Maybe you are thinking about why oily foods are the most palatable because of the cholesterol content of fried foods. Fats can augment the flavor of foods. It is the reason why eating fried foods are very satisfying compared to consuming boiled foods. However, excess of these fried foods can damage the body, especially for the heart. As you get older, you must become aware of foods to avoid high cholesterol to stay healthy and live longer.
Although a cliché, it is essential to eat healthily now and develop healthy eating habits because once diagnosed with a disease related to cholesterol, monitoring the food you eat becomes a way of life. The following is a list of high cholesterol foods to limit your consumption to a minimum level.
1. Fried Foods
Deep-fried foods such as French fries, cheese sticks, and fried meats are very high in cholesterol, and you must consume these foods in moderation or avoid them as much as possible. A high cholesterol diet also has tons of calories and trans fat, which is the leading cause of many heart diseases. Also, it is scientifically proven that eating fried foods is also linked to obesity and diabetes.
2. Fast Foods
Fast foods are among the many high cholesterol foods, and daily consumption can cause chronic diseases such as diabetes, obesity, and heart diseases. According to many studies conducted with people who regularly consume fast foods have a higher level of cholesterol, have increased belly fat, increase the risk of inflammation, and high blood sugar level in the body. The healthier way to avoid cholesterol-rich foods is to opt for home-cooked meals. The reason for this is the fact that you can control everything that you put in your food like oil, salt, and other ingredients.
3. Processed Meats
Other foods to avoid with high cholesterol are processed meats like sausages, hot dogs, and bacon slices should be consumed minimally in the diet. Consumption of processed meat in the diet has been proven to increase the rate of chronic diseases like cancer in the colon and heart diseases. An extensive review study of over 614,000 participants resulted in the increased likelihood of developing heart disease by 40% to those who consumed 50 grams of processed meat every day.
4. Commercially Baked Goods
Munching desserts and snacks late at night can be very tempting. Still, it is also important to note that commercially baked products have high cholesterol as they are loaded with trans fat like hydrogenated vegetable oil. However, if you really cannot stay away from these high cholesterol foods, you should eat in moderation.
5. Ice cream
It is very hurtful to say that ice cream is not the best snack for people with high cholesterol as one scoop surprisingly has more fat than burgers and doughnuts. The reason for this is the fact that ice cream makes use of hydrogenated fat as an ingredient to provide creaminess, smoothness, and increase resistance to melting. If you are advised to avoid high cholesterol diet, it is imperative to prevent overeating ice cream.
6. Butter
Unfortunately, all foods that we all loved to eat like popcorn, mashed potatoes, pancakes, pastries, and slices of bread make use of butter. Butter is an essential ingredient because it serves many purposes in the food manufacturing industry, especially in baking.
If you are fighting high cholesterol in your body, you can substitute vegetable oil for baked products. Foods to avoid with high cholesterol can still become part of your diet. However, you need to always look at the nutrition facts.