It’s never been easier to eat your way to an alarmingly high cholesterol level. The typical American diet is overflowing with saturated and trans fat—two things that are known to increase levels of “bad” LDL cholesterol. Pair that with lack of exercise and excess weigh and you have a recipe for disaster.

Thankfully, you can also eat your way out of high cholesterol just by changing the foods you put in your body. Take a look at what you should be adding to your plate.

1. Fill Up on Fiber
Adding more soluble fiber to your diet is proven to reduce cholesterol levels. It binds toxins in the gut and absorbs cholesterol being released in the bile so it is carried out the body instead of being reabsorbed.

An easy first step to improving your cholesterol is having a bowl of oatmeal or cold oat-based cereal for breakfast. It gives you 1 to 2 grams of soluble fiber. Add a banana or some strawberries for another half-gram. Current nutrition guidelines recommend getting 20 to 35 grams of fiber a day, with at least 5 to 10 grams coming from soluble fiber. (The average American gets about half that amount.)

Another option is to ingest more soluble fiber through herbal supplements. Fenugreek, chickweed, and activated charcoal are all effective ingredients for people looking to regulate their cholesterol.

2. Eat More Fat
It may seem counterintuitive, but eating more of the right fats can actually help lower cholesterol. These kinds of fats can be found in the following:

  • Fish: Eating fish two or three times a week can lower LDL in two ways: by replacing meat, which has LDL-boosting saturated fats, and by delivering LDL-lowering omega-3 fats. Omega-3s reduce triglycerides in the bloodstream and also protect the heart by helping prevent the onset of abnormal heart rhythms.
  • Olive Oil: Consuming a lot of olive oil will actually help to lower cholesterol because more bile has to be produced to break down the fats. Essential fatty acids in flax seed oil and omega-3 EFAs

While eating the wrong foods is the case of high cholesterol, eating the right foods is the cure. With a few changes, you can achieve dramatic changes in your levels and be well on your way to a healthier heart.