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Vitamin & Mineral Cholesterol Reducers

What you eat is the most obvious way that you increase your blood cholesterol. By eating foods high in saturated fat, you raise your cholesterol levels. Part of eating a healthy diet includes selecting foods that are rich in vitamins and minerals. Those vitamins and minerals can help you lower your blood cholesterol.

  1. What Is Cholesterol?

    • Not all cholesterol is bad. Understanding which is which can help you make better lifestyle choices. Cholesterol is a waxy substance found in blood lipids. It helps form cell membranes and some hormones. Cholesterol cannot dissolve in the blood. Lipoproteins have to transport cholesterol. Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol tends to clog arteries, while high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol is an effective transporter of cholesterol. In blood tests, both types of cholesterol are measured individually and added together. Your doctor likely won't be concerned if your HDL is high, only if the LDL is.

    How Much Is Too Much?

    • The measurement of blood cholesterol levels tells your doctor how much fat is in your blood. The measurement is in milligrams per deciliter, or mg/dL. Your measurement should be less than 200 mg/dL. Borderline high is considered between 200 and 239 mg/dL. High is considered 240 mg/dL and above. If your measurement is high or borderline high, you'll need to lower you cholesterol level.

    Niacin

    • Niacin is one of the B vitamins. It is a major help against heart disease. It blocks the release of fatty acids from the fat cells. It also helps with energy production, gene expression and hormone synthesis. It helps improve HDL functioning. Niacin can raise your HDL, the good cholesterol, by 15 to 35 percent, according to the Mayo Clinic.

    B Complex Vitamins

    • One of the most useful vitamins to take in reducing cholesterol is the B complex. Take the vitamin in the most-potent dose you can find. Since supplements are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration, different brands can vary widely in quality even if they don't appear to be different on their label. You can consult your doctor or pharmacist about which brands and formulations are the most potent. Take the recommended dose on the label of the B complex you choose, since each brand may also combine the individual B vitamins in different ways. By using the recommended dosage, you will get a balanced amount of all the B vitamins.

    Vitamins A and C

    • Take 25,000 international units (IU) of vitamin A daily. This will help reduce your blood cholesterol. Take 150 mg of vitamin C daily. According to orthomolecular.org, a combination of vitamin C and niacin can lower your cholesterol levels within three months.

    Other Natural Substances

    • Pectin, garlic, fish oil and lecithin are all useful in reducing cholesterol. Pectin reduces the amount of cholesterol the body can absorb. Garlic counteracts high fats in the diet and reduces blood pressure. Fish oil rich in EPA lowers blood cholesterol even more so than polyunsaturated fats do. Phytosterols found in flaxseed and nuts also can help reduce cholesterol. How well each of these substance can work for you depends on the potency of the substances, your own genetics and how high your cholesterol is.

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