Control Cholesterol

Meaning of Cholesterol

• It is a normal constituent of blood.
• Fatty substance.
• Most important function of cholesterol: to help carry fat throughout the body using the blood vessels as the paths.
• Factors that determine the cholesterol level in your body: your genes and the food you eat.
• If your body has excessive fat in the form of cholesterol to move, it can then accumulate in your blood vessels leading to heart attack or stroke.

Types of Cholesterol

• Most of cholesterol is made by the liver.
• When you consume the fatty foods, fat goes to the liver after getting absorbed in the intestine.
• There it gets combined with two types of lipoprotein packets: LDL (low density lipoprotein) and HDL (high density lipoprotein).
• Cholesterol circulates in the blood in the form of LDL and HDL.
• Things work well till your liver does not make extra LDL. But when it does, this extra LDL is released into your blood stream to create havoc if not controlled in time.
• LDL is bad cholesterol and HDL is good cholesterol.
• LDL sticks to the blood vessel walls. HDL transports the stuck LDL back to the liver for removal from the body. Thus HDL helps to keep the blood vessels clean.

High Cholesterol is Detrimental to Health

• Anyone can develop high cholesterol irrespective of gender or age.
• High cholesterol is a silent disease.
• It gives no warnings or symptoms and cannot be detected until heart attack or stroke takes place unless some one frequently gets done the cholesterol check tests.
• It is one of the three major risk factors for coronary artery disease, the other two being high blood pressure and smoking.
• Good news is that one can take appropriate steps and bring down the cholesterol level.

Levels of Cholesterol

Total Cholesterol

• Desirable: less than 200
• Borderline: 200-239
• High: 240 or higher

LDL Cholesterol

• Optimal: less than 100
• Near optimal: 100-129
• Borderline: 130-159
• High 160 and higher

HDL Cholesterol

• More than 40

Aim to Keep

• Total cholesterol below 200
• LDL below 130 (below 100 in heart patients)
• HDL above 40
• Triglyceride (another form of fat) less than 200

Levels of Cholesterol and Risk Level of Developing Heart Disease

• Cholesterol level 200: Minimum risk of developing heart disease
• 240: Twice the risk
• 300: Six times risk
• 300 plus blood pressure or diabetes or smoker: 20 times the risk

Suggested Frequency of Cholesterol Check

• First check after age 30
• If cholesterol at desirable level: check once every 5 years
• If cholesterol at borderline level: check once every 2-3 years
• If cholesterol at high level: check more frequently
• If cholesterol high plus other risk factors like high blood pressure, diabetes or smoker: check still more frequently (Refer: Quit Smoking http://quit-smoking-plan.blogspot.com/ and Anger Management http://controlling-anger.blogspot.com/)

Ways to Reduce Cholesterol

• Food: low in saturated fats, more fibers, no deep fried food, control on caffeine and alcohol, preference for vegetarian diet, cooking oils containing unsaturated fats (use non-stick cookwares),
• Exercises: walking, jogging, swimming etc and maintain ideal weight (Refer: Walking http://walking-plan.blogspot.com/ and Exercises http://exercises-plan.blogspot.com/)
• Medicines: as prescribed by the doctor

Indicative List of Food to be Avoided

• Organ meals: liver, kidney, brain etc
• Beef, pork, veal, clams, oyster, lobster, shrimp, sausages, salami, chicken skin etc
• Whole milk, condensed milk
• Sweets particularly made from milk products
• Cream cheese, butter etc
• Egg yolk
• French fries
• Mayonnaise, salad dressing
• Ghee, hydrogenated oils, coconut oil, palm oil etc
• Cream biscuits, croissants etc
• Pastries and puddings
• Chocolates and toffees
• Coconut and other nuts (exception: almonds and walnuts)
• Ice cream

Indicative List of Permissible Food

• Cereals and pulses
• Potatoes
• Rice
• Fruits, vegetables and salads
• Egg white
• Almonds and walnuts (unfrosted and unsalted)
• Skim milk
• Cottage cheese
• Curd or yogurt (from skim milk)
• Chutneys and pickles (without oil)
• Fruit juices, controlled intake of tea and coffee
• Controlled intake of chicken (without skin) and fish (not fried).

Some Misconceptions

• I am young and exercise and so I do not have to ever worry about high cholesterol: wrong
• I am a female, so no high cholesterol: wrong
• I am slim and so chances of high level of cholesterol are nil: wrong
• My family has no history of heart problems and so my cholesterol will never be high: wrong
• My report shows normal level of cholesterol and now I am free to eat any thing my heart desires: wrong
• All cholesterol free food is un-interesting: wrong

Originally posted at http://controlling-cholesterol.blogspot.com/ Thursday, May 28, 2009