Are you looking for natural remedies or self-care tips to reduce cholesterol quickly? Maybe hoping to avoid taking or continuing to need to take medications? Try these healthy lifestyle changes and ideas and get a free list of cholesterol-lowering foods at the end of the first section!
High cholesterol isn’t just a nuisance. It’s a major health risk.
According to the NIH Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, ongoing high blood cholesterol levels place you at a greater risk for heart disease and increase your risk of heart attack.
I’ve seen how elevated cholesterol has affected patients and landed them in the hospital with a cardiac event.
But I also lost my aunt, who did not address her hypercholesterolemia, after she died suddenly from a heart attack.
As a nurse, I frequently remind patients and clients that taking cholesterol-lowering medication can reduce ‘bad’ cholesterol levels. And I have found this to be true for myself, too.
However, for many people, natural remedies, self-care, lifestyle changes, or a combination can also lower cholesterol levels and avoid the need to take any or use a lower dose of medication.
After implementing most of these targeted self-care activities myself, I experienced the benefits and now have a healthy cholesterol level using the lowest dose of medication.
This article provides 7 research-proven self-care tips to lower cholesterol fast without the medication.
Self-care activities that can reduce your cholesterol (and your overall health!) may include everything from the eating approach you follow (your diet) or how much activity you get per day, to the way you manage stress or how often you take time to rest, relax and even pray.
To clarify, you should not stop taking the medications you’re taking now without talking to your healthcare provider first.
For example, if you are taking medications for your high cholesterol levels now, the best way to move away from taking those medications is to talk to your provider about your self-care goals and intentions.
That way your healthcare provider can order a blood test to see if you’ve lowered your cholesterol level and risk factors after implementing these targeted self-care activities.
Let’s get into the self-care tips!
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1 Revamp Your Diet Heart-Healthy Foods that Work Fast
Just like with high blood pressure, what you eat influences your cholesterol levels and risk of developing cardiovascular disease.
The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends following the DASH diet to lower your blood pressure, however, this easy-to-follow and adapt-to-eating plan can also significantly impact unhealthy cholesterol levels, too.
I’ve seen that patients have a pretty easy time adapting to a DASH Diet. It’s not complicated!
Even better: it works fast!
Some people can see results as fast as two weeks, making it an effective hyperlipidemia self-care activity.
It also takes about two weeks for your body to adjust to tasting less salt. Using spices when reducing salt will help your body ‘miss the salt less’ and provide great flavors.
If you don’t have a DASH Diet Cookbook, here’s a great one to start using.
I like it because it offers appropriate seasoning suggestions to keep in your pantry and spice cabinet to help with flavoring while you adjust to less salt.
If you think this one is too basic, there are other options for Dash Diet Cookbooks on Amazon.
In addition, below I’ve listed some additional tips to consider with your eating approach to impact on your high cholesterol levels when you get comfortable with the DASH Diet.
Eat More ‘Good’ Fat Foods – Unsaturated Fats
Most of us do not eat enough healthful unsaturated fats in our diet.
Healthy or good fats provide benefits to your body. Unsaturated fats can:
- improve your blood cholesterol level
- ease inflammation
- stabilize heart rhythms (among other benefits)
Unsaturated fats are liquid at room temperature and found in food from plants such as vegetable oils, nuts, and seeds.
There are two types of unsaturated fats that we consider good fats:
- monounsaturated fats
- polyunsaturated fats.
High concentrations of monounsaturated fats are found in:
- Olive oil, peanut, and canola oil
- Avocados
- Nuts – almonds, hazelnuts, and pecans
- Seeds – pumpkin and sesame
High concentrations of polyunsaturated fats are found in:
- Sunflower, corn, soybean, and flaxseed oils
- Walnuts
- Flax seeds
- Fish
- Canola oil (while higher in monounsaturated fats, it is also considered a good source of polyunsaturated fat).
If the fat types or names confuse you, I’m with you! I’ve found it’s easier to remember this list of healthy fat foods – that’s what’s important here.
I’ve also found a few easy ways to add these healthy fats into our diet. Try these:
- add a few pumpkin or sesame seeds to a salad
- cook with olive oil
- eat at least one kind of fish a week
- and if you find a ripe avocado at the grocery store, buy it and eat it that day (they get overripe very fast and are too expensive to buy for the future because the timing never works for us!)
Unsaturated Fat Research
Research shows that when considering a healthful diet, partially substituting carbohydrates with either protein or monounsaturated fat can further lower blood pressure, improve lipid levels, and reduce estimated cardiovascular risk. <source>
Another analysis identified that when polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats were eaten in place of carbohydrates, these good fats decreased harmful LDL cholesterol levels and increased protective levels of HDL cholesterol.
The AHA suggests that 8-10% of our daily calories should come from polyunsaturated fats, and there is evidence that eating more polyunsaturated fat (up to 15% of daily calories) in place of saturated fat can lower heart disease risk.
Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Omega-3 fats are an important type of polyunsaturated fat.
Your body cannot make these, so eating them in food (or taking supplements) is the only way your body can get them.
Consider adding these foods into your diet – perhaps start adding them slowly as a substitute for foods high in saturated fat (like red meat) once or twice a week.
Eating fatty fish a couple of times a week is an excellent way to eat more omega-3s (which is what we do as I said above).
High concentrations of omega-3 fatty acids are found in:
- Fatty fish
- salmon
- anchovies
- herein
- mackerel
- black cod
- sardines
- bluefin tuna
- whitefish
- striped bass
- cobia
- Plant sources
- flax seeds
- walnuts
- canola
- soybean oil
Reduce Saturated Fat in Your Diet
Decreasing your saturated fat intake can be another positive strategy to reduce levels of LDL cholesterol (the bad one).
Eating red meat and full-fat dairy products can raise your total cholesterol level, so it’s a good idea to cut back on them as much as you can.
Another effective step toward dyslipidemia self-care I’ve discovered is to reduce the amount of saturated fat in your diet simply by eating a proper serving size of red meat and dairy products. Most patients and clients I’ve worked with were eating 2-3 serving sizes at a time! That’s an easy change!
Avoid Trans Fats
Trans fats (or trans fatty acids) place a double whammy on your body when you eat them because they impact two types of cholesterol.
- trans fats raise the ‘bad’ cholesterol (LDL)
- and lower the ‘good’ one (HDL)
If you want to lower your cholesterol quickly, it’s important to learn how to read nutrition labels so you can recognize the healthy fats and avoid eating trans fats as much as possible.
Listed as partially hydrogenated vegetable oil or hydrogenated oils, trans fats are a primary ingredient used in grocery store-bought baked goods and processed foods like:
- cakes
- cookie
- pastries
- crackers
- margarine and shortening
- you know, all the good stuff!
Trans fats are made from heated liquid vegetable oils in the presence of hydrogen gas.
To make choosing which foods to stop eating easier, I recommend a first step be eliminating the foods you eat just because ‘it’s there.’ Many of us just grab food out of cupboard because it available. If you take a minute to think about it, you may not even really like the taste and won’t miss it with a better substitute.
Next work on reducing the packaged foods you like ‘just okay.’
To preserve your sanity and energy, work on reducing your favorite foods last.
You’ll probably be surprised how many of these foods aren’t truly your favorite foods!
After working with hundreds of patients, I’ve seen that how knowing what type of fat is in the food people are eating helps them make healthier choices. Once this information is known, people desire to eat more of the good fats and less of the bad fats.
Eat Plenty of Fiber
Foods containing soluble fiber contribute to heart health by lowering the absorption of cholesterol into your bloodstream.
Other health benefits include:
- weight loss promotion
- lowering blood sugar
- fighting constipation
- feeding friendly gut bacteria
Nearly all whole grains are high in fiber.
Other examples of foods with soluble fiber include:
- Oatmeal
- Kidney beans
- Brussels sprouts
- Peas
- Lentils
- Psyllium (fiber supplement)
Substitutions to consider to start eating more fiber:
- a bowl of oatmeal for a breakfast of pastries or sausage once a week
- whole grain bread instead of white bread in a sandwich
- or brown rice instead of white rice a couple of times a week
Soluble fiber can also be taken as a supplement, called psyllium. Psyllium is available on Amazon.
One study, using cookies enriched with 8 grams of psyllium, showed a 10% reduction in total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol. This occurred over four weeks in 33 adults. <source>
Here’s a free list of cholesterol-lowering foods to eat to help you lower your cholesterol.
2 Increase Activity
Numerous studies have shown that exercise impacts cholesterol levels.
Specifically, 150 minutes of exercise (moderate-intensity aerobic exercise) per week is enough to lower cholesterol and reduce high blood pressure.
Even if you don’t like to exercise, there are many ways to increase your physical activity!
Something basic, like walking for 10-15 minutes 1-2 times a day, can make a significant impact!
Other ways to increase your activity:
- swimming
- play with your kids or grandkids
- gardening
- dance while listening to music
- walk your dog more
3 Manage Stress
Ongoing stress is harmful to your health because having stress hormones circulating in your system for long periods can lead to heart disease and other life-threatening diseases.
Stress management will look different to all of us, but the point is that reducing your stress level can help lower your cholesterol levels and health risks.
Many people mistakenly think self-care is expensive.
Managing your stress is affordable.
You don’t need to pay for a massage every other day.
But, it does mean taking a critical look at your stressors and looking for possibilities to manage the impact, lessen stress sources, or even eliminate stressors as much as possible.
Often,
- a few deep breaths
- taking a walk in nature
- reading a magazine
- or any other 5-minute self-care activity
is all that is needed!
But in my personal and work experience, to avoid burnout symptoms and make a transformational impact on your health, you need to make choices that eliminate the stressors in your life and deal with ongoing stress.
The book Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle addresses how to deal with both stress and stressors in your life.
It provides science but is light-heartedly written with relatable examples and solutions. It’s honestly the best book I’ve ever read that addresses burnout and I highly recommend it!
- Nagoski PhD, Emily (Author)
Use Mediation and Prayer
Many studies report that meditation has been shown to reduce anxiety and stress.
Meditation is a practice of focused attention and reflection that helps calm the mind, promote self-awareness, and cultivate inner peace.
It involves intentionally directing thoughts (or focusing on breathing) to enhance mental clarity, emotional balance, and spiritual well-being to reduce stress.
Examples of Meditation
- Mindful Breathing – Focusing on slow, deep breaths to center the mind and reduce stress.
- Body Scan Meditation – Bringing awareness to different parts of the body to release tension and promote relaxation (by literally tensing and then relaxing each muscle from head to toe).
- Loving-Kindness Meditation – Silently sending thoughts of love and goodwill to yourself and others.
- Guided Visualization – Imagining a peaceful scene (like a beach or forest) to enhance relaxation and focus.
- Scripture Meditation – Reading a Bible verse slowly and reflecting on its meaning in your life.
- Breath Prayer – Repeating a short prayer (e.g., “Lord, give me peace”) in rhythm with your breathing. I find putting my hand over my heart and tapping my chest as I say it to be very effective.
- Gratitude Reflection – Taking a few moments to thank God for His blessings and presence in your life. Journaling is helpful for this.
- Silent Contemplation – Sitting quietly in God’s presence, allowing His peace to fill your heart.
Meditation ( and mindfulness) are proven stress reducers.
If you are a person of faith, engaging in prayer is a form of meditation.
So, if your faith is important to you, I want to encourage you to utilize Scripture to help you find the courage to start taking better care of yourself and motivation to continue good self-care.
Worship and regular church attendance have also been found to reduce anxiety and manage stress.
If you struggle with guilt or motivation when you take time to care for your needs, you might be interested in my free Bible study. In it, I share how self-care is a way to worship and honor the Lord.
Whether you care for your children, support your spouse, care for aging parents, serve in a ministry, or maybe even all of the above, it takes motivation to prioritize self-care when caring for others. Self-care barriers can be frustrating and hard to overcome.
Looking for a way to stay motivated about taking better care of yourself? Check out my Bible study by clicking this link:
4 Consider Taking Fish Oil Supplements
Fish oil has been proven to lower the bad low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and raise the good high-density lipoprotein (HDL).
While fish oil seems to have little effect on total cholesterol, one study showed promise of increasing HDL (the good cholesterol) – particularly in women. <source>
A large meta-analysis suggested that dietary and non-dietary intake (of supplements) of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (including fish oil) increased life expectancy related to heart disease. <source>
If you do not plan to eat 1-2 portions of fatty fish per week, you may want to consider taking a fish oil supplement.
There are several great options for fish oil on Amazon. Note: in my experience most omega 3 supplements do not have a fishy taste but check the comments in case people complain about burps that taste like fish.
5 Lose a Couple of Pounds
Even carrying a few extra pounds can contribute to a high cholesterol level.
So consider exploring the easy ways to lose weight and watch your waistline regularly to maintain a healthy weight.
Losing just 10% of your current weight can positively impact your cholesterol level and prevent developing other health conditions.
It’s not discussed often, but research shows reducing your intake of simple carbohydrates (mostly foods that convert to sugar quickly in that body) can help raise your good cholesterol. <source>
Reducing junk food was the final change that helped me regulate my weight and cholesterol levels. I created a guide on how to stop eating so much junk food.
Work on making little changes to keep from getting overwhelmed. Try these self-care tips to lose weight:
- Add more water to your day.
- Eat proper serving sizes – especially when eating fatty food or animal products.
- Take short walks during breaks.
- Find ways to work small amounts of activity into your day. For example, use the stairs instead of an elevator.
- Cut back on sugary beverages and snacks.
- Eat sugary foods for dessert instead of snacks.
- Eat fruit for dessert.
- Get enough sleep to help you prevent ‘tired-eating’.
Small changes can make a big impact when you do them consistently!
And do LESS of These 2 Things to Lower High Cholesterol:
Work on these next two by cutting back a little at a time.
6 Smoking
If you don’t smoke, never start!
According to the Mayo Clinic, smoking cessation is a self-care activity that quickly reduces your cholesterol level.
- Your blood pressure and heart rate recover from the cigarette-induced spike within 20 minutes of quitting.
- Within three months of quitting, your blood circulation and lung function improve.
- Within a year of quitting, your risk of heart disease is half that of a person who smokes.
Smoking cessation can also raise your ‘good’ HDL cholesterol levels.
Smoking increases the risk of heart disease. One way this happens is how smoking affects the way the body processes cholesterol.
First, when there is plaque buildup along artery walls, your cells can’t transport cholesterol from the walls of the blood vessel back to the liver. Furthermore, it is thought that these dysfunctional cells contribute to the faster development of clogged arteries in people who smoke. <source>
Many workplaces, insurance companies, and state or local governments have smoking cessation programs (and coverage).
But, please don’t let cost detour you – certainly, you should research coverage options or scholarships for smoking cessation programs. Even using a nicotine patch or nicotine gum can be very helpful.
As a nurse, I recommend programs that offer accountability coaching or ongoing support and encouragement because I’ve found those have the most successful outcomes.
- One package of 14 NicoDerm CQ Step 1 Nicotine Patches to Quit Smoking – Stop Smoking Aid
- ACTIVE INGREDIENT IN NICOTINE GUM: This product from Amazon Basic Care contains nicotine polacrilex, stop smoking aid; compare to Nicorette Gum active ingredient
7 Drinking Alcohol
If you drink alcohol, do so in moderation.
First, alcohol adds extra calories, which can lead to weight gain.
There is also some evidence that ethanol in alcoholic beverages can increase HDL and lower the risk of heart disease. <source> However, because the evidence is limited, it is not recommended that you start drinking alcohol for this health benefit.
Too much alcohol can lead to serious health problems, including:
- liver damage
- high blood pressure
- high triglyceride levels
- heart failure
- strokes
For healthy adults, the recommendation is only one drink a day for women and up to two drinks a day for men. <source, source>
If you are drinking more, consider reducing your intake to lower your cholesterol.
If Natural Self-care Tips to Lower High Cholesterol Aren’t Enough:
There are many things you can change to reduce your cholesterol.
However, some things don’t change even when you implement all 7 of the self-care tips to lower high cholesterol.
That is to say, your family history and heredity, age, and gender have a large impact on your cholesterol levels. And, sometimes, lifestyle changes aren’t enough to lower your cholesterol levels into the normal ranges.
You may need to take medications to get your cholesterol under control – even when you’re doing everything right.
This was my case. However, I’m able to take the lowest dose of one medication for over ten years because I use self-care activities to target my high cholesterol.
How to Control Cholesterol and High Cholesterol – the Bottom Line
It’s important to continue lifestyle changes while taking your cholesterol medication(s) to keep them at the lowest dose possible.
You are lowering your out-of-pocket expense and the risk of uncomfortable medication side effects.
Additionally, following a heart-healthy lifestyle may improve the cholesterol-lowering effects of the medication.
The Good News About Self-care Tips to Reduce Cholesterol
These natural self-care tips to lower cholesterol fast can work if consistently followed!
Work with your healthcare provider to determine how long it is safe to trial self-care tips to lower your high cholesterol.
To sum it up, having a high cholesterol level places you at a greater risk of heart disease and a heart attack. However, for many people, better self-care or lifestyle changes can naturally reduce cholesterol levels and avoid taking medications.
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FAQ – Self-care Tips to Lower Cholesterol Fast
1. What Does High Cholesterol Mean?
Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance in all your body’s cells. You need cholesterol to build healthy cells, but too much cholesterol can increase your risk of heart disease and other medical conditions. When you have high cholesterol, you can develop fatty deposits in your blood vessels.
Over time, these deposits can get larger, making it harder for blood to flow through your arteries. Sometimes, these deposits can break suddenly and form a clot that can cause a heart attack or stroke.
Having high cholesterol can be something you inherit, but often, it’s the result of unhealthy life choices.
The good news, then, is hypercholesterolemia can be prevented and treated.
Eating a healthy diet, regularly exercising, performing the self-care activities described above, and taking medications as prescribed can help reduce high cholesterol. <source>
2. What Does Cholesterol Do?
Cholesterol is produced in the liver and has many important roles in your body.
For example, your body needs cholesterol to build healthy and flexible cells. Cholesterol is also necessary to make hormones, bile acids, vitamin D, and other substances in the body. Your body cannot function without cholesterol.
But there are different kinds of cholesterol and too much of some and not enough of others can be harmful.
The way you take care of your mind, body, and soul can have a direct influence on your cholesterol levels.
Above all, you need to understand that having an elevated low-density lipoprotein (LDL) can place you at a greater risk of disease or death.
3. Is Coconut Oil a Heart-Healthy Food?
Coconut oil’s saturated fats differ from the saturated fat in animal fat. However, even though coconut oil has monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat, over 90% of it is saturated fat. Therefore, it should not be viewed as a heart-healthy food and should be eaten in moderation.
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Be sure to grab your FREE Self-care Starter Guide! Lisa Kimrey is a 33-year veteran registered nurse (RN), speaker, and author of the Bible study, The Self-care Impact: Motivation and Inspiration for Wellness. At Mylifenurse, Lisa combines her nursing expertise with Scripture-based encouragement to show readers who serve and care for others how to begin and maintain their self-care journey – without feeling guilty or overwhelmed – to feel happy, healthy, and rejuvenated.