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Cholesterol is made by the liver, and it is distributed throughout the body through the blood stream. When more cholesterol is produced than the body can use, deposits can form along the arterial walls. This accumulation leads to cardiovascular disease.

When you review cholesterol lowering diets, you need to keep in mind your body's need for some cholesterol. Even though cholesterol is not healthy, it does help with some necessary functions in the body. The key to maintaining a good diet is moderation of bad cholesterol and some consumption of good cholesterol.

The American Heart Association recently (2002) prescribed eating at least two servings of fish per week as an effective diet plan to lower high cholesterol. Not only does fish provide a good source of protein, but has also been discovered to contain high levels of omega 3 fatty acids, which has been proven to lower LDL "bad" cholesherol and boost HDL "good" cholesterol.

A diet plan to lower high cholesterol can be achieved by increasing the amount of soluble fiber that is consumed every day. Studies show that a daily diet that includes five to ten grams of soluble fiber can lower the Low Density Lipoprotein (also know as LDL cholesterol) without reducing the beneficial High Density Lipoprotein (HDL cholesterol). Two foods that are rich in this type of soluble fiber are oatmeal and oatbran.

Nuts house a multitude of beneficial substances that aid in the processes of the body: antioxidants (Vitamin E, selenium), phytonutrients, fiber, plant sterols and fat. It should be noted that the fats are mostly mono- and polyunsaturated fats which have studies have shown reduce LDL "bad" cholesterol.

The FDA wrote reviews of heart health diet in 1999 that declared that soy was highly beneficial to heart health. The FDA also had studies in 1999 that declared that soy was highly beneficial to reduce cholesterol. However, the large benefits of soy were then contested vigorously. As a result, the AHA Nutrition Committee does not recommend eating soy to reduce cholesterol anymore. Although soy is not in every diet plan to lower high cholesterol, some people say that it still can lower harmful LDL cholesterol by 3%.

Plant sterols, powerful compounds that block the absorption of cholesterol by the body, are found in plants. Some studies have reported a 10 to 15 percent decrease in LDL "bad" cholesterol. From this, the National Cholesterol Education Program recommends those with high cholesterol consume 2 grams of plant sterols per day.

Plant sterols are widely used and are often found in dressings, orange jiuce, margarine, functional cookies, etc. Sterol- fortified foods, by definition, contain 1 gram of plant sterols; it is imperative that the portion size and usage are noted from the labels along with other important details. Plant sterols cannot be consumed by everyone. In fact, AHA suggests that only those with high levels of LDL cholesterol consume plant sterols.