2026/09/06 08:23
Nutritionist Curtis said that about 30% of Chinese people over the age of 20 have abnormal blood lipids, and long-term high values may lead to the risk of chronic diseases. Emphasizing that if you want to improve blood lipids, eating the right protein can also help reverse this; diagram. (Picture taken from freepik)
[Health Channel/Comprehensive Report] One in every four people in Taiwan suffers from hyperlipidemia, which translates to nearly 5 million people suffering from the disease. Nutritionist Curtis said that about 30% of Chinese people over the age of 20 have abnormal blood lipids. Long-term high blood lipids may increase the risk of chronic diseases such as coronary heart disease and stroke. If you want to improve blood lipids, you can replace some animal proteins with plant-based proteins. For example, using tofu, edamame, and soy milk instead of ribs, chicken steaks, or chicken breasts can help reduce fat absorption in food, recycle bile acids, increase fat oxidation and production, and reduce cholesterol synthesis, thereby improving blood lipids.
Plant-based protein improves blood lipids 4
Curtis posted on his Facebook page that dyslipidemia is not impossible to improve, and diet is an important part. In terms of daily diet strategy, using plant-based protein to replace part of the animal-based protein is actually a simple trick. The National Dietary Guidelines also recommend that the priority order of protein foods is: beans > fish > eggs > meat. This is because plant-based protein is beneficial to maintaining normal blood lipids. The main scientific mechanisms behind it include the following 4 items:
Please read on...
●Reduce food fat absorption: When plant-based protein is eaten together with fat, the emulsifying and gelling properties of plant protein will coat the fat, making lipase unable to act, thus reducing fat absorption.
●Reduce bile acid recycling: Cholic acid is produced by the liver using cholesterol. When fat is eaten, the gallbladder will discharge bile acid into the intestine to help fat absorption. 95% of bile acid entering the intestine will be recycled, but ingesting plant-based protein will reduce the recycling of bile acid, and the liver will have to use cholesterol to synthesize and supplement it, thus helping to reduce cholesterol levels.
●Reduce cholesterol synthesis: The peptides produced after digestion of plant proteins can inhibit the rate-limiting enzyme for liver cholesterol synthesis (HMG-CoA reductase), thereby reducing cholesterol synthesis. In addition, it can also upregulate liver LDL receptors (LDLR) and accelerate the removal of LDL-C, commonly known as bad cholesterol, from the blood.
●Increase fat oxidation and reduce lipogenesis: Ingesting plant-based protein foods can affect the liver through the intestines, thereby improving blood lipids. Because plant-based protein foods usually contain more dietary fiber, they will be fermented by intestinal bacteria to produce short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), which ultimately promotes fatty acid beta oxidation and reduces fat synthesis.
Tips for replacing part of meat in your daily diet
Curtis pointed out that the actual implementation is not difficult, and it is recommended to replace some animal proteins with plant-based proteins. For example, replacing the ribs at lunch with tofu, replacing the chicken chops with edamame for a midnight snack, and drinking soy milk instead of chicken breast after exercise, all of which will help increase the intake of plant-based proteins.
Curtis reminded that the diagnosis rate of dyslipidemia is only about 50%, which means that many people may not know that their blood lipids are abnormal, so they should still receive regular health check-ups. If abnormal blood lipids are found, in addition to replacing part of animal protein with plant-based protein, you should also reduce fat, sugar and alcohol intake, and combine it with regular exercise and weight control. In particular, regular exercise can help increase good cholesterol, and losing 5% of your weight can also improve blood lipids, which are good ways to reverse blood lipids.
