The breakfast superfood that can slash 'bad' cholesterol levels if eaten daily

A study found that a certain tasty fruit could help remove 'bad' cholesterol from the body and lower your risk of cardiovascular disease

Experts have shared a tasty fruit that could help slash cholesterol levels if eaten daily. According to a study, avocados - which are a popular breakfast food in the UK, and are actually a fruit not a vegetable - could aid in removing “bad” cholesterol from your body.

Having high cholesterol means you have too much of a fatty substance known as cholesterol in your body. Over time this can build up in the blood vessels, leading them to become blocked and even hardened.

This raises the risk of serious medical issues such as heart disease and stroke as blood flow becomes limited to parts of the body. But this study revealed that avocados are high in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, which works to remove “bad” cholesterol from your blood.

The research, which was published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, found that eating an avocado per day for six months led to a decrease in dangerous cholesterol levels. And it had these results without causing the build-up of fat around the body, such as in the liver or belly, Express.co.uk reports.

Study author Professor Penny Kris-Etherton, of Penn State University in the US, explained: "While the avocados did not affect belly fat or weight gain, the study still provides evidence that avocados can be a beneficial addition to a well-balanced diet.

"Incorporating an avocado per day in this study did not cause weight gain and also caused a slight decrease in low-density cholesterol [‘bad’ cholesterol], which are all important findings for better health."

As part of the trial 923 participants were split into two groups and instructed either to eat an avocado every day or continue their usual diet and told to limit their avocado consumption to less than two a month. Their cholesterol levels were measured through the testing period.

Those who consumed the avocados had less low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Kristina Petersen, assistant professor of nutritional sciences at Texas Tech University, said the study also found that eating avocados daily improved the overall quality of the participants' diets by eight points on a 100-point scale.

"Adherence to the dietary guidelines for Americans is generally poor in the US, and our findings suggest that eating an avocado per day can substantially increase overall diet quality," she said. "This is important because we know a higher diet quality is associated with lower risk of several diseases including heart disease, type 2 diabetes and some cancers."

As well as their potential cholesterol-lowering properties, avocados are also packed with nutrients including folate, magnesium and phosphorus. These vitamins and minerals are vital for many functions in the body, and are overall linked to wellbeing.

In order to lower cholesterol, the NHS advises people to try to eat fewer meat pies, sausages and fatty meat. It also recommends against excessive butter, lard and ghee, as well as cream and hard cheese.

Other foods that you might want to cut out include:

• Cakes
• Biscuits
• Food containing coconut oil
• Palm oil

Exercising more will also help. You should aim to do at least 150 minutes of exercise per week, explains the NHS.