How to lower your cholesterol

1 in 5 adults in the US has dangerously high cholesterol levels. High cholesterol can lead to stroke - the #3 cause of death - or heart attack - the #1 cause of death.

I hope that didn't make you race for the ice cream to calm your nerves!

The American Heart Association recommends keeping total blood cholesterol levels below 200mg/dL, the point when heart attack and stroke becomes more common. We all known that our food choices raise cholesterol levels, but many of us ignore that fact, or prefer to take medication. Over $20 BILLION is spent annually on cholesterol lowering drugs. That will buy a lot of healthy foods!

If you don't want to take meds to lower your cholesterol, try these 7 tips. Taken together, they work just as well as most medication for the majority of people.

1. 1 ounce of almonds per day provides fiber to help lower cholesterol. Eat 1 ounce almonds as a snack, or sprinkle sliced almonds on a tossed salad.
2. Soluble fiber found in legumes, strawberries, broccoli, grapefruit, and apples - as well as in oats and oatmeal - also helps lower cholesterol. Aim for 20 grams of fiber per day.
3. Read food labels for the "bad fats": trans fats and saturated fat. Keep total bad fat intake as low as possible; the closer you can get to "zero", the better. These bad fats raise our body's levels of cholesterol.
4. Make olive or canola oil your fats of choice. They're both higher in monounsaturated fatty acids, which can help lower blood cholesterol levels.
5. Eat fish, especially fatty ocean fish like salmon, instead of red meat. The type of fat in fish is healthier than the type found in red meat.
6. Load up on fruit and vegetables - 8-10 servings per day is optimum. That means fruit and/or veggies with every meal and snack.
7. Choose fat-free dairy products like skim milk or nonfat yogurt. Look for lower fat cheeses, or cut your cheese intake in half.