Smart Tips on Better Cholesterol Control and Healthy Heart

(Content revised 08/2021)

Small changes in your lifestyle can help to control your blood cholesterol levels and keep your heart healthy!

Here are some suggestions! Action now!

  1. Reduce Saturated Fat intake
    • Trim off animal skin and fat.
    • Replace luncheon meat or sausages with lean meat.
    • Read Ingredients list and avoid choosing products made with ‘coconut oil' or ‘palm oil'.
    • Make reading nutrition label and ingredients list a habit and choose low fat products.
  2. Reduce Trans Fat intake
    • Limit croissants, pastries such as egg tarts or chicken pie (no more than once a week).
    • Reduce frequency and portion size when having biscuits (e.g. cookies, cream-filled biscuits).
    • Read Ingredients list and avoid choosing products made with ‘hydrogenated vegetable oil*'.

    * ‘Hydrogenated vegetable oil' includes:“Hydrogenated vegetable oil”, “Shortening”, “Partially hydrogenated vegetable oil”, “Hydrogenated fat” and “Margarine”.

  3. Limit foods with high cholesterol content
    • Limit offals, e.g. beef tripe, pig intestine, beef tongue, beef tail, chicken liver, duck kidney, fish head, fish maw etc.
    • Limit fish roe, shrimp roe and crab roe.

      # For foods that are high in cholesterol but low in fat, such as chicken egg, shrimp, crab, shellfish (e.g. clam, abalone, etc.), squid, etc, they should be counted as “meat, fish, egg and alternatives” and consumed in moderation. An average adult woman should consume 5-6 taels of “meat, fish, egg and alternatives” a day. For example, 1 chicken egg should be exchanged as 1 tael of meat.

  4. Increase Unsaturated Fat (the healthier fat) intake
    • Eat fish twice a week.
    • Choose olive oil, canola oil, sunflower oil, corn oil or peanut oil for cooking.
    • Choose plain non-fried nuts (e.g. almonds, pistachio or walnuts, etc.) as healthy snacks.
  5. Increase Dietary fibre intake
    • Have 1.5 bowls cooked vegetables every day.
      • After achieving the above goal, increase by having ½ bowl more vegetables every day.
    • Have 2 servings of fruits everyday (1 serving is similar to a lady's fist).
    • Choose whole-grain foods e.g. whole meal bread, brown rice, millet and oatmeal.
    • Replace meat with dried beans (such as black eye beans, red kidney beans, etc) or bean products such as tofu or bean curd sheet
  6. While dining out,
    • Choose plain steamed rice or noodles in clear soup. Avoid fried or baked options.
    • Request gravy to be served separately and avoid mixing rice or noodles with gravy/sauce.
    • Order a plate of boiled vegetables without added oil.
    • Request ‘less rice' for portion control.
    • Order plain water or tea; request ‘no sugar' in drinks or have syrup served separately.
  7. Reduce Salt and Sugar Intake
    • Reduce using ready-made sauce such as curry paste, chu hou paste, fermented red bean curd, fermented bean curd, white sauce, soy sauce, fish sauce (Tiparos), etc.
    • Reduce salt in cooking.
    • Use more natural condiments such as ginger, spring onion, garlic, pepper, tomato, onion, lemon grass, basil, rosemary, thyme, etc.
    • Choose plain water or tea; reduce sweetened beverages like packaged drinks, soft drinks, energy drinks etc.
  8. Increase physical activity
    • Do aerobic exercise, such as brisk walking, cycling or jogging, more frequently. Accumulate at least 30 minutes of exercise every day (or 3 hours per week).
    • Increase physical activities, e.g. walking, climbing stairs.