Cholesterol has been given somewhat of a bad name, often vilified and associated with heart disease, which understandably raises alarm bells. However, it's crucial to understand that cholesterol isn't all bad – in fact, it's indispensable for numerous bodily functions that are vital for survival. Your body relies on cholesterol for critical tasks such as hormone production and cell construction.

It plays an essential role in digestion and even aids in the creation of vitamin D when your skin is exposed to sunlight. And it turns out, almost every single cell in your body requires cholesterol to function and keep you ticking over. Cholesterol itself is a fatty substance, waxy and yellowish in appearance. Despite frequently being discussed in relation to dietary sources like red meat, dairy, and eggs, the main bulk of cholesterol is actually produced internally by your body.  

The substance can be divided into two main types: ‘good’ and ‘bad’. There are two kinds of lipoproteins that transport cholesterol around the body: low-density lipoprotein (LDL), often referred to as ‘bad’ cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL), known as ‘good’ cholesterol.

Health expert Dr Sarah Berry, a top mind at the science and nutrition company Zoe, explains, as reported by SurreyLive: ”The right diet [can] improve your cholesterol as much as medication."

But which food item do experts unanimously suggest avoiding to stave off heightened "bad" cholesterol? The main culprit suggested is processed meats.

Processed meats tend to be fatter and are notorious for their saturated fat content, which can skyrocket cholesterol levels, particularly the low-density lipoprotein (LDL) type, according to Carly Hart, a US-based registered dietitian, in her dialogue with Eating Well.

These types of meats are also notorious for their high sodium content, which not only extends shelf life and enhances flavour but also significantly raises the risk of hypertension. 

Dr Berry previously explained that ”following a healthy fat diet" could surprisingly lead to an improvement in cholesterol. Therefore, following a diet which is high in carbs "could actually make your cholesterol worse".

She said: "The single most potent effect that we can have is by increasing our dietary fat intake to increase the amount of polyunsaturated fatty acids that we include in our diet.”

Dr Berry further explained that it's all about consuming the right types of fat. She explained: "I think that people should follow a moderate-fat diet; I don't think people should go to a low-fat diet.

“I think what's really important to say is it has to be from the right types of fat. It has to be from poly- and monounsaturated fat sources, not from saturated fat sources.”

The World Health Organisation defines processed meat as "meat that has been transformed through salting, curing, fermentation, smoking, or other processes to enhance flavour or improve preservation". According to WHO, such meats typically include pork or beef but can also encompass a variety of other meats, poultry, offal, or even by-products like blood.