Reviewed by Dietitian Madeline Peck, RDN, CDN
Credit: Getty Images. EatingWell Design.
Key Points
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Processed foods like canned beans, yogurt, and tofu can support healthy cholesterol levels.
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Canned salmon is a budget-friendly source of omega-3s, which supports lower LDL cholesterol.
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Other tips for cholesterol management include regular exercise, sleep, and using the Heart-Check Mark.
If you have high cholesterol, you don’t need to avoid all processed foods. Some processed options can help you consume more nutrients associated with healthier cholesterol levels, including soluble fiber, plant proteins, and unsaturated fats, such as omega-3 fatty acids.
“Processed foods tend to get a bad reputation; however, processing simply means a food has been changed from its original form,” explains Kiran Campbell, RDN. “Washing, freezing, canning, pasteurizing, fermenting, and grinding are all forms of processing,” she adds. Rather than focusing on whether a food is processed, consider its overall nutrient profile; many processed foods are affordable and convenient and should have a place on your table. Below, dietitians share the processed foods that you should eat every week if you have high cholesterol.
Canned Beans
“Canned beans are affordable, shelf-stable, and already cooked, which makes healthy eating much easier on busy days,” explains Campbell. Beans are packed with soluble fiber, which forms a viscous gel in the digestive tract that helps draw in cholesterol and remove it from your body, which in turn helps lower cholesterol levels.
Besides their soluble fiber content, beans also provide plant protein and resistant starch, which support a healthy gut microbiome, says Campbell. “When resistant starch is fermented by gut bacteria, it produces short-chain fatty acids that help regulate cholesterol metabolism,” she adds.
Research specifically shows that adding more canned beans to your diet can help lower low-density lipoprotein (LDL cholesterol or “bad” cholesterol) levels. “Participants who ate 1 cup of drained, rinsed canned beans every day for four weeks lowered their LDL cholesterol by about 8% and their total cholesterol by more than 5% compared to a control food,” shares Campbell.
Plain Yogurt
As a fermented dairy product, yogurt contains beneficial bacteria that may improve gut health, notes Campbell. “Emerging research suggests the gut microbiome may influence cholesterol metabolism, although more research is still needed,” she adds. When your gut microbiome is out of balance and contains an unfavorable ratio of “bad” and “good” bacteria, this can impact other processes in the body, such as cholesterol processing. Research suggests that a healthier gut microbiome could have positive effects on cholesterol levels.
While guidance has typically focused on nonfat or low-fat dairy to help with cholesterol management, research suggests that full-fat dairy products may fit within a cholesterol-friendly diet as well. “Dairy products have a complex nutrient profile that may have a neutral effect on cholesterol,” explains Campbell. Opting for plain yogurt allows you to avoid excess added sugars. Add flavor and even more cholesterol-lowering benefits by topping your yogurt with fiber-rich toppings like berries and nut butter.
Tofu
The Food and Drug Administration authorized a health claim stating that consuming 25 grams of soy protein per day as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol may reduce the risk of heart disease. Research also supports soy protein’s cholesterol-lowering effects, with a meta-analysis finding that consuming a median of 25 grams of soy protein daily lowered LDL cholesterol by roughly 3% to 4% compared with non-soy protein.
Tofu may offer an additional advantage when it replaces foods higher in saturated fat, providing cholesterol benefits both from the soy protein itself and from lowering intake of saturated fat. Tofu’s cholesterol-lowering properties may come from the soy protein itself, rather than its isoflavone content (an antioxidant found in soy). Other nutrients, such as unsaturated fat, fiber, and stanols and sterols, may contribute as well.
Campbell notes that this food-swap effect may be one of tofu’s biggest advantages for cholesterol management. “For example, replacing a cheeseburger with tofu stir-fry reduces saturated fat intake and increases fiber intake when vegetables and whole grains are included,” she says.
Fortified Plant Sterol Foods
Fortification gets a bad reputation as a processing tool. Still, it is an excellent way to help boost the nutritional content of foods and address chronic health conditions at a population level. Consuming foods fortified with plant sterols, such as cereal, margarines, yogurts, and yogurt drinks, is one way to help manage cholesterol. Plant sterols can also be found in nuts, seeds, whole grains, fruits, and legumes.
Plant sterols are natural compounds in plant foods that structurally resemble cholesterol. Because of this, plant sterols compete with cholesterol for absorption in the intestine, resulting in less cholesterol entering the bloodstream, Campbell explains. “Consuming 1.5 to 3 grams of plant sterols daily can reduce LDL cholesterol by approximately 7% to 12%, especially when combined with other healthy lifestyle habits,” shares Campbell.
Canned Salmon
“Canned salmon is a budget-friendly way to incorporate seafood into your diet,” shares Patricia Kolesa, M.S., RDN. “Despite processing, canned salmon’s nutritional quality is comparable to fresh salmon,” she adds. The American Heart Association recommends eating two servings of fish, particularly fatty fish, per week, as omega-3 fatty acids in fish may lower LDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
One meta-analysis of more than 2 million participants found that eating fish was inversely associated with the risk of death from heart disease. Each 20-gram increase in fish intake—about one-fifth of a typical fish portion—correlated with a 4% reduced risk of death from heart disease.
Lifestyle Tips for Cholesterol Management
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Incorporate regular exercise. Moderate physical activity can support healthy cholesterol levels. “Aim for moderate-intensity aerobic exercise, meaning any activity that raises your heart rate yet allows you to still hold a conversation,” says Kolesa. Examples include brisk walking, biking, and swimming. Aim for 150 minutes weekly of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise.
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Make sleep a priority. “Poor sleep can worsen cholesterol metabolism, increase inflammation, and lead to unhealthy food choices the next day,” comments Campbell. Aim for seven to nine hours of sleep nightly.
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Look for the Heart-Check Mark when grocery shopping. The American Heart Association developed the Heart-Check Mark, a front-of-package labeling tool to make heart-healthy shopping easier. For a food product to receive a Heart-Check Mark, it must pass certain criteria, including having 1 gram or less of saturated fat and 20 mg or less of cholesterol per serving, and the inclusion of beneficial nutrients like fiber.
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Quit smoking. Smoking damages blood vessels, lowers HDL cholesterol, and raises triglycerides. “Once you quit smoking, HDL begins to improve, along with inflammation,” notes Campbell.
Our Expert Take
Rather than asking whether a food is processed, Campbell recommends considering how it is processed and whether it provides nutrients like fiber, protein, healthy fats, vitamins, and minerals or has been stripped of nutrients and loaded with sodium, added sugars, and saturated fat. Choosing nutrient-dense processed foods like canned beans, yogurt, tofu, fortified foods, and canned salmon can add convenience while also supporting healthier cholesterol levels.
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