Cholesterol: Eat Your Way to Lower Numbers

Eat Your Way to Lower Cholesterol is the title of a very informative article in The Seattle Times. Dr. Astrid Pujari writes at length about the benefits of making every effort to control high cholesterol with our diet.

She advocates eating more soluble fiber, adding plant sterols to our diet, eating raw nuts such as almonds and walnuts. Oatmeal contains soluble fiber, which lowers cholesterol by mixing with fats in your stomach and decreasing their absorption.

Dr. Astrid Pujari concludes by saying: Statins or other cholesterol-lowering drugs may be necessary and important. Keep in mind that sometimes people need to use medication because their cholesterol is simply too high for diet or natural supplements to work completely.

In this case, the goal of a natural approach is to help you use the least amount of medication necessary to do the trick. Statins may also have benefits outside of cholesterol lowering for certain issues, such as heart failure (when the heart muscle doesn't pump effectively).

More information at: The Seattle Times, Sunday May 20, Living Section
(http://www.seattletimes.com).