Follow these tips and guidelines to maintain a healthy lifestyle:

– Limit foods containing partially hydrogenated vegetable oils to reduce trans fat in your diet. Instead, try olive oil. If you can keep your saturated fats to a minimum (about seven percent of your diet), studies have shown you can decrease LDL-C by as much as 10 percent.

– Cut back on foods high in dietary cholesterol like whole milk, shellfish, or “organ” meats, like liver. Replace them with skim milk and salmon. Some studies show this may lower your LDL-C by five percent.

– Cut back on added sugars, like sucrose, glucose, and fructose. Try natural sugars like those found in fruits.

– Finally, you should try to eat less than 2,300 mg (just over one teaspoon) of salt or sodium per day. People with high blood pressure should have less than 1,500 mg per day.

Tips provided by LearnYourLipids.com

According to the American Heart Association, there are seven health and behavior factors that impact health and quality of life. Make these “Life’s Simple 7” and you can add years to your life:

– Don’t smoke
– Maintain a healthy weight
– Engage in regular physical activity
– Eat a healthy diet
– Manage blood pressure
– Take charge of cholesterol, and
– Keep blood sugar, or glucose, at healthy levels