You can get niacin from foods, especially liver and chicken, or from supplements. The recommended daily intake of niacin is 14 milligrams for women and 16 milligrams for men. Doing so can cause side effects like skin itching and flushing, nausea, and more.

There are two kinds of fiber : soluble, which dissolves into a gel in liquid, and insoluble. Soluble fiber lowers cholesterol absorption in your bloodstream. Psyllium is fiber made from the husks of seeds of the Plantago ovata plant.

You can take it in a pill or mix it into drinks or food. Taking psyllium regularly has been shown to significantly reduce cholesterol levels. It also relieves constipation and can lower blood sugar for people with diabetes.

Phytosterols are waxes derived from plants. They prevent your intestines from absorbing cholesterol. Food manufacturers have begun adding phytosterols to prepared foods, such as margarine and yogurt.

Tofu, soy milk, and steamed soy beans are a good source of lean protein, which means eating them instead of a fatty food like beef can reduce the overall cholesterol in your diet.

The cholesterol-lowering effect of garlic is unclear. Garlic is thought to have other health benefits , though, including lowering blood pressure.

You can get the benefits from food or from a supplement. Red yeast rice is white rice that has been fermented with yeast. Some red yeast rice supplements have been shown to lower cholesterol, because they contain monacolin K.

This has the same chemical makeup as lovastatin , a cholesterol-lowering medicine. Red yeast rice may also cause kidney, liver, and muscle damage. One study showed that ginger can lower your total cholesterol and triglycerides levels, while a study from showed that it can reduce LDL cholesterol levels and boost HDL cholesterol.

Flax is a blue flower grown in temperate climates. Both its seeds and the oil drawn from them are good sources of omega-3 fatty acids, which have a number of health benefits, including raising HDL cholesterol levels.

To get the biggest health boost from flaxseed, use its oil or eat flaxseed ground, not whole. Certain foods and supplements can help lower your cholesterol levels. Talk to a doctor before trying any new supplement.

They will help you find the best supplement and dosage for you. Fish is low in saturated fats, and many kinds contain omega-3 fatty acids, which benefit your heart health and can boost your good HDL cholesterol levels.

Here are some examples of types of fish you can try to include in your diet:. All that said, steak and hamburger can be hard to resist. You just need to eat them in moderation. You probably know fiber as something that can help you with your digestive health.

But if you thought fiber was only for digestion, think again: It can also help build your cardiovascular health. A low-cholesterol food list is rich in soluble fiber fiber that can dissolve into water. Soluble fiber grabs cholesterol in your gut — before it gets into your bloodstream — and helps lower bad LDL cholesterol levels.

Try oatmeal and whole grain toast for breakfast, curried lentils for lunch, or turkey chili with kidney beans for dinner. Generally, the more processed a grain or bean, the less likely it is to have healthy benefits and nutritional value.

Whenever you can, try to stock up on fresh ingredients. But common snack foods like chips, microwavable popcorn, cookies, pastries or crackers are high in trans and saturated fats. On the other hand, snacking on fruits, vegetables and nuts not only helps you avoid bad fats, but also helps you get good fats and fiber.

Raw nuts are high in unsaturated fats — which are the best kind of fats. Nuts are great for a heart-healthy diet because they raise your good HDL cholesterol levels and lower your bad LDL cholesterol levels.

Other examples of foods that are high in unsaturated fat include avocados and olives. Nuts — along with many fruits and veggies — can also be a great source of soluble fiber. Adding as many of these foods as you can to your diet can be a double-dose of cholesterol-reducing impact. As with meats and whole grains, remember that more processing means less benefit.

When it comes to dairy, this is a big area where picking a healthier alternative can be an easy win. For items like cheese, milk, cream and yogurt, use low-fat dairy products instead of the regular versions.

Who knows? It could become your next craving. Making these changes is helpful because full-fat dairy products contain saturated fat as well as cholesterol. Just as you can change what you buy in the grocery store, you can also choose healthier ways to make your food that help lower your cholesterol naturally.

For example:. When you do need to add fat for cooking, baking or pan frying, use healthy oils instead of solid fats, like butter, margarine, shortening and lard. So what causes high cholesterol? Believe it or not, the answer goes way beyond a high cholesterol diet. While cholesterol is normally kept in balance, an unhealthy diet high in hydrogenated fats and refined carbohydrates can disrupt this delicate balance, leading to increased cholesterol levels.

This imbalance is manifested in elevated LDL bad cholesterol and low HDL good cholesterol , which increases the risk of heart attack or stroke.

Other causes can include physical inactivity, diabetes, stress and hypothyroidism. But keep in mind that not all cholesterol is created equally. So how can cut down on your levels of LDL cholesterol down while increasing HDL cholesterol to keep your heart in tip-top shape?

Here are some simple ways for how to lower LDL cholesterol and total cholesterol to promote better heart health. Simply incorporating a few servings of foods that lower cholesterol in your diet per day can help decrease cholesterol levels and high triglycerides to optimize the health of your heart.

Here are a few of the top cholesterol-lowering foods that you may want to consider stocking up on:. Cleaning up your diet is one of the most effective ways to reduce your LDL levels and enhance heart health.

Instead, focus on nixing these foods from your diet as a simple method for how to lower cholesterol:. Although a glass of red wine per day can actually be beneficial for heart health, heavy drinking of alcohol can have detrimental effects on cholesterol levels.

Keep alcohol consumption in moderation by sticking to 1—2 servings per day to help optimize heart health.

Overdoing it on the caffeinated beverages like coffee, soda or energy drinks may cause an increase in cholesterol levels for some people. Limit coffee and tea to 1—2 cups daily to keep cholesterol in check. While switching up your diet is often an effective method for reducing cholesterol levels all on its own, adding a few cholesterol-lowering supplements can boost the effects even more.

Here are some of the supplements you can try using to get started:. When it comes to reducing cholesterol levels, getting in plenty of physical activity is just as essential as making modifications to your diet.