Cholesterol

Cholesterol Guidelines – Your Roadmap to Heart Health

by The Stakhanovite Twins

Article by R.D. Hawkins

Learning the basic cholesterol guidelines is the first step in reducing your risk for heart attack or stroke. And if you don’t know anything about cholesterol guidelines or blood lipid readings you are not alone. In fact once you get past the term cholesterol, most haven’t had cause to delve deeper into the world of cholesterol and cholesterol health.

Cholesterol itself is a Jeckel and Hide type of character. On one hand it is essential for hormone production and cell health and on the other hand it can cause life threatening conditions such as heart attack and stroke. In fact, the higher your blood cholesterol level, the greater your chance of developing heart disease or having a heart attack. It is also important to point out that as we age our cholesterol reading tend to become less predictable, often times seeing overall cholesterol rise while good cholesterol (HDL) decreases. This could partly explain why the majority of the one million heart attacks last year, and the half million fatalities, were people over the age of 50.

The unpredictability of cholesterol makes testing a necessary part of management. Knowing the basic cholesterol guidelines is also an important part of understanding whether you are at risk or not. According to American Heart Association everyone over the age of 20 should have a detailed blood test called a lipoprotein profile performed at least once every five years. If your test results showed cholesterol levels on the rise your doctor will likely suggest a number of diet and lifestyle adjustments with another lipid profile being scheduled in four to six months. It lifestyle an diet modification fail to show the expected results your doctor may suggest a cholesterol lowering medication to bring cholesterol readings into a healthy range. While effective, keep in mind that prescription medications come with a long list of side effects with the most common being nagging muscle aches, pains, and cramping.

Basic cholesterol guidelines

*Overall total cholesterol: Less than 200 mg/dl is optimal, 200 – 239 if borderline high, and anything over 240 is considered high and requires some type of immediate action.

*Good cholesterol (HDL): Good cholesterol consists of high density lipoprotein particles which are high in protein and low in fat. They take cholesterol out of the body and help clear existing arterial plaque. Many consider this to be the most important of all the cholesterol scores. A reading over 60 is considered optimal, 50 – 60 good, 40 – 50 borderline, and anything under 40 will require some type of immediate action.

*Bad cholesterol (LDL): Bad cholesterol is primary a fatty molecule that carries cholesterol into your arteries and roughs up the artery walls. This combination provides the backdrop for dangerous arterial plaque deposits. It only makes good health sense to reduce and maintain this part of your cholesterol scores into a heart healthy range. Less than 100 is considered very good, 100 – 129 is above average, 130 – 159 is borderline high, 160 – 189 is high, and anything over 190 is considered dangerous and will require immediate action.

*Triglycerides: Triglycerides are early stage fat molecules and are considered to be a serious threat. A reading of under 150 is considered good, 150 – 199 borderline high, and anything over 200 is considered dangerous and my require immediate action.

In summary, your cholesterol guidelines are your roadmap to heart and artery health. Additionally, many have found they need a little extra boost to achieve their goals but are leery of the latest batch of prescription medications. For these individuals natural cholesterol reduction supplements are a safe and effective natural option worth considering.

About the Author

R.D. Hawkins is an enthusiastic advocate for the use of natural health products and natural living with over 10 years experience in the field.Learn more about natural remedies and natural health at Purchase Remedies.com

www.iHealthTube.com Robert Kowalski advises taking plant sterols with your meal to fill your body’s cholesterol receptors, which will block the actual cholesterols from the blood stream. Also watch Part 1-Diet and Part 2-Niacin from iHealthTube.

Related Cholesterol Articles

Lowering Cholesterol Without Medication

by atomicity

Article by R.D. Hawkins

Lowering cholesterol without medication is a topic of great interest to many people looking for a side effect free way to be more proactive in their battle against high cholesterol. Chances are if you are taking the time to read this article you are a health conscious individual concerned about heart disease and/or you’ve been told by your doctor that your cholesterol levels aren’t quite up to snuff, and have decided to do something about it. Whatever the reason you are interested in learning more about lowering cholesterol without medication I welcome you, and hope you will be able to gather some honest information to help you achieve both your short and long term goals.

When your cholesterol is above generally accepted cholesterol levels it is caused by either your liver producing too much cholesterol (familial hypercholesterolemia), a diet high in saturated fat and cholesterol, and/or lifestyle choices such as inactivity and smoking. If your high cholesterol is being driven by familial hypercholesterolemia you should talk with your doctor about your options. On the other hand if your challenges are simply a byproduct of a high saturated diet along with lifestyle choices, lowering cholesterol without medications is a realistic and achievable approach. Let’s take a few minutes to walk through a few safe and effective ways to knock cholesterol down for the count.

*Lower you saturated fat and cholesterol intake: By simply reducing saturated fat intake down to below 10 percent of daily calories consumed and cholesterol down to 30 percent of total calories consumed you could expect to reduce total cholesterol by as much as 30 percent in a matter of weeks.

Foods low in saturated fat include fat free or low fat dairy products, lean meats, fish, skinless turkey breast, whole grain foods, and fruits and vegetable. Look for buttery spreads and other heart healthy products that are low in saturated fat and contain no trans fat. If you happen to run across a product with a heart healthy label stating it contain cholesterol busting plant stanols and sterols consider it as a substitute for your present brand.

For those trying to lower cholesterol without medication organ meats are a definite no-no. A three ounce serving of liver contains 330 mg or cholesterol or five times as much as lean roast beef.

Soluble fiber is another heart healthy option worth considering. Soluble fiber sources such at oat bran, oat meal, apples, pears, oranges, brussels sprout, and carrots bind with cholesterol in the intestines and politely escorts it out of your body.

*Besides diet saying no to cigarettes, exercising 30 minutes a day (5 or more days a week), and keeping your weight under control, are additional tools in your toolbox of cholesterol busting tricks.

Additionally, some attempting to lower cholesterol without medication have found natural cholesterol reduction supplements to be that extra boost that allows them to achieve their cholesterol goals. These supplemental formulas are safe, as well as affordable, and can be a valuable tool in your cholesterol lowering toolbox, allowing you to achieve each milestone a little faster.

To learn more about lowering cholesterol without medication and/or natural cholesterol reducing supplements Click Here

About the Author

R.D. Hawkins is an enthusiastic advocate for the use of natural health products and natural living with over 10 years experience in the field.Learn more about natural remedies and natural health at Purchase Remedies.com

Find More Cholesterol Articles

Natural Cures for Lowering High Cholesterol, Home Remedies

by tellumo

Article by Nick Mutt

The foods and the drinks which contain high fat contribute to the cause of high cholesterol. It is also caused due to high stress and alcoholism. When the cholesterol level is very high in the blood then it results into high blood cholesterol. It is not a disease itself but it may be the cause of specific diseases like cardiovascular disease. High blood cholesterol is related to enhanced levels of lipids (hyperlipidemia) and high levels of proteins (hyperlipoproteinemia).

There is no specific warning sign of high blood cholesterol but it plays an important role in cardiovascular disease and even it may lead to heart attack or a stroke. People live a healthy and smooth life even if they are diagnosed with high cholesterol. They don’t take this illness very seriously. If the levels of the cholesterol is not healthy then it may result into overweight, excessively, stress, age, smoking, heredity, poor diet and physical inactivity. This in turn will cause high cholesterol.

Many natural remedies are there for high cholesterol:

1. Take a cup of hot water and mix 1 teaspoon of ginger and two kinds of peppers directly into the cup. Mix and sheer it for five minutes. When it cools down add a spoon of honey in it. Take this solution two times a day one in the morning and one in the evening. Try to avoid the foods like dairy products, meats and the foods which are rich in dietary cholesterol.

2. Increase the intake of grapes as it has the quality to reduce the cholesterol. In the skin of the grapes there is a compound which helps in lowering the cholesterol. Like this carrot, apples and pectin also help in lowering the cholesterol. It reduces as well as removes it through the intestine and it prohibits our bloodstream to absorb it. Garlic is very good to reduce the cholesterol.

3. Many herbs are also very effective for high cholesterol. Many problems are cured with the help of the herbs. So you can go for herbal medicines to reduce high cholesterol.

4. Red yeast rice is very effective to reduce the high cholesterol. It cut the levels of LDL or bad cholesterol. It acts similar to the drugs which are used to reduce the high cholesterol.

5. An ayurvedic herb known as Gugulipid which is an extract of Commiphora mukul is used in reducing the high cholesterol and also the levels of triglyceride levels in the blood.

Read useful Home Remedies for High Blood Cholesterol. Also find Natural Cholesterol Supplement to maintain healthy cholesterol levels. Also read High Cholesterol Home Remedies and natural treatments.

About the Author

Nick Mutt

More Cholesterol Articles

Maintaining A Healthy Cholesterol Count

by Boy27wonder

Article by R.D. Hawkins

Maintain a healthy cholesterol count can greatly reduce ones risk of having a potentially deadly heart attack or stroke. I bet you didn’t know that just about half of the one million people in American who had a heart attack last year died. A pretty scary number which should prompt those ignoring cholesterol to consider embarking on a program to achieve a healthy cholesterol count.

Cholesterol is a fluffy fat like substance that is produced by the liver or ingested through diet. Cholesterol is used by the body for the production of hormones and cell membranes. It is only when too much cholesterol is in our bloodstream does this essential substance turn dangerous. So what is the proper balance of cholesterol and what do I need to do to keep a healthy cholesterol count?

There are three basic cholesterol reading most doctors and patients alike keep track of: bad cholesterol (LDL), good cholesterol (HDL), and total cholesterol. Determining a healthy cholesterol count will depend on both lifestyle choices such as smoking, high saturated fat consumption, obesity, and inactivity, along with risk factors that cannot be avoided such as age, heredity, and gender.

If you have one or more of these risk factors your medical professional may suggest reducing your blood cholesterol numbers even more than normal.

If you have one or less of the risk factors listed above a healthy cholesterol count would be total cholesterol under 210; LDL cholesterol of 100 mg/dl or less; and a good cholesterol count of 50 mg/dl or more. Pretty basic stuff, right! But what if one of the numbers was out of whack. For instance what if bad cholesterol was 100 and good cholesterol was only 35. As a general rule the bad to good cholesterol ratio should never be more than 2.5 to one. Let’s take another example. What if my total cholesterol was 240 and my good cholesterol (HDL) was 40? This would be a 6 to 1 ratio and anything over about 5 to1 is considered too high.

What else? Maintaining a healthy cholesterol count, in most cases, is about changing old habits, adopting new healthier habits, and enlisting the help of convention medications such as statins or natural cholesterol reducing remedies if needed. Put simply, this basically means finding ways to increase HDL (good cholesterol) and decrease LDL (bad cholesterol levels), and bring overall cholesterol down to acceptable heart healthy levels. Certainly the aforementioned statin drugs will be one of your options but they do carry a number of serious label warnings. The side effect risks have made natural cholesterol reduction supplements combined with diet modification a safe and effective combination worth considering.

About the Author

R.D. Hawkins is an enthusiastic advocate for the use of natural health products and natural living with over 10 years experience in the field.Learn more about natural remedies and natural health at Purchase Remedies.com

Understand Your Cholesterol Numbers To Remain Healthy

by smiling_da_vinci

Article by Christopher S. Norwood

A cholesterol test is sure to prove very useful because its results will indicate the presence or absence of potential cholesterol problems. The most common test performed is a lipoprotein profile. The presence of bad cholesterol means that plaque builds up inside the arteries and causes blockage in free flow of blood thereby leading to heart attacks, strokes and certain heart diseases.

For those who have attained the age of twenty, chances are that the doctor has already taken a cholesterol reading while giving them a physical examination. It is important that you understand the meaning of the cholesterol numbers so that you can take appropriate steps to remedy problems arising from high LDL cholesterol levels.

Cholesterol tests will reveal certain cholesterol numbers that indicate the levels of LDL cholesterol, HDL cholesterol and even triglycerides and the total of each of these constituents. To be sure, the bad type of cholesterol is known as LDL cholesterol while the density refers to the ratio between protein and fatty cholesterol.Below One Hundred is OK

Thus, LDL or low-density lipoprotein cholesterol refers to cholesterol where ratio of protein is low while cholesterol contains excess of fat, and the opposite is true of HDL or high-density lipoprotein cholesterol.

Thus, typically cholesterol numbers that indicate a LDL cholesterol level below hundred means there is nothing to be worried about. Even if the LDL cholesterol numbers stay below one hundred and thirty, you will be OK with regards to LDL cholesterol.

However, cholesterol numbers in the range of one hundred thirty and above (for LDL cholesterol) means that you need to take remedial action. If your HDL cholesterol numbers are more than sixty, you will also be OK since a high HDL cholesterol numbers is good for you.

A reading of under forty (for men) and under fifty (for women) is bad for you and it would mean that you need to get your HDL cholesterol levels back up to the sixty mark. In any case, the total of both cholesterol numbers should be around the two hundred mark, the desired level.

When you meet with your doctor to discuss your cholesterol you should also have your cholesterol numbers ready because he will need to know these numbers before he can suggest remedies. In fact, it would even help if you were able to find out cholesterol numbers for your other family members since these numbers can also help your doctor get a better idea about possible family history problems and know how to deal with your case from a wider perspective.

About the Author

If you love this article, you will also love another article written by this article’s author on stethoscopes for sale and Sprague Rappaport stethoscope.

Find More Cholesterol Articles

What is High Cholesterol and Why Should I Reduce It?

by oblivion9999

Article by Todd Peterson

Hypercholesterolemia, also known as high cholesterol has been a health issue for many people for quite some time. Abnormal cholesterol levels can show up as high LDL cholesterol or low HDL cholesterol. “Bad” cholesterol is called an LDL. What causes a buildup of plaque on the walls of arteries is having a high LDL that goes unchecked. High density lipoproteins (HDL), is also called “good” cholesterol. Your body needs to get rid of the bad cholesterol in your blood and the good cholesterol helps it do that; the higher the level of your HDLs, the better. VLDL and triglycerides are other flavors that cholesterol comes in. These are other types of cholesterols that also need to be monitored. LDL and VLDL are very similar in that they are not very good at ridding the body of unhealthy cholesterol. VLDL carries triglycerides, which is another type of fat, in the blood that also creates health problems if gone un-noticed. When there are a lot of calories, alcohol, or sugar present in the body, they are converted into triglycerides in the liver and stored in fat cells throughout the body.

There are a few major health risks to having high cholesterol. High cholesterol can lead to heart disease and stroke. High cholesterol causes plaque to form on the walls of arteries making it difficult for blood to circulate throughout the body. This plaque build-up that has been forming for a number of years causes atherosclerosis. The end result is usually heart disease. When not enough oxygen-carrying blood reaches the heart due to the amount of plaque in the arteries chest pain called angina can be the result. If the heart does not get an adequate supply of oxygen-rich blood, a heart attack will occur. This is usually due to a sudden closure from a blood clot forming on top of a previous narrowing. The more LDL that is present in the blood, the greater the risk of having heart disease. If your levels of HDL are too low, you can also put yourself at risk for having heart disease.

Several things can lead to high cholesterol. One is having an unhealthy diet. A low-cholesterol diet can help improve cholesterol levels. For some people, their cholesterol levels are too high for diet alone to keep under control. If you fall in this category, your physician will have to prescribe you cholesterol-lowering medications to help you with this. If your mother, brother, or aunts, and uncles have high cholesterol, the chance of you having high cholesterol is high. One of the pre-disposing factors of having high cholesterol is what is in your genes. Your genes partly determine how much cholesterol your body makes naturally. Your LDL cholesterol is affected due to how fast LDL is made and removed from the blood. If you have been diagnosed with heart disease at an early age or know someone who has, it is likely that you may have familial hypercholesterolemia. This often affects 1 in 500 people. If you are concerned about this, consult with your physician as soon as possible. Gender and age also determine if you are at risk for having high cholesterol levels. As we age not only does our knowledge increase but so do our cholesterol levels. Before women reach menopause, they sometimes have lower cholesterol levels than men who are at the same age. After menopause, however, a women’s LDL levels tend to rise until about 60 to 65 years of age. After the age of about 50, women often have higher total cholesterol levels than men of the same age.

Address your cholesterol levels before they become uncontrollable. The earlier you change your eating habits and exercise regimen, the better off you will be in the future because you will have taken control of your health and your quality of life for the future.

About the Author

Todd Peterson has done extensive research on nutrition and high cholesterol. For more great information on lower cholesterol,Visit his website on maintaining healthy cholesterol, levels the natural and healthy way.

Find More Cholesterol Articles

How Do I Lower My Cholesterol?

by Martyne

Article by Arnold Smith

Many people are unsure what cholesterol is and why high levels of it is not good for them. Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance made by the liver and other cells in the body. Cholesterol is found in dairy products, eggs and meat. Many people live out their daily lives and never know what the risk factors are for having high cholesterol or even know how do cholesterol levels get too high until they are diagnosed with high cholesterol.

Maintaining a certain level of cholesterol in the human body is essential in carrying out many life sustaining biological processes. Cholesterol is important for the body to be able to produce hormones, vitamin D, and the bile acids that help to digest fat. But, the body only needs a certain amount of cholesterol to function properly so when too much cholesterol is present within the body, problems like heart disease can develop. Your main concern is to lower your LDL, also called “bad” cholesterol which is what causes the buildup of plaque on the walls of arteries, and raise your HDL, your “good” cholesterol. Having HDL in the body at healthy levels helps the body to get rid of unhealthy cholesterol like LDLs.

Commercials and other media are touting the fact that there are multiple ways to lower your cholesterol. Basically, there are two main ways. You can start making changes within your diet by changing the foods you eat. A low-cholesterol diet is a diet that is low in fat. I know it can be difficult when changing your diet but try it. It’s good for you. Less than 300mg of cholesterol should be eaten daily according to the American Heart Association. You should limit your daily intake to less than two hundred milligrams a day if you have heart disease. Foods that are high in saturated fat and have large amounts of dietary cholesterol in them should be avoided or eaten in low amounts.

Another way to lower your cholesterol is to take cholesterol-lowering drugs prescribed by a physician. Your physician will give you a full physical work-up to determine if these types of medications will benefit you. Smoking and inactivity through exercise can increase your risk of heart disease. Some people who have been diagnosed with heart disease and/or have other multiple risk factors have no other options available but to take cholesterol-lowering drugs to control their cholesterol. Taking cholesterol medications can wreak havoc on your body and your wallet. Changing a few lifestyle habits to lower your cholesterol will benefit you in the long-run. A change in your diet is a must. If you smoke, it is a good idea to quit. Smoking lowers your HDL levels which can easily be reversed if you were to quit smoking. Regular exercise will also lower your cholesterol levels naturally. Doing moderate physical activity such as raking the leaves in the yard and doing some much needed household chores can help you to control your weight and high blood pressure if you have been diagnosed with it.

High cholesterol and heart disease is hereditary so if you are concerned about your cholesterol level, you should see your doctor. Your physician will have your blood drawn to evaluate whether or not you are at risk for heart disease. If you have predisposing factors that put you at risk for high cholesterol and heart disease, your doctor will give you some advice and helpful suggestions on how to maintain healthy cholesterol levels.

About the Author

Todd Peterson has done extensive research on nutrition and heart health. For more great tips on lowering your cholesterol how lower cholesterol,Visit his website on raising your HDL cholesterol, levels the natural and healthy way.

Dr. Stephen Kopecky, a Mayo Clinic cardiologist, describes ways to lower LDL or “bad” cholesterol, without taking a statin.
Video Rating: 4 / 5

Related Cholesterol Articles

Healthy Diets: Lower Cholesterol Diets

by Pulmonary Pathology

Article by Matthew Lee

Probably the best way to live a healthier life is following healthy diets, lower cholesterol diets most specifically. Usually if you follow an effective low cholesterol diet, you are not just beating your high cholesterol level; you are also making your whole body healthier more generally.

Basically a diet for lower cholesterol works by 1) reducing your consumption of unhealthy high cholesterol foods, and/or 2) increasing your intake of healthy (cholesterol lowering) foods. If you want to make more immediate changes to your health, then obviously you should create a diet plan that combines both methods of reducing your cholesterol (LDL

What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About(TM) : Cholesterol: The Latest Natural Treatments and Scientific Advances in One Breakthrough Program

What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About(TM) : Cholesterol: The Latest Natural Treatments and Scientific Advances in One Breakthrough Program

Heart disease is largely preventable, but conventional cholesterol management is often inadequate. According to university cardiologist and leading prevention specialist Dr. Stephen R. Devries, avoiding heart disease requires a far more comprehensive approach that balances new high tech testing with low tech treatments. Now, in WHAT YOUR DOCTOR MAY NOT TELL YOU ABOUT CHOLESTEROL, Dr. Devries combines natural treatments with the latest scientific
advances. New types of cholesterol tests are hi

List Price: $ 14.99

Price: [wpramaprice asin="B002MAQT8I"]

[wpramareviews asin="B002MAQT8I"]

[wprebay kw="cholesterol" num="38" ebcat="-1"] [wprebay kw="cholesterol" num="39" ebcat="-1"]

Can Dieting lower Your Cholesterol

Article by Adam Wright

Is it possible or desirable to diet for lower cholesterol?

Health issues, like for example coronary disease as well as blocked arterial blood vessels, may be avoided by having a decent low-level of cholesterol. Ones ldl cholesterol can easily jump to unhealthily higher levels for a lot of reasons. Lugging about excess fat puts undue pressure on your whole system and can on it’s own be the reason for elevated cholesterol. Your particular levels of cholesterol (LDL) as well as overall cholesterol might be reduced through losing weight. Nevertheless, you should remember that an equivalent role is most probably played through gender; as well as age, which are significant components in determining whether or not you may be at risk from high-cholesterol. Additionally a person’s genetic inheritance can generally be an essential component in deciding the levels your body will produce of our enemy – ldl cholesterol. High-cholesterol consequently, can often be found in your immediate family. Several diet regimes are of help when trying to obtain a lowered cholesterol reading.

Most definitely the best way of achieving better cholesterol levels is to choose from amongst the numerous diet programs out there that are designed for lower cholesterol. You’ll have a more healthy coronary system and heart simply by lowering just what quantity of the bad type of cholesterol you ingest by say, approximately 10 – 20%. Foods packed with the more healthy fats, for instance fish, together with vegetables and natural oils must be consumed frequently, at the same time staying away from meals overfull of any of the saturated fats.

There are a number of easy methods you are could employ to make it easier to switch to rather more healthy, reduced cholesterol diet plan.

They include:

Rather than eating butter containing trans. fat with polyunsaturated oils, use rather, spreads produced from plant sterol.

Stop using butter as a moistening component in baking, and using white vinegar instead. It is low in ldl cholesterol and will not affect the flavour of the food.

Replace eggs by healthier products which provide a cholesterol free egg-substitute.

When making changes to your diet plan in order to achieve a better shape, is considered, it is crucial that you change it in the correct manner. Lots of people alter their diet plan because they wish to slim down, however what they do not realise is the fact that a common, low-fat, high-carbohydrate, weight loss program, most likely, will lead to an increase in their cholesterol.

Due to the fact a degree of ldl cholesterol is essential for the proper working of your body, when following this type of diet plan, the amount of insulin produced can frequently be raised. This can in turn cause one’s liver to make too much ldl cholesterol as well as triglycerides in answer to the extra blood sugar. This system can be a kind of basic automatic safety mechanism that the body triggers in order, to guard against what it perceives as a possibility of starvation. By this means it can ensure that the absolute minimum desired level ldl cholesterol is maintained. Hence, it really is important to carry on eating some of the natural foods which contain ldl cholesterol. Only approximately 75% of one’s necessary ldl cholesterol is created through of your liver, and it is therefore necessary to obtain the remaining balance from what you eat. In the event that you decrease the quantity of cholesterol you take in too greatly and at the same time replace it with assorted carbohydrates and sugars, your system may well turn on that anti-starvation mechanism and commence generating an excessive amount of ldl cholesterol. This undesirable state of affairs continues until you begin eating some cholesterol once again.

The reality is that the low ldl cholesterol, high carbohydrate diet programs might actually be harmful, by in actual fact causing overall greater levels of ldl cholesterol while at the same time not providing any dietary assistance for lower cholesterol levels.

About the Author

Adam Wright has written many articles and e-book courses on how to diet for lower cholesterol. You can enroll for a free mini-course at www.lowercholesterolfood.com or obtain the e-book here.

More Cholesterol Articles