Posts
Cholesterol naturally occurs in your body. In fact, it is found in your bloodstream and in every cell, helping produce cell membranes, vitamin D and bile acids. It also enhances nerve function and the helps form your memories.
In short, your body needs to maintain a certain level of cholesterol to be able to function properly. However, too much cholesterol can stick to the walls of your arteries as plaque, which can narrow or even block these blood vessels when your arteries are damaged in a process called inflammation.
Plaque, combined with the thickening of your blood and the constriction of your blood vessels, can increase your risk of heart attack and high blood pressure.
Osteopathic physician turned natural health practitioner Joseph Mercola believes that if you want to lower your cholesterol levels, statin drugs (cholesterol-lowering medication) are not the answer. Dr. Mercola explains that statins inhibit an enzyme needed in the production of cholesterol in your liver but they also impair important functions in your body, like strip your supply of the coenzyme CoQ10, which leads to fatigue, muscle weakness, soreness and heart failure.
If you want to lower your cholesterol levels, it is better and safer to do it naturally, Mercola advises. You can start by including some of these foods in your diet to help lower your cholesterol the natural way:
- Grapefruit - contains potent flavonoids that help lower triglycerides
- Shitake mushrooms - contain eritadenine, an active compound found to lower cholesterol levels in animals.
- Use olive oil and coconut oil instead of vegetable oil.
- Organic grass-fed meat, organic raw dairy products and wild salmon - are rich sources of omega-3 fats, which are known to lower LDL (bad) cholesterol while raising the good (HDL) cholesterol
- Walnuts - are also rich in omega-3 fats acids that are beneficial to the heart. Studies suggest that cholesterol levels went down when walnut was substituted for the calories supplied by olives and other monounsaturated fats.
- Garlic - Numerous studies suggest that eating garlic regularly may reduce LDL cholesterol and raise HDL cholesterol levels.
- Dark Green, Leafy Vegetables - According to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute's Family Heart Study, eating four or more servings of fruits and vegetables a day may significantly lower LDL cholesterol levels.
|
0 comments:
Post a Comment