foods. Go for lean chicken or fish and low-fat or fat-free dairy products instead.
Trans fats are double trouble. They raise your bad cholesterol and also lower your good cholesterol. For this reason, the FDA banned them. But you can still find them in some foods, including processed and pre-packaged stuff.
Instead of processed foods, focus on fresh fruits and veggies, whole grains, nuts, and healthy cooking oils (like olive or canola). Cutting back on sodium and sugar-sweetened foods and drinks is also good for your heart.
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