• Limit dietary cholesterol. Your daily limit for dietary cholesterol is 300 milligrams, or less than 200 milligrams if you have heart disease. To accomplish this goal, limit or avoid concentrated sources such as organ meats, egg yolks and whole-milk products.

  • Eat foods with soluble fiber. As part of a low-fat diet, soluble fiber can help lower your total blood cholesterol level. Foods high in soluble fiber include oat bran, oatmeal, beans, peas, rice bran, barley, citrus fruits, strawberries and apple pulp.

  • Eat more fish. Some fish — particularly fatty types prevalent in cold water, such as salmon, mackerel and herring — contain high amounts of a unique type of polyunsaturated fat called omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3s may lower your level of triglycerides. However, pregnant women, women who are breast-feeding and women who plan to become pregnant in the next several years, and young children should not eat king mackerel, shark, swordfish or tilefish. They should also limit their weekly intake of albacore tuna and locally caught fish, according to the Food and Drug Administration. Salmon, canned light tuna, pollock, shrimp and catfish are generally low in mercury.

• Consider soy products. Soy compounds called isoflavones act like human hormones that regulate cholesterol levels. Eating soy proteins can reduce your levels of total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and triglycerides. Eating soy may also raise your level of HDL cholesterol, which may protect you against heart disease.

Drink alcohol in moderation, if at all. Moderate consumption of alcohol may raise your level of HDL cholesterol. The best advice is to drink in moderation, if you drink at all. Limit alcohol to one drink daily if you're a woman or to no more than two drinks daily if you're a man. If you're a nondrinker, don't start drinking alcohol. Don't drink alcohol if you have a high level of triglycerides.

• Reduce sugar intake. This is a way of lowering triglyceride levels. Ideally, your triglyceride levels should be lower than 150 mg/dL

Exercising:Being overweight promotes a high total cholesterol level. Losing weight improves your cholesterol levels. Set up an exercise program to lose weight using these guidelines and your doctor's advice:

• Choose an aerobic activity. Get involved in activities such as brisk walking, jogging, bicycling or cross-country skiing.

  • Build up the time and frequency of exercising. Gradually work up to exercising for 30 minutes to 45 minutes at least three times a week. If you're overweight or have been inactive for many years, take several months to work up gradually to this level. The higher the level of your activity, the greater your rate of weight loss.

  • Stick with your exercise program. Schedule a regular time for exercise. Make exercise fun. If it's not enjoyable, you may not feel like exercising regularly year in, year out. Find a friend or join an exercise group to keep you motivated and committed to exercise. Or take up an activity that keeps you active.

Not smoking: If you smoke, stop. If you don't smoke, don't start. Cigarette smoking damages the walls of your blood vessels, making them prone to accumulating fatty deposits. If you stop smoking, your HDL cholesterol may return to its former level.