Fibre and cholesterol
Canada's Food Guide to Healthy Eating
and the American Heart Association Eating Plan suggest that you eat foods that are high in soluble and insoluble fibre. Foods that are high in soluble fibre, including oat bran, oatmeal, beans, peas, rice bran, barley, citrus fruits, strawberries, and apple pulp, have been shown to reduce blood cholesterol. It is recommended that people eat 20 to 35 grams of soluble and insoluble fibre per day.
The greatest cholesterol-lowering effect of soluble fibre occurs in people who have high cholesterol levels. One study found that dietary fibre intake from 25 to 30 grams lowered the risk of coronary artery disease (CAD) by 12% in U.S. men and women.1
Insoluble fibre doesn't seem to affect blood cholesterol, but it promotes healthy bowel movement. Foods that are high in insoluble fibre include whole wheat breads, wheat cereals, wheat bran, cabbage, beets, carrots, Brussels sprouts, turnips, cauliflower, and apple skin. Fibre from such foods is better for the bowel than fibre supplements, such as psyllium seed products.
However, psyllium (a common ingredient in non-prescription fibre supplements and laxatives) has been used to boost the effectiveness of some lipid-lowering drugs while reducing the stomach upset commonly caused by those drugs.2 These products are not recommended to replace foods as a source of fibre.
Psyllium may significantly reduce cholesterol in people who are already eating a low-fat diet.3
| Author: | Douglas Dana Ralph Poore | Last Updated: November 13, 2006 |
| Medical Review: | Caroline S. Rhoads, MD - Internal Medicine Tom Bailey, MD - Family Medicine Neil J. Stone, MD, FACC, FACP - Internal Medicine, Cardiology | |
 | ||
| |