If you're reading this I am guessing you have been to your Doctor (GP) and been told that your cholesterol level is too high and that you need to get it back down to healthy levels. This hub aims to give you plenty of information in order to enable you to do just that and quickly get your cholesterol level back to within safe limits.
Before we start it is important you know what levels are normal so that you know what you should be aiming for, and how far you have to go to achieve your goal. Cholesterol levels are measured in milligrams (mg) of cholesterol per deciliter (dL) of blood in the United States and some other countries. Canada and most European countries measure cholesterol in millimoles (mmol) per liter (L) of blood. Consider these guidelines when you get your cholesterol test results back to see if your cholesterol falls in optimal levels.
UK.
Below 5 mmol/L healthy total cholesterol
5 to 6,5 mmol/L slightly elevated total cholesterol
6,5 to 8 mmol/L elevated total cholesterol
Above 8 mmol/L strongly elevated total cholesterol
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US.
Below 180 - your blood cholesterol level is ideal
180-199 - your blood cholesterol level is acceptable
200-219 - your blood cholesterol level is borderline high
220 or higher - your blood cholesterol level is too high
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Please be aware that not all cholesterol is bad, and actually your body requires cholesterol in order to perform many essential functions such as helping your body to make Vitamin D, keeping water from leaving your body too fast, providing the basis of important hormones produced in your adrenal glands, ovaries and testes and helping your cells to build their protective membranes, protecting them from various substances. Very low cholesterol can actually produce serious health problems also.
Good and Bad Cholesterol
- HDL cholesterol keeps cholesterol in a liquid state liquid and moves it safely through the body. It hangs on to the cholesterol, not letting it get loose and attach itself to your artery walls. In fact, HDL can grab on to and move cholesterol already stuck to your artery walls. This is why HDL cholesterol is often called "good" cholesterol.
- LDL cholesterol is not beneficial. Oxidized LDL cholesterol can damage artery walls and set the stage for mineral and fat deposits which lead to arterial blockages.
Therefore achieving normal cholesterol levels by reducing your LDL cholesterol and increasing your HDL cholesterol is obviously the recommended way to keep your arteries healthy.
Good and Bad Cholesterol
- HDL cholesterol keeps cholesterol in a liquid state liquid and moves it safely through the body. It hangs on to the cholesterol, not letting it get loose and attach itself to your artery walls. In fact, HDL can grab on to and move cholesterol already stuck to your artery walls. This is why HDL cholesterol is often called "good" cholesterol.
- LDL cholesterol is not beneficial. Oxidized LDL cholesterol can damage artery walls and set the stage for mineral and fat deposits which lead to arterial blockages.
Therefore achieving normal cholesterol levels by reducing your LDL cholesterol and increasing your HDL cholesterol is obviously the recommended way to keep your arteries healthy.
How To Lower Your Cholesterol Levels Through Diet.
The obvious way to lower your Cholesterol levels is through your diet, which is going to mean cutting out completely, or at least cutting down, on certain types of food, whilst at the same time consuming more of other healthier foods. The majority of cholesterol in the body is produced by the liver from certain nutrients and saturated fats. The liver makes all the cholesterol the body needs on its own. Because all animals can make their own cholesterol, additional cholesterol comes from eating animals and animal products. These products include meats, eggs,milk and foodstuffs made from them. This cholesterol is absorbed through the intestines and acts as a supplement to the cholesterol the liver produces. A diet high in saturated fat also increases cholesterol production. Therefore, consuming less dietary cholesterol and fats helps blood cholesterol levels in the body stay within a healthy range.
Foods to Avoid.
Beef
Pork
Shrimp
Alcohol
Chocolate
Butter
Whole Milk
Cheese
Egg Yolks
Fried Foods
Cookies
Ice Cream
Margarine
White Bread
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Foods to Eat More Of.
Avocados
Oatmeal (Porridge)
Cranberry Juice
Pomegranate Juice
Pulses
Green and Black Teas
Vegetables (ideally steamed)
Fruit
Whole Grains
Raw Carrot Sticks (for healthy snacks)
Walnuts
Almonds
Kidney Beans
Vegetable Oil
Pasta
Brussels Sprouts
Olive Oil
Tofu
Oat Bran
Wholemeal Bread
Peanut Oil or Low Fat Peanut Butter
Cottonseed Oil
Fish (such as salmon, tuna, lake trout, herring and mackerel, preferably baked or broiled rather than sauteed or deep-fried).
How To Lower Your Cholesterol Levels Through Exercise.
Whether you are overweight or not exercise can be beneficial in lowering your cholesterol levels. In fact it can help raise the level of the HDL (good cholesterol). Exercise stimulates enzymes that help move LDL from the blood (and blood-vessel walls) to the liver. From the liver the cholesterol is converted into bile (for digestion) or excreted. The more you exercise, the more LDL your body expels. Exercise increases the size of the protein particles that carry cholesterol through the blood. (The combination of protein particles and cholesterol are called "lipoproteins;" it's the LDLs that have been linked to heart disease). Small protein particles are more dangerous because they can squeeze into the linings of the heart and blood vessels where they will stick, so by enlarging these protein particles the health risks are reduced.
Vigorous exercise is more beneficial as it actually does help to lower the Cholesterol levels but even moderate exercise is useful as it appears to prevent cholesterol levels from rising.
Ideal Exercise Includes:
Brisk Walks
Swimming
Bike Riding
Take Up a Sport
Jogging
Using Exercise Machines
Dancing
Skipping
Rowing
How To Lower Your Cholesterol Levels With Drugs.
If all your dietary changes and increased exercise have failed to reduce your cholesterol level sufficiently after about six months your Doctor may well look at putting on to one of the many cholesterol lowering drugs now available on the market. These work by either reducing the amount of cholesterol your body absorbs from your food, or by reducing the amount of cholesterol your liver makes. These drugs should be used in conjunction with the lifestyle changes you have already made in terms of diet and exercise.
Some of the drugs used to lower your cholesterol level may be as follows:
HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors also called Statins, are the newest medications available to lower cholesterol.
Frequently used HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors include:
Atorvastatin (Lipitor)
Fluvastatin (Lescol)
Lovastatin (Mevacor)
Pravastatin (Pravachol)
Simvastatin (Zocor)
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Bile-acid sequestrants. These medications help to limit the liver's production of cholesterol.
Common bile-acid sequestrants include
Colestipol (Colestid)
Cholestyramine (Questran).
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Niacin.
This B vitamin is found in foods and in multi-vitamin supplements. In high doses, available by prescription, niacin lowers LDL (the bad cholesterol) and raises HDL (the good cholesterol).
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Zetia, (generic name-ezetimibe)
Zetia is a new drug recently released to lower cholesterol. Zetia works by minimising the amount of cholesterol absorbed through the intestines after eating. Zetia appears to effect both the bad LDL type cholesterol as well as the good HDL cholesterol by lowering the bad cholesterol and raising the good cholesterol. The overall body cholesterol is also lowered, as are the level of circulating fats (triglycerides) in the blood.
Zetia is commonly prescribed together with one of the statin cholesterol lowering drugs because this combination has a stronger impact on lowering the cholesterol.
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