How To Lower Your Cholesterol By 50+ Points Without Drugs

Dr. Siobhan Deshauer explains:

The Plan

She recommends:

• Dietary patterns: rather than tracking individual nutrients, follow Mediterranean, DASH, or plant-based diets; these reduce LDL and heart risk by emphasizing whole foods and minimizing processed foods and animal fats
• Plant proteins: replacing animal proteins with legumes, seeds, and nuts lowers LDL by 6 points; benefits come from lower saturated fat and added fiber and sterols
• Soluble fiber: traps cholesterol in the gut and removes it through stool; 1g of soluble fiber may reduce LDL by 2 points; psyllium can lower LDL by 13 points with 2 tbsp/day
• Phytosterols/stanols: plant-based cholesterol analogs can lower LDL by 5–10 points at 2g/day, but hard to get from diet alone; supplements may help, but carry risks for hyperabsorbers
• Unfiltered coffee: brewing methods like espresso, French press, and Turkish coffee retain cafestol, which raises LDL; using a paper filter can lower LDL by 15 points
• Probiotics: early studies show they may lower LDL by 8 points, but individual products vary too much to recommend supplements; fermented foods like kimchi, yogurt, and kefir can reliably help though
• Exercise: moderate cardio (4×/week) can reduce LDL by 5–6 points; adding weight training may drop it by 11 points; exercise improves overall cardiovascular health even if LDL impact is modest
• Weight loss: long-term loss of 1kg can reduce LDL by 1.3 points; effect strongest for those starting at higher BMI

You might notice, therefore, that the results of some things might not be what you’d expect. For example, using a paper filter when making coffee can lower LDL more than 10x more than losing 1kg of weight. Yet for some reason, that’s rarely what’s first to get recommended to a patient.

So, you don’t have to do everything on the list, but choose wisely! For more on each of these, enjoy:

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Take care!