Plant Sterols

People at risk of heart disease, especially those with high blood cholesterol levels may benefit from plant sterols to lower their total and LDL (“bad”) cholesterol levels reducing their risk of heart disease and stroke.
 
What are plant sterols?

Plant sterols occur naturally in all plants in small amounts including:
·        Nuts, seeds and legumes
·        Breads and cereals
·        Fruits and vegetables (trace amounts only)
 
Plant sterols have been shown to lower blood cholesterol levels by an average of 10%, depending on how much you eat.  This is because they block the body’s ability to absorb cholesterol, leading to lower levels of cholesterol in the blood.

How can I get plant sterols?

You can get plant sterols by eating the foods listed above.  But if you have high cholesterol and want to lower it, you will need 2-3g of plant sterols a day which is very hard to get from these sources alone. 

Margarine spreads with added plant sterols are available in your supermarket.  These margarine spreads can be used to get the right amount of plant sterols by having 1-1.5 tablespoons a day, which is about as much as you would spread on 3-4 slices of bread or you can add it to your food while cooking or at the table.  Above this amount won’t lower your cholesterol any more and less than this amount will have a smaller result.

Plant sterol margarine spreads are not recommended for infants, children or lactating women unless under medical supervision.

Lowering your cholesterol

Using plant sterol enriched margarine spreads will help to lower your cholesterol but only if you have a healthy eating pattern.  This means eating a wide variety of foods, low in saturated fats, including wholegrain breads and cereals, rice pasta, vegetables, fruits, legumes (dried peas, dried beans and lentils), lean meats, poultry and fish, reduced fat dairy products and polyunsaturated or monounsaturated oils and margarine spreads. 
 
Doing at least 30 minutes of regular physical activity on most days of the week is also important to lower blood cholesterol levels.  Also, if you take medication to lower your cholesterol it is important that you continue to take your medications, but discuss it with your doctor.

 
Before you start using plant sterol margarine spreads, see an Accredited Practising Dietitian to get a healthy eating plan that is tailored to meet your individual needs and to help lower your blood cholesterol levels.