FIBER, SOY AND VEGETABLES: THREE MUSKETEERS BEATING CHOLESTEROL

Mom always told you to eat your vegetables and a team of Canadian researchers have shown, once again, that mom was right.  It turns out that eating a lot of fiber, soy and vegetables can lower cholesterol just as much as a statin drug.

The researchers, from St. Michael's Hospital and the University of Toronto, point out that this is good news for people who cannot tolerate statin drugs because of side effects.  The results were published in a recent issue of American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

The team tested a “portfolio” diet, which was high in soy protein, almonds, and cereal fiber as well as plant sterols, on 34 overweight men and women.  Researchers then compared that diet with a low-fat diet and with a normal diet plus a generic statin drug.

The “portfolio” diet (fiber, soy and vegetables) was almost as effective as statins, reducing LDL (“bad”) cholesterol by nearly 30% after one month.  The statins lowered LDL by 33% while the low-fat diet reduced LDL 8.5%.

One in five strokes and more than half of all heart disease are caused by high cholesterol levels.