High Cholesterol

People across the country are suffering from high cholesterol, but few really think about what that means. At the most, some people know that there is bad cholesterol and good cholesterol, but little more. The fact is that these types of cholesterol are accumulated in the body due to different variables. The first of these major variables is heredity. The second is diet. The third is exercise.

What is Cholesterol?

Before considering the things that raise and lower cholesterol, it should first be noted what cholesterol actually is. Cholesterol is a naturally occurring substance in the body that is necessary, in a certain amount, for the proper functioning of the body. It is a waxy form of fat that is needed in the formation of cell membranes and in the production of hormones. In humans, cholesterol is produced in the liver. Due to the above mentioned variables, however, it is often overproduced. This causes the cholesterol to gather in the blood vessels and arteries in waxy lumps that can have the effect of reducing circulation or blocking blood flow entirely. In some cases, these clots can even move through the cardiovascular system to extremely dangerous areas, such as the brain, the heart, or the lungs, causing stroke, coronary thrombosis, or pulmonary embolism. There are other health issues that also come with this waxy fat that can build up in the system, but these are a few of the more serious ones. Clearly, high cholesterol needs to be controlled in order to remain healthy.

High Cholesterol and Genetics

A person cannot control the genetics that they inherit, so in some cases a person who both eats well and exercises can have high cholesterol. This is an unfortunate circumstance, as it means that they must stick to a far stricter diet and a far more rigorous exercise regime to get even a fraction of the cholesterol lowering benefits of others. In many cases, they have no choice but to take medication to lower their cholesterol if it can’t be lowered naturally through diet and exercise.

Cholesterol and Diet

When it comes to food lower cholesterol should often be the goal. While there are certainly people who have a natural physical predisposition toward high cholesterol, many, many others have diets that cause them to have high levels of bad cholesterol, with relatively little food to lower cholesterol. This is the result of eating certain types of food that cause cholesterol levels in the body to spike rather than food lowering cholesterol. While there is cholesterol itself in some foods, this doesn’t usually cause the cholesterol in the human body to go up. As it passes through the digestive system it is processed in such a way that makes it difficult to absorb. People can get higher cholesterol, however, from eating animal products, such as meat, chicken, and eggs, as well as dairy products such as cheese and milk. In order for a person to keep their cholesterol levels down, therefore, they need to eat fairly little of the foods that are listed above. However, using the right food recipes lower cholesterol.

Diet can be used to influence a multitude of health issues. Just as some food lower high cholesterol, there is also food to lower sugar, food plant sterols for health, food to lower blood pressure, etc. On that same note, just as there are foods that raise cholesterol, there are also foods that lower cholesterol. A low cholesterol diet that’s high in fiber has been shown to lower cholesterol due to the fiber having the effect of sweeping excess cholesterol out of the digestive system. In general, a low cholesterol diet that are filled with fruits, vegetables, and whole grains , and low in meat, dairy, and other animal products are great for lowering cholesterol. Nor do the foods for bad cholesterol need to be anything other than delicious. With many tasty food recipes lowering cholesterol is the main goal. For most who eat high fiber food lower bad cholesterol will be their reward.

Exercise and Cholesterol

Food is a major component in keeping cholesterol at healthy levels, but exercise also plays a major role. Enough of the right type of exercise can help a person to lower their cholesterol naturally over time.

While high cholesterol in endemic in our culture, it’s often possible for people to control their cholesterol through good diet and exercise. At the same time, some people will still need to take cholesterol medication regardless of how well they eat or how much they exercise, simply because their genetics predispose their bodies to the overproduction of cholesterol.