Help with decreasing cholesterol in kids’ diet

[mmsmom]

My DC and I all have high cholesterol. In my case I know it is genetic because my father also had high cholesterol and despite eating an extremely strict diet for years it never improved. Once he started taking Lipitor he was fine. I started Lipitor about a year ago and my cholesterol is fine now too. If it is genetic, there is no way to control it with diet. I exercise and eat healthy 90% of the time. I do not want my kids to need to be on medication however so they take supplements recommended by the ped... fish oil and red yeast extract. DS’s last test was better and DD will have one soon. I did track their cholesterol intake for a while but neither of them was over the daily recommendation so I am sure DC’s is genetic too. DS’s ped said during teen years (for boys at least) it is not possible to get a good cholesterol reading. They still test it but said not to worry about results until hormones settle after 18.

[KpbS]

Oats. Oats reduce bad cholesterol. Oatmeal, oats in smoothies, baked oatmeal, oatmeal cookies... It all works.

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Yes to this OATMEAL

[Liziz]

I've spent the past 6 months making dietary changes to help improve cholesterol for myself (and I just had labs and they were better, so yay!). I'm going to share what I've done/found/learned, although a few of these I would not choose for my children.

*like everyone else said, oats! The most beneficial portion of the oat is the oat bran. Bob's Red Mill sells oat bran. If you're making a bowl of oatmeal, oat bran by itself isn't always great (texture wise) but it works great if you're making muffins or adding it to a smoothie or something like that. This is my kids' favorite oatmeal recipe: https://www.mexicoinmykitchen.com/oatmeal-recipe/. There's also lots of good muffin recipes that include oats -- just be careful as many are super sugar heavy too, which I try to avoid. You can also easily make super oat-heavy granola bars to get oats in (again, just watch the recipe as some have lots more fats and sugars than ideal). My kids also love oat balls -- I just mix oats (quick or old fashioned) with almond butter (the one I buy is just almonds, no other added oils) with a splash of regular or oat milk and cinnamon, then roll into balls and refrigerate. The oats soak up the moisture enough to soften and my kids love them.
*almonds or pecans - my kids like a handful of nuts (often with a few raisins or dried apple) as a snack
*increasing fish consumption - we eat salmon at least once and often twice a week. I think this switch was a dual benefit because we were eating more beef, so it's both a me eating more healthy fish, and also reducing my beef intake (prior we'd probably been having beef about once a week, now it's only once a month or so)
*more fresh veggies - the more dietary fiber the better, I've really been focusing on increasing my veggie consumption.

Here's two other things that I think helped me, but I'm not sure I'd try with my DC:
*reducing cheese consumption - we were eating a lot of cheese -- not necessarily huge chunks, so I hadn't considered it before, but I realized I was using it as a garnish or addition to almost every meal. I've made a big effort to change how I cook and use cheese more sparingly. I list this in the "hesitate w/ kids" because first, I would be really hesitant to do anything restrictive w/ a growing child, and because cheese a lot of really important nutrients (like calcium) that are so important for kids. But, if may be worth evaluating how much you're putting in meals you prepare and cutting back on those, if you're using a lot.
*drinking a glass of water w/ psyllium husk in it each day - again, I don't think this is really kid-appropriate (I honestly have no idea if it's "safe" for kids or whatnot - it just seems extreme and my kids hated it when they tried a sip and I'd never push that on them) but I am sharing b/c I do think it really helped me personally, and I figure others may be reading some of these tips for themselves, too. A lot of recommendations say to use metamucil, but I can't handle the artificial sweeteners and dyes/flavors in it, so I just buy plain ground psyllium husk instead (which is the fiber part of metamucil). I don't love the taste at all, but if I mix it with ice cold water it doesn't bother me.

[fauve01]

My dd just had her annual physical and was diagnosed with unusually high cholesterol. Both her HDL and her LDL are high. It’s odd because she dances at least 10 hours per week and she’s active in scouting. She also enjoys riding her bike. Her weight is healthy. She’s all muscle because of the dancing but isn’t skinny. She loves fresh fruit but also eats plenty of proteins and carbs. Dh had high cholesterol at one point and was on medication for it. Her Ped and I think her high cholesterol might be hereditary. Her Ped just told me that with her LDL level at 136, they will refer us to a dietician to see if we can make some changes to get her cholesterol down naturally before suggesting medication. MyChart had a basic information sheet attached recommending some dietary changes. She already does everything on the sheet.

I’m looking for healthy eating suggestions that will lower her cholesterol. I guess I’m hoping you moms have already got some suggestions a little more sophisticated than what is being suggested (add some fish to her diet, teach portion control, limit sugary juice, reduce sodium intake, encourage water intake, encourage well-balanced meals, etc.). We already do all of this. Any ideas?

Cut any added sugar. There are studies that show that sugar affects cholesterol. Here is one article i found, but if you google, you will find lots. ETA: If you start reading labels you will see added sugar is in EVERYTHING--ketchup, dressings, chocolate, crackers, etc.
https://www.webmd.com/heart-disease/...od-cholesterol

My own doctor told me to also cut saturated fats (including many cheeses) when we were talking about how to lower my cholesterol.

[JustMe]

Cut any added sugar. There are studies that show that sugar affects cholesterol. Here is one article i found, but if you google, you will find lots.
https://www.webmd.com/heart-disease/...od-cholesterol

My own doctor told me to also cut saturated fats (including many cheeses) when we were talking about how to lower my cholesterol.

Was just coming to comment about sugar. Some of the older thinking about fats only being an issue is being seriously questioned. I have genetic high cholesterol and find that cutting sugar out does more than anything. Agree with eating oats and avoiding saturated fats. Also in question is the idea of if "good fats" are helpful or harmful. Good fats being things like avocados, walnuts etc. I find that at least in moderation they help rather than hurt.

My personal experience tells me that its not really as one size fits all as it is sometimes presented. Certainly, saturated fats and sugar are not indicated but I see a lot of variation amongst people regarding everything else.

I would also ask the doctor to see if flax seed is indicated. I take 2TB of flaxseed/day and it does help. Not sure about kids, though.

Finally, in my experience genetic high cholesterol really does mean genetic; you can do your best to improve with diet, but it may not go down enough despite your best efforts. Not trying to be discouraging, just trying to say do not blame yourself and make sure your dd does not blame herself. My diet is really good, and my cholesterol still runs high. Will be working with my dr soon to decide next steps.

I also agree with making changes without stressing out too much about it.

[Kestrel]

I was reading something, and I have to come share!

the book is Fearless Feeding: How to Raise Healthy Eaters From High Chair to High School by Maryann Jacobsen and Jill Castle The version I'm reading in 2013.

"Add foods to your teen's diet the lower cholesterol naturally: oats; barley; beans; eggplant; okra; nuts; vegetable oils; strawberries; citrus fruits; apples; grapes; soy; fatty fish; and foods fortified with sterols and stanols" ...

It sounds like you are doing a good job of avoiding bad stuff; but you can always add more good things!

[jgenie]

I was reading something, and I have to come share!

the book is Fearless Feeding: How to Raise Healthy Eaters From High Chair to High School by Maryann Jacobsen and Jill Castle The version I'm reading in 2013.

"Add foods to your teen's diet the lower cholesterol naturally: oats; barley; beans; eggplant; okra; nuts; vegetable oils; strawberries; citrus fruits; apples; grapes; soy; fatty fish; and foods fortified with sterols and stanols" ...

It sounds like you are doing a good job of avoiding bad stuff; but you can always add more good things!

I’ll have to look for this book. I heard about the author here I think many years ago. Her minestrone soup has been a go to here since my teens were toddlers. So funny to see her name come up again.