CHOLESTEROL

It’s fact that cholesterol abnormalities in blood fat levels is a huge contributing factor to coronary heart disease. Cholesterol and triglycerides are two main fats in the blood. Both fats are consumed in the diet but what is not generally known is that cholesterol is also made up naturally in most of the tissues in the body, the exception being in tissues in the brain.

Do you know that a person’s naturally produces 2000 mg of cholesterol per day and normally consumes within their diet between 200 and 800 mg per day. So, the common belief that all dietary cholesterol is bad for you is MYTH.

Actually cholesterol is vital for:

• 1. Vitamin D synthesis
• 2. Cell membrane structure
• 3. Steroid hormone production
• 4. Bile formation

Fats are passed into the liver from the intestines, where they are then metabolized. This process of clearing the fats can take several hours. If for any reason the cholesterol levels remain high, the excess may deposit on the lining of the arteries causing atheroma, which narrows the arteries causing them to fur up or harden, which leads to atherosclerosis, the fore runner to heart disease.

Good Cholesterol vs Bad Cholesterol

When your doctor told you to stay away from foods with too much cholesterol, he might not have explained the difference between good cholesterol and bad cholesterol.  Here are a few pointers, to help you tell the difference.

First of all the basic difference is that LDL cholesterol is bad, and HDL cholesterol is good.  Both are used by the body to produce things that are needed to live: hormones, bile salts, and vitamin D, to name a few.  But the main difference is LDL’s tendency to stick to the walls of your arteries as it travels through your bloodstream.  As more and more of it clings to the walls, your blood has a harder and harder time pumping through ever increasingly crowded arteries.  This is why high cholesterol and high blood pressure are so closely linked.  When a chunk of LDL cholesterol breaks off and lodges itself someplace downstream, that’s a stroke, which is something you want to avoid.

HDL Cholesterol is the good stuff, for a number of reasons.  First of all, it carries out the basic functions of cholesterol in your body, without any of the negative side effects.  But it also helps fight the bad cholesterol, which for you, is a good thing.  HDL cholesterol can scrub your arterial walls, and reduce the LDL cholesterol that is stuck to the sides.  Eating the right fibers is also a great way to do this.  Physical activity is also a great way to raise your HDL levels.

In addition to eating all the right foods to reduce cholesterol, make sure you have your HDL cholesterol levels monitored as well.  An HDL level of lower than 40mg/dL can increase the risk of heart disease or stroke, so make sure your eating enough Omega-3, soluble fiber, fruits, vegetables, and nuts. 

A full lipid profile measures:

• Total cholesterol - the total amount of cholesterol in your blood.
• HDL ("good") cholesterol is important because it helps remove bad cholesterol from the blood.
• LDL ("bad") cholesterol - main cause of buildup and blockage in your arteries.
• Triglyerides - a type of fat in the blood that may contribute to the hardening of arteries, making it harder for blood to flow.