Which foods can reduce high cholesterol?

What you eat greatly affects the levels of cholesterol in the blood stream. High levels of cholesterol in the body are happening more often now, than ever before. This is because of the variety of food offered now in the supermarkets and in restaurants, and the rise of fast and convienience foods. A person can still recover from this by eating foods that are not high in saturated fats. It comes down to eating sensibly, and having a varied diet, too much of something can never be good for us, its all about getting the balance right.

So, which foods should we be eating?

The best foods are ones low in fat, such as:
Fresh Fruits
Fresh Vegetables
Fresh Fish - {omega 3}
Lean Meats - { in moderation}
Whole Grains and pulces
Low Fat and Non Fat Dairy Products
Chicken {with skin removed}
Nuts and seeds

The healthiest thing to have either for lunch and dinner is food that comes from the ocean. This can be fish or shellfish that is known to carry Omega 3 fatty acids, these can reduce blood pressure and the risk of developing blood clots, and also very effective in lowering the levels of cholesterol in people.
Fish with the highest levels of Omega 3 fatty acids are:
Mackeral
Herring
Sardines
Trout
Tuna
Salmon
Halibut

The best way to cook these is to grill or bake in the oven and avoid frying as you will be adding bad fats.
It is recommended by Doctors to try and eat two servings of fresh fish per week that are high in Omega 3 fatty acids.
If Fish is not your cup of tea then using suppliments enriched with Omega 3 will go some way to improve your health.
Things like replacing your full fat milk with semi skimmed milk is much healthier for us, also having spreads that are low in fats like ones made with olive oil are healthier for us that butter.
Olive oil contains antioxidants that can lower the bad cholesterol while leaving the good cholesterol, extra virgin olive oil, is even better for you as it has had less processing and contains more of the healthy antioxidants.