High Cholesterol Summary
Plant sterols and stanols are very effective in lowering cholesterol levels and are present in high amounts in rice bran oil and bran, flaxseed, and almonds all of which provide additional cholesterol lowering nutrients. Two fruits that can lower cholesterol are grapes and hawthorn in part because of their high antioxidant content. Green tea's cholesterol lowering properties are, also, in part due to its antioxidants but its tea catechins contribute as well. Oats and buckwheat can be beneficial for cholesterol, too, and garlic and seaweed have cholesterol lowering properties.
SOURCES
(Becker, Staab, and Bergmann, 1993), (Hayes et al., 2002), (Katan et al., 2003), (Moruisi, Oosthuizen, and Opperman, 2006), (Nestel et al., 2001), (Plat and Mensink, 2005), (Ramjiganesh et al., 2001)
Rice Bran Oil and Bran:
(Ausman, Rong, and Nicolosi, 2005), (Hegsted et al., 1993), (Marlett et al., 1994), (Most et al., 2005), (Nicolosi, Austrian, and Hegsted, 1991), (Purushothama, Raina, and Hariharan, 1995), (Qureshi et al., 2000), (Whyte et al., 1992), (Wilson et all., 2007)
Flaxseed:
(Arjmandi et al., 1998), (Fukumitsu et al., 2010), (Kristensen et al., 2012), (Lucas et al., 2004), (Mandaşescu et al., 2005), (Patade et al., 2008), (Prasad, 1999), (Tzang et al., 2009), (Vijaimohan et all., 2006), (Zhang et al., 2008)
Almonds:
(Hyson, Schneeman, and Davis, 2002), (Jaceldo-Siegl et al., 2011), (Sabaté et al., 2003), (Spiller et al., 1992), (Spiller et al., 2003)
Grapes/ Grape Juice:
(Castilla et al., 2006), (Dávalos et al., 2006), (Leifert, Mahinda, and Abeywardena, 2008), (Martín-Carrón et al., 1999), (Miura, Miura, and Yagasaki, 2003), (Ngamukote et al., 2011), (Shanmuganayagam et al., 2007), (Stein et al., 1999), (Vinson, Teufel, and Wu, 2001), (Zern et al., 2005)
Hawthorn:
(Chen et al., 1995), (Kwok et al., 2010), (Kwok et al., 2013), (Luo et al., 2009), (Rajendran et al., 1996), (Rezaei-Golmisheh et al., 2015), (Rigelsky and Sweet, 2002), (Zhang et al., 2001), (Zhang et al., 2002)
Green Tea:
(Bursill et al., 2001), (Kim et al., 2011), (Kono et al., 1992), (Koo and Noh, 2007), (Kuhn et al., 2004), (Maron et al., 2003), (Vinson and Dabbagh, 1998), (Yang and Koo, 1999), (Yokozawa, Nakagawa, and Kitani, 2002), (Zheng et al., 2011)
Oats and Buckwheat:
(He et al., 1995), (Karmally et al., 2005), (Kayashita et al., 1997), (Lin et al., 2008), (Maki et al., 2010), (Othman, Moghadasian, and Jones, 2011), (Tomotake et al., 2000), (Tomotake et al., 2007), (Queenan et al., 2007), (Whitehead et al., 2014)
Garlic:
(Adler and Holub, 1997), (Ali et al., 2000), (Durak et al., 2004), (Konjufca, Pesti, and Bakalli, 1997), (Kwon et al., 2003), (Warshafsky, Kamer, and Sivak, 1993), (Yeh and Liu, 2001)
Seaweed:
(Ara et al., 2002), (Bocanegra et al., 2009), (Gómez-Ordóñez, Jiménez-Escrig, and Rupérez, 2012), (Olivero-David et al., 2011)
Foods That Help High Cholesterol help lower LDL levels
Rice Bran Oil & Bran
25.3 fl oz
Cholesterol reducing properties and sterols and stanols
RICE BRAN OILRICE BRAN LEARN MORE
Flaxseed
24 oz
Cholesterol reducing lignans, sterols and stanols, and fiber
BUY ON AMAZON LEARN MORE
Grape Juice/ Grapes
8 pack of 64 oz bottles
Cholesterol reducing and health boosting polyphenols
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Other Important Information
Although evidence supports the use of whole grains like bran, oats, buckwheat, these conflict with health optimizing diets like the Bulletproof diet, for example.
Peanuts and pistachios are both good alternatives or additions to almonds for reducing high cholesterol because of their plant sterols and stanols content.
Dietary fiber is important for reducing cholesterol although the type of fiber is important; cereal fibers like those in some of the recommended foods have been shown to be particularly beneficial. Still, consider a fiber supplement if you are consuming very little fiber (Brown et al., 1999; Olson et al., 1997).
Fish oil is beneficial for reducing cholesterol and promoting cardiovascular health as well as providing numerous other health benefits. Although, the evidence isn't as conclusive for its role in reducing cholesterol as it is for its other health benefits.
Sources
Coffee can have deleterious effects on cholesterol. Known to be particularly harmful are "Scandinavian boiled, Turkish, and cafetière coffee" (Ricketts et al., 2007). French press coffee can increase cholesterol as well (Urgert et al., 1995). Boiled coffee seems to be the main culprit, so avoiding boiled coffee is important (Dak and Grobbee, 1989; Salvaggio et al., 1991; Zock et al., 1990). There is no consensus on filtered coffee, though, with one study stating it does not affect cholesterol (Urgert and Katan, 1997) while another found that normal filtered coffee drinkers' total cholesterol levels went down after abstaining from coffee for six weeks (Christensen et al., 2001). In all, it seems like a good idea to limit coffee intake. The safest coffee option is the toxin free Bulletproof Coffee.