Top ten dietary taboos for hyperlipidemia

1. Avoid eating large amounts of animal offal/animal brains for a long time. 2. Avoid eating processed red meat frequently. 3. Avoid eating high-sugar refined foods without restraint. 4. Avoid frequently drinking sweet drinks/sugary milk tea. 5. Avoid excessive use of animal oil/vegetable oil when cooking. 6. Avoid eating high-salt processed foods all year round. Avoid eating a large amount of processed foods with high trans fatty acid content for a long time. 10. Avoid eating no fat at all and only eat boiled vegetables.

Let’s talk about the drinking problem that is most easily misunderstood. I treated a retired teacher two years ago. I heard from a friend that drinking two ounces of red wine a day can soften blood vessels. After drinking for more than half a year, I checked again and found that my triglycerides had soared more than twice, and I also developed superficial gastritis in my stomach. There has been debate in the academic community about whether a small amount of alcohol is beneficial to cardiovascular disease: some small-sample cohort studies in the past few years have reported that resveratrol in a small amount of red wine has antioxidant effects. However, in recent years, global epidemiological studies with larger samples have confirmed that as long as alcohol is consumed, it will interfere with the fat metabolism of the liver. Even in small amounts, the negative impact on people with high blood lipids is far greater than the negligible antioxidant benefits. Therefore, the current clinical advice to patients is that it is safest not to drink alcohol at all, and do not use your own blood lipids as test subjects.

Let’s talk about the trans fatty acids that everyone often eats. Many people say that they never eat fat meat, so they have high blood lipids. When asked, most of them often eat things like crispy bread, milk-covered tea, crispy cookies, and non-fat instant coffee. The artificial trans fatty acids in these foods are more harmful to blood vessels than the same amount of fat. The WHO has long recommended that the daily intake of trans fatty acids should not exceed 2g. If you eat two butter sandwich breads, you will exceed the limit. I would like to mention here that some nutritionists believe that natural trans fatty acids (such as those found in small amounts in beef, mutton, and milk) have little impact on the human body. You don’t need to deliberately avoid milk and beef, as long as you avoid artificial ones.

There are also many people who immediately turned into "rabbits" after being diagnosed with high blood lipids. They didn't dare to add any oil or salt to the boiled vegetables. Instead, they fell into the trap of completely quitting fat. Last year, a 30-year-old female patient ate like this for three months. Her blood lipids did not drop much. She lost 20 pounds of hair and even had menstrual disorders. In fact, moderate amounts of unsaturated fatty acids, such as omega-3 in olive oil and deep-sea fish, can help regulate blood lipid metabolism. Complete fat loss will affect the body's normal hormone secretion, making it more difficult to regulate blood lipids. Of course, don’t overdo it. Many people think that olive oil is healthy and can be drunk. In fact, whether it is animal oil or vegetable oil, the calories are exactly the same. If you put two spoons in one meal, even olive oil will be useless. There are still niche nutrition schools that believe that the medium-chain saturated fat in coconut oil and butter has little impact on blood lipids. However, mainstream clinical guidelines still recommend that people with high blood lipids try to reduce excessive intake of saturated fat. There is no need to blindly follow the trend and buy high-priced "influencer health oils". Ordinary peanut oil, rapeseed oil, and olive oil can be eaten instead, and controlling the amount is enough.

As for the most commonly heard "cannot eat animal offal", in fact, it does not need to be killed at once. For example, some patients like to eat braised pork liver. It is perfectly fine to eat one or two occasionally to satisfy their cravings, as long as it is not three or four times a week and half a plate each time. On the contrary, processed red meat that is easily ignored by everyone - such as bacon, ham, and cured meats - contains much higher salt, saturated fat, and preservatives than fresh red meat. It also has a clear risk of cancer. Eating it once in a while can relieve your addiction. If you eat it often, it is much more harmful than eating pork liver once in a while.

Many people's misunderstanding about high blood lipids is that "as long as you don't eat oil, it will be fine." In fact, high sugar is no less harmful than oil. If you drink a 500ml cup of full-sugar pearl milk tea, it is equivalent to eating 10 cubes of sugar. The excess sugar will be directly converted into triglycerides in the body, which will raise blood lipids faster than if you eat two pieces of fatty meat. I have seen many young men who don't like eating fatty meat but have two cups of milk tea a day, and their blood lipids are higher than those of an uncle who eats fatty meat every day. There are also people who eat white rice and white noodles every day and do not eat whole grains at all. Refined carbohydrates are digested too quickly and have a high glycemic index, which will also indirectly affect blood lipid metabolism. When cooking, just grab a handful of oats and brown rice and mix them in. It does not take half a minute, and the benefits to blood lipids can be much greater.

By the way, there is also the issue of high salt that many people ignore. Many people think that salt has nothing to do with blood lipids? In fact, high salt can damage the vascular endothelium, making it easier for blood lipids to attach to the blood vessel walls to form plaques, and can also interfere with the body's metabolic cycle. For people with high blood lipids, it is best to control the daily salt intake within 5g, which is about the amount of a beer bottle cap. Eat as little as possible of pickles, pickles, and high-salt puffed foods.

After all, these taboos do not make you a complete ascetic. After all, if eating is not fun at all, you will not be able to persist. Occasionally, it’s okay to be craving for cakes or bites of bacon. As long as you don’t step on these red lines for a long time, blood lipid management is a long-term matter. You don’t have to pursue it to return to normal in a day or two. Take your time and maintain a light eating habit for a long time. It is much more effective than eating boiled vegetables for three months and then eating hot pot in revenge.