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This versatile, pantry-friendly food can help slash “bad” cholesterol.

Reviewed by Dietitian Mandy Enright, M.S., RDN, RYT

Key Points

• Our No. 1 snack for helping to lower cholesterol levels is Oat Energy Balls.
• Energy balls made with oats contain soluble fiber to reduce LDL cholesterol.
• Ingredients like nut butters and dried fruits also have cholesterol-lowering benefits.

Cholesterol levels can get a little confusing. First there are “good” and “bad” types of cholesterol, and they’re supposed to be in certain ranges. Not to mention, certain foods can help and hurt when trying to lower your cholesterol. Diet has a huge influence on your cholesterol levels, as well as genetics and physical activity. So what’s the best snack to eat to help lower your cholesterol—Oat Energy Balls.

Here we tell you why energy balls with oats are the perfect snack to keep your cholesterol level in a healthy range and what those cholesterol numbers mean.

Why Oat Energy Balls Are a Healthy Snack

Here at EatingWellwe love oat energy balls for a host of reasons. They’re similar to granola bars but super easy to make (no baking required) and are perfect for grab-and-go. They can be made vegan, high-protein, gluten-free or with any flavor additions you choose.

Plus, they rely on nutritious budget-friendly ingredients like oats, dried fruit, nut butter and more for endless flavor combinations. Simply make a batch on Sunday night and you’ll have a nutritious snack at the ready for the whole week.

How Oats Benefit Cholesterol

Having a grasp on what your cholesterol levels mean can be important for your heart health, so it’s worth a brief explanation. In short, cholesterol is a waxy substance that is found in every cell in your body. Our body makes all of the cholesterol we need, but we can also get it from food (though eating cholesterol doesn’t directly make your cholesterol go up).

There are two types of cholesterol: low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL). Too much LDL cholesterol can sometimes get stuck in our arteries, turning to plaque. The HDL cholesterol picks up excess LDL cholesterol and brings it back to the liver where it can be removed from the body. Having high total cholesterol (over 240 mg/dL) can mean you either have too much LDL cholesterol in your blood, not enough HDL cholesterol to clean it up or a combination of the two.

One reason oats are the best cholesterol-lowering food is because they are high in soluble fiber, particularly a type of soluble fiber called beta-glucan. Soluble fibers form a gel in the digestive tract and bind to bile acids, thus helping to lower cholesterol through excretion. They also help direct excess cholesterol to the liver and help produce short-chain fatty acids to influence cholesterol production.

Other Foods to Lower Cholesterol

Luckily for us, there are several foods that can help lower cholesterol—whole grains, particularly oats, fall into this category. Here’s a list of other foods to add to your week to help lower cholesterol levels:

• Barley
• Apples
• Beans
• Avocado
• Kimchi

Our Expert Take

Snacking is an important part of the day and if you have high cholesterol levels, you should choose a snack that can benefit your energy and help reduce cholesterol levels. Oat Energy Balls are our expert-backed pick for a snack that contains cholesterol-lowering beta-glucan, a soluble fiber. This type of fiber is also found in other healthy foods, such as apples, barley and beans.