Cholesterol is widely misunderstood. Before getting into the nitty gritty of juicing to lower cholesterol, I want to help set the record straight on a few things.
1. Cholesterol is not bad.
Cholesterol is needed for you to live, and is vital for the production of testosterone and other hormones important to both sexes. If you are a man and need to naturally increase your testosterone, cholesterol is one of the best ways to go.
2. HDL (High Density Lipid) cholesterol is good.
HDL cholesterol removes the bad cholesterol, artery clogging LDL (Low Density Lipid), from where it doesn’t belong.[1]
3. Saturated fats are good.
This is the one which makes a lot of people uncomfortable. The truth is, there’s no link between saturated fat intake and cardiovascular disease, as proven by an enormous scientific study of almost 350,000 subjects.[2]
What’s more, saturated fats increase HDL cholesterol, while only mildly increasing large LDL cholesterol, a subtype of LDL cholesterol which is not harmful.[3]
4. Unsaturated fats are good.
You probably already know this one. They lower LDL cholesterol levels while increasing HDL levels.
What does this mean for your diet?
1. Enjoy delicious saturated fat.
If you’re cutting out eggs, meat, butter, cheese etc. because you want to lower your cholesterol, it’s not helping. Enjoy your butter fried steak and eggs.
Coconut oil is high in saturated fat and very healthy, and can be used instead of butter for frying. Organic Coconut Oil is my favourite thing to spread on bread. The taste is out of this world.
2. Enjoy unsaturated fat.
Since unsaturated fats lower LDL cholesterol while raising HDL levels, you can enjoy delicious nuts (such as almonds and cashews) and seeds (such as sunflower and pumpkin).
Remember: you can instantly make healthy nut and seed butters instantly with your Omega 8006 (review) or NC800 (review).
Juicing to Lower Cholesterol
Fiber lowers LDL cholesterol[4]. This means that blending is better than juicing for cholesterol. This also means that pretty much any fruit and vegetable blended smoothie will be good for lowering cholesterol.
In particular, the fiber Pectin is particularly good for this purpose.[5]
Pectin is found in Apple, Grape, Strawberry and Citrus Fruits.[6]
Vitamin C has been shown to decrease LDL cholesterol, with beneficial quantities starting at 100mg.[7]
Vitamin C is found in Kale, Red Bell Pepper, and Citrus Fruits.
Vitamin E helps prevent the oxidation of LDL cholesterol.[8]
Vitamin E is found in Red Swiss Chard, Spinach and Kale.
(These juicers yield twice as much juice from Swiss Chard, Spinach and Kale.)
Flavonoids, including naringenin, lower LDL and triglycerides, and are found in citrus fruits, especially grapefruit[8].
Beta Carotene helps prevent the oxidation of LDL cholesterol.[8]
Beta Carotene is found in Carrot.
Polyphenols, including pterostilbene, increases HDL while helping prevent the oxidation of LDL cholesterol, and is found in Cranberry, Grape and Blueberry.[8]
Juicing Recipes to Lower Cholesterol
If you don’t have a juicer, our buying guide will help you pick the right one for you needs and budget.
Apple - Carrot - Ginger Juice
- 1 Apple
- 3-4 Carrots
- 1 Thumb Ginger
Juicing to lower cholesterol can be simple and delicious. Perfect if you’re just starting out.
Cholesterol Lowering Cocktail
- 1 Apple
- 4 Carrots
- 3 large Kale leaves
- 2 handfuls Spinach
- 1 small handful Blackcurrants (wrapped in leaves to help juicing)
- 1 small handful Blackberries (wrapped in leaves to help juicing)
- 1/2 Grapefruit
Use these juicing recipes to lower cholesterol a couple of times a day. If you want more, just be aware of the relatively high sugar levels in Apples and Carrots.
Read Next: Juice to Cleanse Your Liver
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References
[1] http://www.webmd.com/cholesterol-management/hdl-cholesterol-the-good-cholesterol
[2] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20071648
[3] http://authoritynutrition.com/top-8-reasons-not-to-fear-saturated-fats/
[4] http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/69/1/30.short
[5] http://ebm.sagepub.com/content/106/3/555.short
[7] http://www.hchs.edu/literature/Vitamin%20C.pdf
[8] http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=fightdz&dbid=27
Photo credit: pvera / Foter / CC BY
Photo credit: The Stakhanovite Twins / Foter / CC BY-NC-SA
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