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Tomatoes Whether they're fresh, sun-dried or in sauce, tomatoes are one of the best foods to lower cholesterol. Eating seven or more tomato servings per week cut risk of cardiovascular disease by 30 per cent in a study of more than 35,000 women conducted by doctors at Boston's Brigham and Women's Hospital. The heart-smart factor? It could be the antioxidant lycopene or the tomato's stellar levels of vitamin C, potassium, and fibre. Cooking tomatoes for 30 minutes or longer raises levels of available lycopene. And 1/4-cup of sun-dried tomatoes has more blood pressure-lowering potassium than a medium banana. This is how much fibre you should eat to prevent disease. Canned salmon Among omega-3-rich fatty fish, salmon is king: One serving contains about 1.8 grams of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), important omega-3s that help cut your risk of deadly out-of-rhythm heartbeats, reduce bad cholesterol, cool inflammation, and may even discourage atherosclerosis and the formation of blood clots. This easy chart will tell you which fish have the most omega-3s. Oatmeal It turns out good old-fashioned oatmeal is one of the best foods to lower cholesterol. Betaglucan, the soluble fibre found in oats, acts like a sponge, trapping cholesterol-rich bile acids in the intestines and eliminating them. The result is lower "bad" LDL because there's less cholesterol to be absorbed into the bloodstream. A big bowl of oatmeal per day (about 1-1/2 cups) could cut cholesterol an extra 2 to 3 per cent, suggests a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Don't miss these other health benefits of oatmeal. Roasted almonds Roasted almonds—with the skins—are one of the best foods to lower cholesterol. Just a fistful of almonds packs a whopping 9 grams of monounsaturated fat, helping slash bad cholesterol, while boosting the good kind. Opting for almonds instead of a doughnut, chips, or pretzels for two snacks a day could cut your "bad" cholesterol by nearly 10 per cent. Natural vitamin E in the almond's "meat" plus flavonoids in this nut's papery skin also help halt the development of artery-clogging plaque. Check out more ways to boost your heart health. Avocados In a study from Mexico's Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, women and men who ate one avocado per day for a week had a reduction in total cholesterol of 17 per cent. The amazing details: While their levels of unhealthy LDL and triglycerides fell, good HDL levels actually rose-thanks, perhaps to the avocado's high levels of "good" monounsaturated fat. This fatty fruit is also full of cholesterol-cutting beta-sitosterol. Find out the 10 worst foods for cholesterol. Olives and olive oil "Various studies have shown that olive oil or an olive oil–rich diet lowers the levels of total blood cholesterol," says Amy Riolo, author of The Mediterranean Diabetes Cookbook. In a study of people with high cholesterol, blood samples taken just two hours after subjects ate a meal with olive oil showed less potential for harmful clotting compared to subjects who ate a meal cooked with corn oil. That may explain the low incidence of heart problems in countries where olive oil is the main cooking fat. This is why you can't buy fresh olives at the supermarket. Onions No more tears—this culinary staple has been shown to lower LDL cholesterol levels, and it's likely due to a flavonoid known as quercetin, which acts as an antioxidant that helps prevent cholesterol from clogging arteries. Raw onions may not be quite as effective, though: Some research indicates that onions in cooked dishes had a more profound impact on blood cholesterol. Onion's culinary cousins, including garlic and leeks, have a similar effect. "Mediterranean lore is full of tales about leeks, most of which have recently been proved to be true," says Riolo. They can reduce bad cholesterol, increase good cholesterol, and maintain healthy blood pressure levels." Here are 23 foods that lower blood pressure. Dark chocolate The list of foods that lower cholesterol includes a sweet surprise! Dark chocolate has large amounts of flavonoids, which are antioxidant compounds that help fight inflammation and can lower LDL, says Dr. Vojdani. In one study, participants who consumed both dark chocolate and cocoa daily for four weeks watched their cholesterol drop by roughly four per cent. Learn the risk factors for heart disease—and how to control them.

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