Lower Cholesterol Naturally by Eating Less Meat

Can you be a vegetarian and still eat meat? Here are the confessions of a social carnivore.

My love affair with meat is almost over. Although I have packed a turkey sandwich in my brown-bag lunch for most of my life, I’ve been eating less and less meat over the years for a number of reasons.

For one, I know a plant-based diet is good for my health; in some studies, vegetarian diets have been associated with lower LDL, or bad, cholesterol and blood pressure, and a decreased risk of type 2 diabetes and some types of cancer. High cholesterol runs in my family (my mother recently discovered she had high LDL levels), plus meatless meals can be cheaper, have less impact on the environment, and are just plain easier when I’m dining out with my vegetarian boyfriend.

There’s just one teensy problem: I actually like the taste of meat. Who doesn’t want turkey on Thanksgiving or a bowl of chicken soup when she’s sick?

And I’m not alone. The results of a national survey published in 2003 in the Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that a majority of self-described vegetarians eat meat once in a while. In fact, two-thirds of people who identified themselves as vegetarians ate meat, fish, or poultry on one or both of the two days they were asked to recall.

Although I stick to my meat-free diet 90% of the time, social occasions have posed some serious problems for my almost-vegetarian lifestyle. My mind says, Veggies only, but my mouth says, Meat, please! There was the chicken wing incident after a long-distance run and a bit of impossible-to-resist foie gras a few weeks ago.

I’ve always felt a twinge of guilt after a slipup, but I’m feeling less ashamed after speaking with Dawn Jackson Blatner, RD, the author of The Flexitarian Diet: The Mostly Vegetarian Way to Lose Weight, Be Healthier, Prevent Disease, and Add Years to Your Life. According to Blatner, there’s a name for people like me, and that’s a social carnivore.

She says that less meat is nearly as good for your health as no meat. Even if I cut out just red meat, it can help keep my ticker in tip-top shape. A 2009 study in Archives of Internal Medicine found that if people were to slash their daily red meat intake to about 9 grams per 1,000 calories (roughly a bite of a Quarter Pounder a day), it would result in an 11% decrease in cardiovascular disease mortality in men and a 21% decrease in women.

The saturated fat in meat is a big culprit in patients with high cholesterol. So do your heart a favor and use these six dietitian-approved tips to cut down on meat and lower your cholesterol naturally.

Start small
“I really can’t advise strongly enough to start out slowly,” says Blatner. She urges clients to try one new vegetarian meal a week and slowly add in more meatless meals. “I tell clients to actively go to friends, family members, or even restaurants to get recipes and gain knowledge on vegetarian fare.”

Reinvent your old favorites
It’s easy to substitute beans or veggies for your meat favorites. Craving a burger? Try a black bean variety. Making stir-fry? Throw in some edamame instead of chicken. Chances are, all of your favorite recipes are easily adapted. And with 8 out of 10 restaurants offering vegetarian dishes, according to the National Restaurant Association’s 2000 Tableservice Operator Study, you can test out vegetarian recipes even while dining out.

Redirect meat cravings
“People are big meat eaters. A lot of people [going on a low-cholesterol diet] aren’t really interested in eating meals without meat,” says Janet M. de Jesus, RD, a nutrition education specialist at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. Try substituting other savory flavors instead. Umami is a Japanese word used to describe the meaty or savory taste found in food. Blatner suggests getting that same taste from vegetarian-friendly sources such as mushrooms, Parmesan cheese, and tomatoes.

Think of meat as a condiment
“From what I’ve seen, meat is the biggest culprit of saturated fat,” says de Jesus. However, cutting it out may be difficult from a meat-centric diet. Instead, Blatner advises clients to use the ratio of replacing 1 ounce of meat with 1/4 cup of some sort of canned beans. “If you’re having steak fajitas, take out 4 ounces of steak and add in a cup of black beans,” she explains.

Explore exotic foods
You know the usual suspects in the world of protein-rich vegetarian foods (peanut butter and soybeans, anyone?), but don’t be afraid to experiment. “People hear about almonds, but they forget about all the other options,” says Blatner. She suggests using flavorful plant protein sources such as pumpkin and sesame seeds, lentils, low-fat (vegetarian) refried beans, and even Brazil and macadamia nuts. Many traditional Indian and Japanese dishes are vegetarian, so steal their tricks for using spices and herbs to add flavor to your dishes.

Variety is the spice of life
When you’re out in restaurants, don’t be afraid to order salad and soup or a combo of appetizers if the meatless entrées don’t appeal to you. Also avoid substituting high-fat foods (such as cheese and whole milk), an abundance of carbs, or processed food for meat. “Some vegetarians forget that fruits and vegetables are part of being a vegetarian,” says Blatner. Stuck in a rut with the same fruits and veggies? Try these seasonal produce recipes for spring, summer, and fall.

Fab Fish Dishes

Sensational seafood

Fish may be the perfect go-to dinner. It’s easy to buy and throw together (secrets ahead), and most types are naturally low in saturated fat and calories and are a great source of protein and heart-healthy omega-3s. But with all the warnings about high mercury levels and over fished varieties, you want the bottom line on which fish to put into regular rotation. These recipes all feature safe fish, so break out the lemon wedges and treat yourself tonight to this ultimate summer health food!

How Fish Oil Supports Heart Health

When it comes to heart health, there is one fat that won’t work against you—fish oil. While most of us need more fish in our diets, heart experts recommend that people at risk for or with coronary artery disease should consume about one gram of fish oil per day. That’s the same amount in three ounces of wild salmon (farmed fish may have less heart-healthy fats than wild).

Healthy people should aim for 500 milligrams a day, according to James O’Keefe, MD, a cardiologist with the Mid-America Heart Institute in Bethesda, Md.

Research suggests that omega-3 fatty acids, found in fish and fish oil as well as some plant foods, can decrease the likelihood of cardiovascular disease.

Eating at least one fish meal a week was associated with a 52% reduction of risk for sudden cardiac death, according to a 1998 study of over 20,000 U.S. male physicians. Specifically, it can help prevent arrhythmias, lower triglycerides (a type of fat in the blood), slow down the buildup of plaque in the arteries, and slightly lower blood pressure.

Nutritionists recommend taking a food-based approach to fish oil before turning to capsule supplements, because fish is also a good source of protein and other nutrients.

Joyce Baber, 54, from New Egypt, N.J., is trying to do just that to help lower her high cholesterol, 233 (LDL, 174; HDL, 59) and slightly elevated blood pressure.

“My doctor recommended omega-3,” she says. “My LDL should be 130 or less and my HDL should be closer to 100.” Patients with high cholesterol patients who consumed EPA, an omega-3 fatty acid, daily showed a 19% decrease in non-fatal coronary events, including heart attack, according to a 2007 Japanese study of over 18,000 people.

How much fish should you eat?
People with a history of cardiovascular disease should eat fatty fish, such as mackerel, trout, herring, sardines, albacore tuna, and salmon, two to three times per week. Those without a history of heart disease are advised to eat fish at least one to two times per week.

Pregnant women should consume two fatty fish meals a week, while avoiding shark, tile fish, king mackerel and swordfish, which may contain some environmental contaminants such as mercury, according to the FDA.

Eat with your mind as well as your mouth, and pay close to attention to how the fish is prepared. Fried fish and fish from fast food restaurants do not offer the same heart health benefits as baked and broiled fish. Tofu and other forms of soybeans, canola, walnuts and flaxseeds, and their oils, are also rich sources of alpha-linolenic acid, which is converted to omega-3 fatty acid in the body. Omega-3-enriched eggs are also available in supermarkets.

Fish versus fish supplements
While the American Heart Association recommends oily fish as the preferred source of omega-3 fatty acids, supplements are a convenient source for people who don’t like fish or are unable to consume the advised dosage. Side effects from the supplements are uncommon, but some report a fishy aftertaste, nausea, bloating and belching. (Try storing the supplements in the freezer to minimize the taste.)

Baber admits she has not started taking the fish oil capsules, which her doctor recommended, because she has a hard time swallowing them.

“I am not good at swallowing large pills and I’m looking for ones that are a reasonable size. I also have acid reflux and I know there are possible GI side effects. But I will give this a try because I would like to avoid taking a statin drug, if possible.”

Rene Colwell, 50, of New York City, says “fish burps” turned her off to supplements after her 2006 heart attack, but she tries to take at least half of the four capsules her doctor recommended.

“Research actually supports combination therapy of omega-3 supplements and medication for people at risk for heart disease,” says Dr. O’Keefe. Fish oil and statins are a safe and effective way to improve cardiovascular health—more so than the use of statins alone, he says.

Best Foods for Your Heart

Salmon

Super-rich in omega-3 fatty acids, salmon can effectively reduce blood pressure and keep clotting at bay. Aim for two servings per week, which may reduce your risk of dying of a heart attack by up to one-third.

"Salmon contains the carotenoid astaxanthin, which is a very powerful antioxidant," says cardiologist Stephen T. Sinatra, MD, the author of Lower Your Blood Pressure In Eight Weeks. But be sure to choose wild salmon over farm-raised fish, which can be packed with insecticides, pesticides, and heavy metals.

Not a fan of salmon? Other oily fish like mackerel, tuna, herring, and sardines will give your heart the same boost.

Meals That Won't Kill Your Cholesterol

Low-cholesterol, flavor-packed dishes

Eating a healthy diet doesn't mean the end of taste—just check out this collection of delicious low-cholesterol recipes. You'll forget you're eating for your health!

Parmesan Potato Pancake
With only 4 milligrams of cholesterol, this potato pancake packs a punch of flavor. Olive oil is a healthier way to fry or saute foods because it's rich in monounsaturated fat.

5 Heart-Healthy Fall Meals

Treats for your ticker

High cholesterol is no reason to avoid your favorite fall foods. In fact, much of seasonal produce is delicious and good for your ticker. Indulge wisely with these five recipes.

Pumpkin Ravioli

The meat and cheese in traditional ravioli can send calorie counts (and saturated fat) through the roof. However, using pumpkin keeps this dish at less than 200 calories per serving. And pumpkin is rich in fiber, which also helps in maintaining a healthy heart.




Spicy Sweet Potato Wedges

Cholesterol-free french fries? You got 'em. Baking these peppery sweet potatoes at a high heat ensures a soft interior and slightly crisp and caramelized exterior without all the added fat of frying. Plus, one serving supplies all your daily vitamin A and one-third of your daily vitamin C.









Orecchiette With Brussels Sprouts and Hazelnuts

Brussels sprouts won't get pushed around on your plate with this delicious recipe. Using meat like a seasoning allows you to soak in all the rich flavors for only 3 grams of saturated fat. Plus, chopped hazelnuts add a delicious flavor and a boost of iron!







Apple-Butternut Squash Soup

This recipe is a perfect example of maximizing the natural sweetness of apples and squash—two fall produce favorites. Using shiitake mushrooms gives you a creamy, savory base for far fewer calories than other creamy soups. Pine nuts and Parmesan cheese bump up the flavor on this hearty dish, which boasts 10 grams of protein and 9 grams of fiber.






Spanish Salad of Oranges, Fennel, Red Onion, and Mint With Dressing

As temperatures drop, make use of citrus fruits, which peak in the winter months. This unique salad combines crunchy, slightly sweet fennel with tart oranges and just a hint of mint. Unlike some dressings that are loaded with saturated fat, the dressing in this recipe contains heart-healthy fats from the extra virgin olive oil, plus a low-cal pour of red-wine vinegar.

What You Must Know About Your Cholesterol

How’s your cholesterol? Here’s a guess: If you’re healthy, you probably have no idea. New surveys show women tend to be clueless about their risks of heart disease, especially when it comes to managing their cholesterol.

But this kind of ignorance is anything but bliss. The reason: The artery clogging that makes heart disease the number-one killer of women late in life begins much earlier—in your 20s, 30s, and 40s—and that’s when your cholesterol numbers may be sounding alarms. So, are you ready to start paying attention? Here, the things all women need to know now.

1. High cholesterol is surprisingly common.
Researchers with the Framingham Heart Study recently delivered a nasty surprise: Nearly a quarter of women in the study who are in their early 30s have borderline-high levels of bad cholesterol, as do more than a third in their early 40s and more than half in their early 50s. A third of women in all three age groups have low levels of good cholesterol.

Bad cholesterol, also known as low-density lipoprotein (LDL), contributes to heart disease by laying down artery-clogging plaque; good cholesterol, or high-density lipoprotein (HDL), helps clear it away. “The double whammy of high LDL and low HDL is particularly dangerous,” says Framingham researcher Vasan Ramachandran, MD, of the Boston University School of Medicine.

2. Your doctor may miss the problem.

Though women are better than men about seeing a doctor regularly, the care they receive isn’t as good when it comes to preventing and treating cardiovascular disease, according to new studies. “Perhaps doctors still haven’t gotten the message that women need to control cholesterol,” says Chloe Bird, PhD, author of one of these studies and a senior sociologist at the nonprofit RAND Corporation. Bird found that doctors are less likely to monitor and control cholesterol in women than in men, even when the women are at superhigh risk of heart attack.

Part of the problem, she says, may be that many women see only a gynecologist. This isn’t to say that OB-GYNs can’t be good primary care doctors, but you have to make sure the doc is willing to monitor your heart health, especially if you already have diabetes or a heart issue. That means she should order cholesterol checks as part of your regular blood work and discuss the results with you. What does “regular” mean? See “How Often Do I Need a Checkup?”

3. Your numbers may trick you.
Many people misunderstand the roles of so-called good and bad cholesterols, according to cardiologist and lipidologist Pamela Morris, MD, of the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. “What we’ve learned is that HDL and LDL are independent predictors of a woman’s heart attack risk,” she explains. “We see women with high HDLs having heart attacks when their LDL is also high, and we also see heart attacks in women with very low LDL but also low HDL.”

What that means to you: It’s important to keep track of both. A woman wants to keep her HDL above 60 (the level at which HDL helps prevent disease) and her LDL below 100. If your HDL drops below 50 or LDL rises above 160, you need to take immediate action. That may include an LDL-lowering drug such as a statin, and it definitely includes a commitment to a heart-healthy diet and lifestyle.

4. You may need an “inflammation” test.
The math used to estimate your heart disease risk is a little misleading. If your LDL rises above the danger line of 160 or your HDL drops below 50, the math says you have an elevated risk of a heart attack within 10 years. But that warning may actually underestimate your risks beyond 10 years, Morris says. So when she has a female patient with cholesterol numbers in the intermediate range—LDL above 130 or HDL under 60—she often takes a close look at the woman’s whole-body inflammation level.

You can’t see this kind of inflammation, but it’s actually an independent measure of heart attack risk. You measure it by adding a test for high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) to the usual cholesterol blood work. CRP, essentially a body chemical, usually rises anytime your body becomes inflamed. And since artery clogging is associated with inflammation, high CRP is viewed as a marker for clogged arteries. That means your C-reactive protein levels may help you and your doctor decide how aggressively you need to control borderline-high-cholesterol levels with drugs, diet, and exercise.

5. These foods are your best friends.
Certain classes of food chemicals can actively and powerfully lower a person’s bad cholesterol. Two—soluble fiber and phytosterols—have so much science behind them that they’ve become part of standard medical prescriptions for treating high cholesterol. But dietitian Janet Brill, PhD, RD, author of Cholesterol Down, also recommends regularly eating almonds, ground flaxseed, apples, soy protein, and olive oil. Preliminary research suggests they all have cholesterol-lowering powers. “Each one works in a slightly different way,” Brill says. “So together, you get a synergy that can dramatically lower cholesterol.”

Almonds and olive oil are high in monounsaturated fats, which are thought to blend with LDL molecules in a way that speeds LDL’s clearance from the blood by the liver. Flax is high in both soluble fiber, which lowers LDL by absorbing cholesterol from both food and bile inside the intestines, and omega-3 fatty acids, which studies show have anti-inflammatory effects. Other foods especially high in soluble fiber include oat bran, oatmeal, and apples. (Soluble fiber is different from insoluble fiber, the kind found in whole-grain bread and bran cereal. That’s good for you, too, but it won’t affect your cholesterol.) Soy may mimic natural estrogens in their LDL-clearing effects. Phytosterols are the plant version of animal sterols (a.k.a. cholesterol) and lower LDL by competing with it for absorption into the body. They’re found in supplements or phytosterol-enhanced margarine such as Benecol.

You don’t need any of these foods if your LDL is low, but experts still recommend them for everyone. What about steak, eggs, and cheese? They sure won’t help your cholesterol, because they all contain a lot of it. But it’s more important to focus on foods that lower your numbers rather than simply avoiding the bad stuff, experts say.

6. Good cholesterol may have a bad side.
The higher your HDL, the better, right? That’s been the current thinking, due to HDL’s protective effect. But here’s a surprise you may have read about in some news reports: Studies are showing that HDL may actually have harmful proteins capable of boosting heart disease risks. A test to determine if your HDL has the harmful proteins may be available in a few years. In the meantime, if your HDL is lower than 60, it’s still OK to raise it a little as long as you don’t go overboard. How? Try getting a lot of omega-3s from fish or fish oil, exercising regularly, controlling your weight, and avoiding smoking.

7. Your heart loves long walks.
Walking 10 miles a week brings lasting improvements in your heart health, according to researchers at Duke University Medical Center. The funny thing is, if you jog those 10 miles, you won’t get quite as much benefit. “Duration appears to be key,” says Duke’s Cris Slentz, PhD, an exercise physiologist. “Jogging or walking 10 miles both burned around 1,200 calories, but in our studies, one took about two hours and the other, three.”

Longer stints of exercise, even moderate exercise, may burn more belly fat—the little rolls of skin near your navel and the fat deep inside your abdomen. The latter is linked to metabolic syndrome, a condition associated with a host of cardiovascular risk factors including low HDL, high blood pressure, and high triglycerides (a kind of blood fat that contributes to heart disease).

Should you aim for weight loss as well as long walks? If you’re overweight, absolutely. But understand that shedding a few pounds will make only a small dent in your cholesterol. Canadian researchers recently found that overweight women who lost about 25 pounds—no easy task—saw their LDL drop about 10 percent and their HDL rise by the same amount.

How Often Do I Need a Checkup?
Starting at age 19 and continuing until menopause, a cholesterol test once every five years is plenty—as long as your numbers fall in the healthy range:

HDL > 60
LDL < 100
Total cholesterol (HDL plus LDL) <>

But any time your numbers stray into unhealthy territory (and during and after menopause, when heart disease risk rises), get tested annually and work out an action plan with your doctor.