There are few different varieties of Slim Fast and you want to look for Slim Fast Optima. This variety has more fiber in than the other varieties and is a better option. You want to make sure that you have enough fiber in your diet. There are two different types of fiber - soluble and insoluble. It's the soluble fiber that can help. Soluble fiber can be found in oatmeal, bran, whole grains. However, when you are looking for whole grain breads and pastas remember to look at the label closely. Those that are labeled 100% whole grain and 100% whole wheat are the ones you want to choose. If the label just says whole grains, whole wheat or mixed grains, you won't be getting the benefits that you want. Try to get about 32 grams of fiber in your daily diet. If your diet is normally low in fiber than you want to increase your fiber intake slowly and increase the amount of water that you drink, otherwise you can get constipated. You can also look into nutritional supplements such as flush free niacin and cinnamon. Although nothing has been proven yet, they do show some promise in lowering cholesterol levels so be on the lookout for news articles on them. Right now if you are using full fat dairy products you should switch over to low fat or non-fat. If on the other hand you are already using low fat products opt for the non-fat instead. When you are grocery shopping take the time to read labels. It's amazing how many products that you would never suspect are high in cholesterol. Most cakes, cookies and coffee creamer can be very high, yet a product that is very similar may not have any fat or cholesterol at all. So it's wise to learn to read each label. It can take 6 months to start to see your numbers go down, so this is something that you want to take into consideration. Don't think that if you are on a low fat diet for a week or two before your next check up you'll see a difference - this is long term. You'll find that after a while products that are high in fat and cholesterol won't appeal to you and when you have them you won't like the texture or filmy feeling on your tongue, so little by little craving for fatty food will disappear.