The two common breakfast foods you can eat more of to lower cholesterol

Cholesterol is a waxy, fatty substance transported in the blood by lipoproteins, essential for building cell membranes and hormones. There are two main types: 'good' HDL high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, which carries excess cholesterol back to the liver for removal, and 'bad' LDL (low-density lipoprotein) cholesterol, which can deposit in the artery walls of the when there's too much of it.

usually has no symptoms and is only detected by a blood test. However, the warns that too much cholesterol can block your blood vessels, which or a . A blood test is used to determine cholesterol, and is often offered to people with high blood pressure. As for how to treat it, et may be the first thing you think about when it comes to .

The British Heart Foundation advocates for getting the right types of fats in your diet rather than eliminating all fats, and the same goes for other food groups like carbohydrates.

Oats, while technically high in carbohydrates, have long been recognised as a heart-healthy whole grain and substantial research shows that their soluble fibre can actually lower bad cholesterol.

The BHF notes: "Oats and barley contain a type of soluble fibre called beta-glucans. This forms a gel in the gut which helps to stop cholesterol from being absorbed into the body."

For scale, a bowl of porridge made with 40g of oats will provide around 1.4g of beta-glucans. So, the BHF suggests aiming for two to three portions of oat or barley foods a day.

A small study published in 1963 compared the effects of bread containing rolled oats with standard bread. It was determined that cholesterol levels dropped for participants who ate the oat bread for three weeks. However, cholesterol levels rose again once the participants stopped eating it.

Other studies are varied. One, which included 83 participants, found that consuming 3g of oat beta-glucan each day for eight weeks lowered LDL cholesterol levels by more than 15%.

However, a review of 58 studies concluded that an average daily dosage of 3.5 g reduced LDL cholesterol by an average of 4.2%.

It is easy to incorporate oats and barley into more than just your breakfast.

Try having porridge or muesli made with oats for breakfast, then branch out to substitute oatcakes instead of wheat-based crackers at lunch or as a snack.

The BHF also suggests adding pearl barley instead of rice in soups and risotto.

Replace rice with steel-cut oats for a nourishing dinner. Gradually add liquid to oats over heat until just cooked. Season with fresh herbs, sundried tomatoes, mushrooms, or a dash of Marmite to balance out oats' natural sweetness.