Changes in your lifestyle, such as eating a low saturated fat, low cholesterol diet [Heart Healthy Diet], regular physical activity, and managing your weight can help keep your
cholesterol low and
reduce your chance of developing heart disease as well as
improve your health in other ways.
Heart Healthy Diet Guidelines -- you should eat:
8-10% of the day's total calories from saturated fat.
30 percent or less of the day’s total calories from fat.
Less than 300 milligrams of dietary cholesterol a day.
Limit sodium intake to 2400 milligrams a day.
Just enough calories to achieve or maintain a healthy weight and reduce your blood cholesterol level. (Ask your doctor or registered dietitian what is a reasonable calorie level for you.)
Heart Healthy Diet Guidelines -- you should eat:
8-10% of the day's total calories from saturated fat.
30 percent or less of the day’s total calories from fat.
Less than 300 milligrams of dietary cholesterol a day.
Limit sodium intake to 2400 milligrams a day.
Just enough calories to achieve or maintain a healthy weight and reduce your blood cholesterol level. (Ask your doctor or registered dietitian what is a reasonable calorie level for you.)
Heart Healthy Diet and You - Your Personal Eating Plan
The recommendations for cholesterol and sodium are the same for everyone on the Heart Healthy Diet, regardless of the number of calories they should eat. You should eat less than 300 milligrams of cholesterol a day and no more than 2400 milligrams of sodium a day.
The recommendations for saturated fat and total fat are based on the percentage of calories you eat; the actual amount that you eat will vary depending on how many calories you eat. To get an estimate of the amount of calories, grams of saturated fat and fat to help you lower your blood cholesterol on the Heart Healthy Diet, go to this site to figure yours:
http://nhlbisupport.com/cgi-bin/chd1/step1intro.cgi (go to purple box to figure)