Managing Your Cholesterol

What is Cholesterol and what factors can increase your cholesterol levels?

“Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance made in the liver and other cells and found in certain foods, such as food from animals, like dairy products, eggs, and meat” (WebMD). There are two different types of cholesterol: there is good cholesterol and bad cholesterol.  Your good cholesterol, also known as HDLs, helps to get rid of the bad cholesterol in the blood. Your bad cholesterol, also known as LDLs, can cause build up of plaque along blood vessel walls creating clogs, which in turn can put you at risk. Have too much of one or the other can put you in risk for coronary heart disease, stroke, or a heart attack. Risk of having high cholesterol can be affected by different lifestyle choices and genetics. Different lifestyle choices and genetics that can affect cholesterol levels include diet, weight, exercise, age/gender, diabetes, heredity, and certain medications.

What doctors recommend your cholesterol levels to be?

Doctor recommend for individuals over the age of 20 to get their cholesterol levels checked out every 5 years.

The following numbers are the recommendations for desired cholesterol levels.

Less than 200 – Desirable

200-239 – Borderline High

240 and above – High

How to keep your cholesterol low??

1. Exercise
2. Diet– Follow this link for a great low cholesterol dinner recipe
   1. The Top Five Foods that help keep your cholesterol low are:  Oatmeal, Oat bran and high fiber foods, Fish and Omega 3- fatty acid, Walnuts, Almonds, and other nuts, Olive Oil, and Foods with plant sterols and stanols
3. Quit Smoking
4. Take Medication that is prescribed by your doctor

How is high cholesterol treated?

Working with a doctor is important when trying to lower cholesterol levels. Doctors recommend a combination of eating a heart healthy diet, performing at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity aerobic exercise along with two days a week of muscle strengthening exercise, and weight loss to help lower cholesterol levels. In addition doctors may recommend to their patient taking medication to help lower their cholesterol. Cholesterol lowering drugs include: statins, niacin, bile acid- resins, fibric acid derivatives, and cholesterol absorption inhibitors. A dietary supplement that may help lower cholesterol is turmeric. Researchers concluded that turmeric extract “could be useful in the management of cardiovascular disease in which atherosclerosis is important.”

In conclusion, when managing your cholesterol it is important to help keep your HDLs HIGH and your LDLs LOW.  To achieve this one should partake in a lifestyle that includes a healthy diet, exercise, and to avoid tobacco smoke.

(WebMD) (American Heart Association) (Livestrong)