A Mediterranean diet may help lower your cholesterol. Experts have noticed that people from the Mediterranean Sea regions had lower rates of heart disease. So they looked at some of their dietary patterns that might be heart healthy. The Mediterranean diet is rich in olive oil, nuts and seeds, vegetables, fruits, and whole grains. It limits saturated fats and red meat.

Experts have found that a Mediterranean diet can lower total cholesterol. In some studies, they put people on a Mediterranean diet or a low-fat diet. They found that total cholesterol went down more for people on the Mediterranean diet. Doctors aren’t sure if the cholesterol gets better because of the diet or because of the weight loss that results. Some studies found that LDL (“bad”) cholesterol may go down and HDL (“good”) cholesterol may go up in people on a Mediterranean diet. More study is needed to understand why this might be so.

Eat like a Greek and your heart may thank you!