One expert recommended eating a tropical fruit known as persimmon fruit to help reduce your cholesterol.
Registered nutritionist and founder of the Healthy Mays clinic, Mays Al-Ali, said: “Persimmon the fruit has been shown to lower cholesterol – eat this yummy orange fruit daily.
“In this study the tannin rich fibre extracted from persimmon reduced total cholesterol.”
The golden or orange-coloured fruit originates from China and north east India, and is now grown in multiple countries including the US, Spain, Australia and Israel – although the majority of it is produced in China.
It is also known to be high in beta-carotene and minerals such as sodium, magnesium, calcium and iron, all which come with their own health benefits.
What research says
The study referenced by Ms Al-Ali was published in the Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism in 2012.
As part of the research, tannin-rich fibre was extracted from persimmon fruit. A group of 40 people were split into three groups and fed different types of cookie bars – either a placebo, one with a low dose of the fibre or a high dose.
It said: “Bile acid-binding agents are known to lower blood cholesterol levels and have been clinically used for the treatment of hypercholesterolemia [high cholesterol].
“We previously showed that tannin-rich fibre from young persimmon (Diospyros kaki) fruits had bile acid-binding properties.
“In this study, we performed a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial to investigate the hypocholesterolemic effects of tannin-rich fibre in humans.
“The subjects were divided into three groups and ingested cookie bars containing zero grams, three grams, or five grams of tannin-rich fibre three times daily before meals for 12 weeks.”
Those who ate both the low-dose and high-dose bars saw a significant decrease in total cholesterol levels.
“In addition, plasma low-density lipoprotein cholesterol [‘bad’ cholesterol] levels decreased significantly in the high-dose group,” the study concluded.
“Our findings indicate that tannin-rich fibre from young persimmon fruits is a useful food material for treating hypercholesterolemia.”
Other factors that can raise your cholesterol include:
The only way to be sure if your cholesterol is too high is to be tested. Speak to your GP if you think your cholesterol could be too high.
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