A friend recently recommended I start consuming carob to lower cholesterol.  I have done a bit of reading on carob and notice that it is also used to control diarrhea.  Is carob constipating?

Also, from what I have read, you can buy it in powder form or in chips.  What do most people prefer and how do you consume it?  I did pull up a thread on carob, posted by Chloe, but no one talked about the cholesterol lowering benefits.

Has anyone lowered their cholesterol with carob?

Thanks!

I've never needed to lower my cholesterol, but I have used carob just because it tastes good.

I have yet to find any carob chips that were compliant. Most contain dairy and/or non-compliant oils. All seem to be sweetened with grain-based sweeteners, usually barley malt, not pure sugar. This is good if you want to avoid refined sugar, but bad if you need to avoid gluten.

Carob powder is just 100% pure carob. You can use it like cocoa powder in any recipe, although it doesn't dissolve into hot water as easily as cocoa powder does. Carob is also naturally sweeter, so you may want to reduce the sweetners called for in recipes using chocolate.

If you don't mind your hot brown beverage to have a slightly  chalky texture, you can just stir it into hot water, add molasses and maybe some compliant "milk" and you've got a tasty "hot cocoa" substitute. Or skip the sweetener altogether since carob is naturally a bit sweet. If you want to get fancier, you can make carob syrup by cooking it with water and a compliant sweetener, sitrring constantly for about 10 minutes, and then the resulting syrup dissolves easily and completely into hot or cold water or milk. I haven't done that in years so I can't help with the proportions, but you can easily find recipes for chocolate syrup online, and sub carob for the cocoa. I've never tried making carob syrup with just carob and water, so I don't know if that would work.

I buy carob powder.  It's really good to put in my oatmeal and rice.  Carob chips usually have all kinds of other junk in them, so I've never eaten them.  Carob powder is really good on it's own.

I have used carob powder to make the Walnut Carob Brownies in the swami cookbook.  They are made with quinoa flour.  Very Yummy and addictive.  

I think a mashed banana with carob is delicious! I used to use carob when my children were at home and they loved it too. I can have chocolate now as a neutral sometimes.

Quoted from Kim

I have used carob powder to make the Walnut Carob Brownies in the swami cookbook.  They are made with quinoa flour.  Very Yummy and addictive.  

Haha!  I probably should watch out for those brownies, since the studies conducted where people lowered their cholesterol ate the carob three times a day!  

I just had blood work done and my cholesterol is usually high....Didn't get back results yet....I eat carob every day so I'll be interested to know if it impacted my total number. I make carob candy which I made up....coconut oil, carob powder, agave and a little vanilla or some kind of flavor extract.  Will let you know if cholesterol went down.  I do know that fish oil gives me really high HDL (mid 90s) and I take cod liver oil in the AM (1 tsp) and one fish oil capsule with dinner.....but overall, my cholesterol is on the high side...like 230...Still, with high HDL, I've been told not to worry.

Carob chips have palm kernal and palm oil but it's sweetened with beet
sugar....Not sure how closely related palm oil is to coconut oil. THe company I buy my carob powder
from (Chatfields) makes both.

My favorite carob powder is this:  (roasted carob powder)
http://www.chatfieldsbrand.com/product/carob-powder

I have the same deal as you.  High cholesterol, but high HDL's. So my ratio is always good.  So, my doctor tells me not to worry.

One supplement he gave me for High Cholesterol is called Policosinol.  I guess that works too.   But I'm not into taking drugs for it.  I don't think my liver would like it.  It's already sluggish.  

I also have high cholesterol but good ratios.  My total is 257.  My triglycerides are good too.  However, I would love to get my LDL down and get the total down as well.  I was able to come off the hydrocholorothiazide (HCTZ) once I got my blood pressure down through exercise.  I found out that HCTZ can negatively affect cholesterol metabolism, so I am also hoping my cholesterol comes down now that I am off the meds.

I just had some advanced cholesterol testing done and am looking forward to receiving those results.

I'm an anomoly.  My BP is too low.  

I mix a teaspoonful of carob powder with a spoonful or two of almond butter (sometimes with tahini).

It is my dessert!  

That sounds good!  Really good.  Except I can't have tahini.  But almond butter sometimes has a sweetness to it.

page 306 in your encyclopedia has great advice and protocols to follow

Quoted from Lola

page 306 in your encyclopedia has great advice and protocols to follow

Thanks, Lola.  I have the encyclopedia and will check it out!

Quoted from JJR

That sounds good!  Really good.  Except I can't have tahini.  But almond butter sometimes has a sweetness to it.

Well, my tastebuds say Yes. Does the almond butter sweetness put you off? Almonds are naturally sweet, there's also always some bitterness in them. A sheer delight. Carobs are very sweet of course.

I have carob powder in the morning with my whey protein shake.  It makes it taste better like a chocolate shake.

Quoted from yaeli

Well, my tastebuds say Yes. Does the almond butter sweetness put you off? Almonds are naturally sweet, there's also always some bitterness in them. A sheer delight. Carobs are very sweet of course.

No, I like it!

Yesterday, I had a heaping teaspoon of dark roast carob powder with boiling hot water.  It was really good!  I plan to drink this at least once a day  

Patty, I add carob powder to my hot green tea.  I also add about 1/4 tsp of ghee, a pinch of sea salt and sometimes cinnamon.

Found some interesting rooibos tea at WFs last weekend.  It's from Rebublic of Tea and it's rooibos, carob, cocoa kernals peppermint leaves, sweet blackberry leaves (think that might be an avoid, the fruit is, not sure about the leaves) and vanilla.  It's delicious!

Quoted from Jane

Found some interesting rooibos tea at WFs last weekend.  It's from Rebublic of Tea and it's rooibos, carob, cocoa kernals peppermint leaves, sweet blackberry leaves (think that might be an avoid, the fruit is, not sure about the leaves) and vanilla.  It's delicious!

That sounds delicious, Jane.  Thanks for sharing that.  Yesterday I had a tsp of dark roast carob powder with boiling water and it was delicious!  No need for sweeteners or other flavors.  This will be my new drink after my morning green tea or I may go back to yerba mate and add it to that.

Quoted from SquarePeg

Patty, I add carob powder to my hot green tea.  I also add about 1/4 tsp of ghee, a pinch of sea salt and sometimes cinnamon.

That sounds great! I will give it a try!