Lose Weight Fast - Think Low Carbohydrate Diets To Lose Your Stomach Fat Quickly

Let's get the technical bit out of the way first. Low-carbohydrate diets are dietary programs that restrict the consumption of carbohydrates. There is no widely accepted definition of what precisely constitutes a low-carbohydrate diet but the principle is the reduction of carbohydrate intake sufficient to dramatically reduce insulin production in the body and to encourage ketosis to be used as energy in place of glucose. (Thanks to Wikipedia for that)

So what does that mean to you and me, well step forward Dr Atkins who published his famous Atkins Diet in 1990, or to give it the full title Dr Atkins New Diet Revolution, this was an update on his first dietary program in 1972.

What Dr Atkins advocated was the practical elimination of foods such as bread and pasta to be replaced with foods containing a higher percentage of proteins and fats which includes meat, poultry, fish, shellfish, eggs, cheese, nuts, salads and fruit.

This "revolution" was met with mixed reaction it was widely criticized by the mainstream medical community as being dangerous and misleading however, in time these same doctors changed their stance and began recommending diets based on low-carbohydrate intake. It must be said though that there is still not a general consensus amongst the medical profession on either their safety or effectiveness.

So the medics cannot agree, can they ever, so what would you do on a low carbohydrate diet. Well you would cut out virtually all carbohydrate from your diet and increase your protein and fat intake; you give up pasta, bread, rice, sugar and alcohol and eat unlimited amounts of meat, cheese and butter.

One of the main criticisms of low carbohydrate dieting is the fact that the dieters will get most of their daily calories from meat, dairy and other high fat products. This can lead to high cholesterol and other problems related to a high intake of saturated fats. I very much agree with this reasoning especially as medical studies have established a strong correlation between high meat and dairy intake with heart problems.

The question you are asking though is does this type of diet help to lose weight fast, the straight answer is yes but it is a qualified yes. Advocates of this diet claim early, and often substantial, weight loss but the majority of people find the restrictions too arduous and soon lose interest with the result that the weight piles back on.

Although still enjoying some popularity interest dropped significantly from 2004 onwards as people switched to newer ideas but it has never been something I have been interested in at all. The thought of eating large amounts of meat, cheese and butter seems so unhealthy to me, just imagine your heart having to cope with that overload. It may have worked for others but it is not one I could recommend, to me it is extremely unhealthy, give me a well balanced diet every time.

Thank you for taking time to read this article.

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The Basics Of Your Cholesterol Level

High cholesterol seems to be on everyone's mind these days. We see commercials on television advertising medicines we can take to lower our cholesterol level. We hear our doctor talk about lowering our cholesterol level. What exactly is cholesterol? How do you get it? Why is it bad for you? Are there any ways other than prescription medications to lower it?

First, cholesterol is a lipid which is naturally produced by the body to maintain cell membranes. The body actually makes all the cholesterol it needs for its functions. Our cholesterol level becomes high when either our bodies overproduce cholesterol or we take in too much cholesterol through the foods we eat.

High levels of cholesterol are bad for you because this excess cholesterol can build up in your arteries, causing heart disease and heart attack. High cholesterol is also responsible for strokes. All three of these conditions can be debilitating and in some cases, deadly.

How do you know if your cholesterol level is high? Your doctor can perform a blood test to determine what the level of cholesterol is in your blood. Sometimes your doctor may want you to take a fasting blood test, which means he will test the cholesterol level in your blood after you have gone without eating for a specified number of hours.

A high cholesterol level is medically defined as more than 240 mg/DL total. Your doctor may also divide your cholesterol level into "good" cholesterol or HDL cholesterol and "bad" cholesterol or LDL cholesterol. If your HDL cholesterol is above 40 mg/Dl this is considered ideal. Your LDL cholesterol level, however, should be less than 100 mg/DL. Any reading above this puts you at a greater risk for heart disease or heart attack. HDL cholesterol is considered good because it is this type that is carried out of the blood stream to the liver where it is broken down and expelled from the body. LDL cholesterol, however, is the kind that builds up in your blood vessels and arteries.

If your doctor deems your cholesterol level is high, there are several things you can do to lower this level. These things include eating a healthy low-fat diet and exercising regularly. Not only does the healthy diet and exercise help lower you cholesterol level, it can also help lower your weight which in turn decreases you chances of heart disease. If you are a smoker you should consider stopping. Also, limit your intake of alcohol and sugar. After trying all these things, if your cholesterol level is still not ideal, your doctor can put you on cholesterol lowering prescription medication. Remember, though, cholesterol medications can damage your liver, so they should be used only after other options have been exhausted.

As you can see, your cholesterol level has a very important impact on your total body health. It can even be life threatening if not controlled. See your doctor for a cholesterol test. If your cholesterol level is not within normal ranges, take action to lower it.

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Atkins Diet Results Are In & Some People Aren't Going To Like Them

According to a report I read at FoxNews.com (foxnews.webmd.com/content/article/102/106544.htm foxnews.webmd.com/content/article/102/106544.htm), researchers have come to some conclusions that are sure to create a firestorm of controversy. Researchers took ten obese patients into the most controlled of environments - an actual live-in study - where they closely monitored everything that they consumed, their weight gain or loss, water-weight gain or loss, and their blood glucose and cholesterol levels.

The premise of the study was to evaluate how an Atkins-like low carbohydrate diet actually works, or more specifically, why it works. The patients were to eat whatever they wished for the first seven days of the study. This period of time was used to determine their typical diet and caloric intake. Absent any guidelines, the patients consumed an average of 3,100 calories per day.

For the next two weeks, the patients were told to follow a low-carb diet. In this case, the patients were allowed to consume 20 grams per day of carbohydrate, but then they could consume as much protein and fat as they wished.

At the end of the two-week period, the patients lost an average of 3.6 pounds each and their blood levels normalized. But what about the low-carbohydrate diet caused them to lose weight? Interestingly, though they were not given calorie restrictions, the patients inadvertently cut their caloric intake by a whopping one-third. On average, the patients consumed only 2,100 calories per day while on the low-carbohydrate diet.

Researchers concluded that it's not what you are eating, but how many calories you are consuming that determines whether you experience weight gain or weight loss. Hmmm... that makes sense.

This is exciting news for those of us fighting the battle of the bulge. The implications are that structure; almost any structure, can result in a reduction in calories, and hence, weight loss.

There is a downside, but the well-informed weight loss warrior can overcome this hurdle if he or she is armed with the power of knowledge. The problem is that people do not seem to stick with a program even though it is working for them.

Researchers surveyed people who participated in four of the top-rated diet plans. After one year, only half of the respondents were still on the Atkins and Ornish diets, while about two-thirds of the Weight Watcher and Zone Diet participants were still in compliance. Persistence loses out to boredom.

So, how can we benefit from this information? Two things are clear when analyzing this information. The first thing is that structure results in a reduced caloric intake. Whether it's low-carb or low fat, when you watch what you eat, you tend to eat less and lose weight.

The second thing (and this is the key to long-term success) is that you should plan to switch, or switch your plans. The lack of variety may cause many participants to "fall off the wagon" ... even though they may be experiencing success.

Map out a course that you can live with. Try to use a certain plan for six months and then another for the next six months. If that works well, repeat it again for a year. For others, it might be easier to follow a seasonal plan. Three-month stints on each of four different diets might add the variety that you need to stick with your plan.

However you map out your future, be encouraged by this study. Ten people began a study. Three weeks later, they emerged weighing less and having stabilized their blood levels. They reduced their caloric intake by nearly one-third, and didn't miss anything. This is the kind of behavior from which we can all benefit.

Michael Callen is the author of the Weekly Weightloss Tips Newsletter (weeklyweightlosstips.com weeklyweightlosstips.com) and the Chief Technology Officer for WellnessPartners.com (WellnessPartners.com WellnessPartners.com), an online retailer of dozens of health and wellness products such as conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), r+ alpha lipoic acid (R+ ALA), and green tea extract.

Raw Fruit and Vegetable Diet - The Top 5 List

Choosing to go on a raw fruit and vegetable diet opens up so many wonderfully nutritious and colourful foods and combinations. Not only will you experience an immediate detox, your health, skin, hair and complexion will all improve. Your weight will fall off as will your cholesterol. Most fruit and vegetables will give you this benefit. We will countdown the top five which are easy to eat at any time of the day.

5th. Tomatoes

What could be easier to eat than a handful of baby tomatoes? So convenient and nutritious. They are perfect for dieters as they are actually made up of 90% water so are very hydrating which improves your digestive system. If that isn't enough, they contain all the antioxidant vitamins - C and E and beta-carotine.

4th. Cherries

Did you ever watch the Jack Nicholson film, The Witches of Eastwick? They must've been on the WC all day after eating all those cherries! With superb powers of detoxification to clear out your digestive system, cherries are also a really low-calorie healthy fruit. They contain ellagic acid, a kind of supernutrient that fights cancer as well as antioxidants that fend off infection.

3rd. Apples

There are so many different varieties to select from and part of the enjoyment of apples is trying them all out. Apples are high in pectin that encourages good digestion - important for boosting your energy levels instead of diverting them to digestion duties. They are packed with vitamins and minerals and help to clear up skin blemishes.

2nd. Celery

Celery makes it into second place as it is so low in calories and wonderful for cleansing the body. It has a lovely salty taste and can be added to dishes or eaten with other fruit and vegetables instead of adding salt. Celery goes well with so many other things but especially watercress.

1st. Watercress

The best diet food for eating raw, anywhere, anytime. It possess potent health benefits, being a strong antioxidant that cleanses the bladder and kidneys, purifies the blood and boosts energy levels. It's high iodine content aids thyroid function and aids metabolism.

It has a delicious peppery taste and can be combined in with celery and tomatoes in salad and eaten on its own.

So there you have it - the authors' top five raw fruit and vegetables. Perhaps it may be useful to get some expert advice on how to prepare this food in a compare-a-diet.com/raw-vegan-diet.html raw fruit and vegetable diet? My favourites are Tuscan Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto and Double Chocolate Cherry Cheesecake!

About the Author

Christine Delareya is keenly embracing the Raw Food lifestyle. She has been vegetarian for many years and several years ago was introduced to Raw and Vegan food. The greatest benefit it brings is no longer having to worry about her weight or cholesterol levels.

She has written articles on subjects which interest her for many years. Visit a site she contributes to which helps you to get started on a Raw Food diet compare-a-diet.com/raw-vegan-diet.html compare-a-diet.com/raw-vegan-diet.html

Low Carbohydrate Diet to Lose Weight

There are many types of diets that you can follow. Fad diets are very popular among the dieters. The difficulties with these diets are that they can be very unhealthy and also makes you hungry and starve to death. Besides the weight loss is very erratic. These diets also work for a limited time after which the benefits fade. In some cases besides regaining the lost weight it has been seen that people actually have gained more weight.

The most important gain from low carbohydrate diet is that you don't feel hungry. This may seem to counter the idea of dieting. But in reality it doesn't. One needs to eat intelligently in order to lose weight and be healthy. That's the whole point of dieting. No need to suffer if you can help yourself.

One of the main advantages a of low carbohydrate diet is that you can cut loose on the foods you like. Naturally you are expected to keep your intake of carbohydrates to minimum but you can eat all other food stuffs like meat, cheese, fish, eggs, poultry and green vegetables each day. The low carbohydrates weight loss is permanent and you can keep on losing weight as long as you stick to diet. Also there is less chance of you regaining the lost weight.

Low carbohydrate diets will also regulate your lower your cholesterol and blood pressure. It also stabilizes your blood sugar level hence it saves you from many future potential diseases. Also you would be deficient of essentials vitamins and minerals which you get from consuming carbohydrates. So you need to supplement this diet with vitamin pills available in the market.

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Cholesterol Fat Diet - Few Easy Ways to Lower Your Cholesterol

There are a lot of options if you need use a lower cholesterol and fat diet. Just because you need to lower your cholesterol and fat intake does not mean you can't eat food you like. You just need to change the way you eat most of them. For example, if you like scrambled eggs for breakfast, you don't have to stop eating eggs- just egg yolks. So buy cartons of egg whites instead of whole eggs and scramble them in olive oil instead of butter. That one change alone cuts out two major cholesterol raising foods; butter and egg yolks. If it really is a big deal that your eggs are no longer yellow when you scramble them, add some food coloring to trick your brain into believing you haven't changed a thing. Or you can eat one egg and add egg whites to it. Keep in mind though, the recommended level of cholesterol daily is a max of 300 mg and the egg yolk in your egg contains 212 mg. Yikes!

In order to properly follow a lower cholesterol fat diet you should be aware of the different types of fats and which fats are better for you. For instance monounsaturated fat is good for you. It lowers bad cholesterol and increases good cholesterol. Sources of Monounsaturated fats are avocados, olive oil, lives, peanut butter, sesame seeds, nuts and canola oil. You may know already but having a lunch of vegetarian bacon, avocado, tomato, green leaf lettuce and whole wheat bread is one of the best things you can put into your body!

Another great way to lower cholesterol is to cut out meat entirely. That's right, become a vegetarian. The majority of cholesterol we ingest comes from animal fats. It is not only in the meat itself (and meat is not created equal, fish is good for you and chicken can be if it's not fried) but in other products we consume. Even Jell-o has animal products in it. If you cut the meat out of your life completely you have to make sure to get enough protein. If you are eating fruits and vegetables on a regular basis in addition to peanut butter, beans and rice you are probably getting enough protein without having to take a substitute or add tofu to everything you eat.

There are a lot of ways to implement a low cholesterol fat diet, you just have to put a little effort and thought into it!

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Foods Low on the Glycemic Index

In order for you to reduce the risk of various chronic health diseases such as diabetes and heart problems, it is recommended that you opt for foods low on the glycemic index. These foods can also help you with your weight loss.

Foods low on the glycemic index includes nuts, fruits and vegetables. For those suffering from high blood pressure, the choice of vegetable should include lettuce, celery, tomatoes, broccoli, spinach, artichokes, radishes, garlic, cabbage, onion, carrots, string beans, okra and other non-starchy vegetables.

For nuts, the best choices would be the ones without carbohydrates. Some with a little carbohydrate in it may include macadamia, pine and walnuts.

Fats choices should include olive oil or the ones that come from unrefined vegetable sources, coconut oil, and soy oil and corn safflower. For fruits, make sure to avoid the ones that are super sweet. Some good choices for fruits include oranges, melons, cherries, apples and berries. Make it certain that you include fruits and vegetables as part of your diet as this can help you clean out all the excess fluids in your body. Also, other foods low on the glycemic index include fresh fish, veal, skinless turkey, eggs, low fat tofu and skinless chicken breast.

You should take note that the secret to a long term health and to reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases and diabetes is to make it possible to opt for foods low on glycemic index. Once you eat foods with a high index rating, your insulin elevates and your glucagon decreases. This will then prevent your body to burn fats and this you should be aware that this is bad. You should opt for foods that can lower your insulin levels and these include foods low on the glycemic index.

Other foods low on the glycemic index that should be included in your diet is as follows:

Chicken - this is rich in protein. You may try to grill it to get rid of the fats, salt and sugar. You should also include a limited amount of eggs.

Garlic - promotes healthy heart and is a good seasoning.

Milk Thistle - this can help reduce the risk of high blood pressure which may lead to heart attacks.

Hawthorne - a natural supplement that can help relieve mild anxiety, protect the blood vessel and controls blood pressure. Calcium, magnesium oxide potassium, citrates, taurine and vitamin C are good natural food supplement as well.
Aside from eating foods low on the glycemic index and having a well-balanced diet, you should also make sure that you include a regular exercise routine in your activities. You do not have to really go all out. Walking, jogging or riding a bike can already help you a lot.

These will not only aid your digestion but can also help you reduce the levels of cholesterol in your blood. Foods rich in fiber can also help lower your cholesterol level aside from helping you stabilize other health problems.

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Foods For Lower Cholesterol Level Exposed!

People are more concerned about cholesterol today than in the past. That is why we have come up with this list of foods for lower cholesterol. If you visit your physician for weight loss he or she will probably mention the risks of high cholesterol, particularly if you are over 30 years old when your high cholesterol risk increases.

There are several high cholesterol foods that can be avoided. Typically these are animal products and dairy products. However you can also benefit from taking a wide variety of happinesslifetime.com cholesterol lowering foods. You may have the opinion that many of the foods for lower cholesterol do not taste that great. But there are some foods which help lower cholesterol and are also delicious and healthy. I will introduce you to some of these.

Avocados are a good example of a delicious and healthy food. They are high in calories but are a major food that helps to lower cholesterol.

Olive oil is a practical replacement for vegetable oil that you can use in cooking and as a condiment and salad oil. It offers that unique and delicious flavor. Olive oil is one of the monounsaturated fatty oils, and is actually very good for you. It has the effect of lowering your LDL cholesterol level (the bad cholesterol) without lowering your HDL cholesterol level (the good cholesterol).

Salmon can be grilled, steamed or even eaten raw. It is easy to prepare, as long as you do not over cook. Salmon contains the essential fatty acids that we need to maintain health, in the form of Omega-3 that you may have heard about. Salmon and other oily fish are one of the best sources of Omega-3 which protects us against heart disease and high cholesterol.

Walnuts or almonds are kinds of snacks that many people find themselves looking for on a daily basis. They are healthy snacks. Like olive oil, almonds are high in monounsaturated fats which benefit your cholesterol level.

Garlic can replace salt in your happinesslifetime.com low cholesterol diet. Garlic has anti-bacterial properties and is good for your overall health. It is very easy to incorporate in many of your delicious recipes. Garlic contains a compound called allicin that is known to lower cholesterol levels.

Try oatmeal for breakfast as a substitute for those cereals that consist of hydrogenated fats. Oatmeal goes together with fresh fruits and gives an interesting approach to your daily happinesslifetime.com low cholesterol diet. Oat bran is a soluble fiber that helps to remove high levels of LDL by wrapping around it and eliminating it from your system.

There are many foods for lower cholesterol that you can choose from and taste great. Try to include them in your meal choices and in-between snacks. A good happinesslifetime.com low cholesterol diet is really about smart choices.

Graham Player Ph.D. is a Bachelor of Science graduate with Doctoral Degree in Health Sciences. He is an internationally recognized author of several books, including "Control Your Cholesterol Naturally and Safely". To read more on the topic
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Does a Low-Fat Diet Really Work?

Health and fitness is becoming a major priority for people in this day and age. There are so many diets that claim to work, and be healthy. The low-carb trend is constantly debated, however if there is something that has remained true and tried through the various ages- it is a low fat diet plan. There are statistics and studies that have indicated that this no fat diet is one of the most effective diets that one can follow. This type of diet introduces healthy foods, eating habits, and a healthy overall lifestyle.

A low-fat diet can contribute to one's weight loss endeavors, and can lead to extensive health benefits beyond that of weight-loss alone. What many people really want to know is does a low fat diet really work? The answer is beyond a positive yes. There is substantial information and evidence that backs this very fact up. Fat is what causes people to be obese, overweight, and have health conditions related to their unhealthy food intake. A person can derive high-cholesterol from eating foods high in fat content. They also can get high-blood pressure, diabetes, and heart disease that can greatly detriment the quality of one's life.

Most foods that are low in fat are generally good for the body, whether they contain potent anti-oxidants, essential fatty acids, vital vitamins and minerals, or just are lower in calories. Each food that makes up a very long list of foods that have low fat plays a role in weight-loss, fat reduction, system maintenance, and overall body functions. With this retrospect, people that have been studied and compared to those who do not partake in low fat dieting plans come up healthier in many ways. In addition, these candidates have experienced significant increases in their weight-loss endeavors.

Decades ago when these types of diets were introduced, there was a media statement by the (NACNE) National Advisory Committee on Nutrition Education that reported an extensive association with diet to various detrimental diseases. The entire dieting industry set out to specifically target such aspects of health and diet as reducing fat intake, reducing sugar and salt consumption, and increasing fiber consumption. A year later, COMA ( Committee of Medical Aspects of Food Policy) released guidelines and regulations in order to address cardiovascular disease. These guidelines set precedence to reduce fat intake, monitor saturates, and thus create an awareness of diet and disease.

Since then, the low fat diet industry has expanded enormously. With this more evidence has been brought forward and has indicated that people who follow a low fat diet plan that allow for 30%-40% fat derived calories is most successful for people to stick with and produce weight-loss results and obtain health benefits. There are various restrictions of different diets such as this, and a great selection of low fat diet plans one can follow that they can find to suit their preferences in food, restriction, and needs. If you are serious about losing weight and want to pursue a healthy lifestyle, there is a vast amount of resources and diet plans you can find on the web by performing a simple search.

Please visit the lowfatdietplan.org low fat diet plans site to further your understanding of how a low-fat diet can help your weight-loss, and how to get started today!

Reduce Heart Disease With Low Fat Diet

400,000 deaths each year may be attributed to obesity. Studies have shown that obesity and heart disease are inevitably linked. You also have a higher chance of getting diabetes Type 2 when you are obese.

One of the reasons people are encouraged to lose weight, exercise regularly and make wiser food choices is to avoid obesity. Therefore, losing weight is not just for beauty purpose, it actually will save your life.

The worst thing about heart disease is that people can go decades without any sign or symptoms and suddenly have a massive heart attack and drop dead.

Diet and weight are two powerful forces for health that you can control. If you are currently overweight, you should do something about diet. And you can lose excess (unhealthy) weight easily, safely by eliminating certain foods from your diet, by including others in the right amounts, and by the use of nutritional supplements, you can achieve at least a 50 per cent protection against heart attack.

The outstanding fats are being eaten daily in the United States and Europe are butter, eggs, whole milk, cream, meat, fish and poultry fats, and cheese in various combinations.

These fats, at 9 calories per gram, contain more than twice the amount of calories than protein or carbohydrate does at four calories each per gram.

By reducing the fat intake will dramatically help you to lose weight. Research show that the reduction of fat content in the national diet have many effect on the number of deaths from heart attack.

Medical researchers, pathologists, doctors have found that when the blood levels of fat were low, the damage to heart and brain was also low. The strong evidence shows that when blood cholesterol and fats are high, the arteries were correspondingly high in the degree of damage or destruction by atherosclerosis.

There is only one safe and effective way to achieve the correct poundage and to keep it at that figure. That way is to follow a correct nutritional program, and to follow it consistently, one might almost say religiously.

Let us "eat to live, not live to eat." The low-fat diet holds great promise for everyone, whether the person has atherosclerosis or not. The low-fat way of life can be followed by anyone, anywhere, and it is simple, safe, effective.

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Diets to Lower Cholesterol - Discover Diets to Lower Cholesterol

There are many diets to lower cholesterol. These diets only work depending on the reason behind a persons high cholesterol count. If high cholesterol is diet related than a change in the diet will lower cholesterol. If high cholesterol is not diet related than a diet change will have little or no effect on the cholesterol count.

Generally, diets to lower cholesterol contain foods low in cholesterol. It seems pretty simple. It may not be that simple however. The body produces all the cholesterol it needs to function. Any extra cholesterol that is taken in to the body through diet can build up over time and cause health problems. There are also hereditary issues to consider. Some hereditary malfunctions cause the body to produce too much cholesterol or to not process it efficiently.

Help the Body to Help Itself.

Luckily there are ways to help the body help itself. A sensible diet should be considered whether or not the current diet is the source of the high cholesterol. A sensible diet, such as a low fat high fiber diet, will help the body maintain good health. If high cholesterol is present regardless of diet then usually a doctor will prescribe some medication hoping that this will take care of the problem. In some instances, doctors will even switch medications, trying different medications as a haphazard attempt to fix a problem. Combining a sensible diet with herbal supplements may be the answer.

The Search for the Right Supplement.

When searching for an herbal supplement, it is important to remember that some herbal supplements contain man-made chemicals. These chemicals should be eliminated from any herbal supplement possibility. Supplements should contain only high quality natural ingredients. Some of the highest quality ingredients are found in the herbal supplements produced in the pristine source of New Zealand. Combining these supplements with diets to lower cholesterol and an aerobic exercise program is a sure fire way to bring problem cholesterol under control. All this can be done without the nasty side effects associated with prescription medications.

When searching for supplements, it is also important to remember that many of these are not strictly regulated, therefore ingredients may not be as labeled.

Herbal supplement technology has been being utilized and researched for thousands of years. The shear longevity that this technology possesses speaks highly of its effectiveness.

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The Fight For And Against Cholesterol

Cholesterol falls into the category of the lipids (fats) carried by the blood system. For the purposes of precision, we are talking about small amounts of steroids responsible for the breakdown of the fatty particles that circulate around the blood system. Cholesterol participates in the make-up of the cell membranes and the synthesis of some hormones. About 80 percent of the cholesterol is contained in the brain cells. In short, cholesterol is essential for staying perfectly fit.

The blood carries 2 mg of cholesterol every day. One third of the amount enters with the food while the rest is synthesized by the body. Doctors consider that high cholesterol endangers the heart and the blood vessels. The paradox is that we have to fight cholesterol when we vitally need it.

In reality, cholesterol is a changeable substance. We differentiate between healthy and bad cholesterol. We will talk about the friendly type in another article. Here, we examine bad cholesterol as an enemy that enters our body with fatty foods. The doctors are well aware of the link between bad cholesterol and one of the leading diseases worldwide: ischemia of the heart.

How can we foresee the danger of amassing large amounts of cholesterol in the blood? Does cholesterol lower naturally? What are the cholesterol normal levels? First of all, these questions are vital for our life. Both, cholesterol treatment and weight treatment aim to safeguard our health.

The current level of cholesterol allows us to foresee the future dangers to our heart and blood vessels. We can predict them with 70% precision. Consider the case of a 20 year old man with cholesterol level of 12 mmol/l (the average cholesterol level is 5.2 mmol/l). If this man doesn`t take measures, he will greatly increase the chances of getting a heart attack in his early 30s.

Many people ask whether cholesterol is dangerous but few know the answer. Well, cholesterol travels in the blood in the form of large molecules related to the proteins. Modern medicine refers to them as lipoproteins. In their constitution, cholesterol has a low density that results in easy amassing of cholesterol on the walls of the blood vessels.

Doctors claim that they can find cholesterol in the blood system of 15 year old teens. The amount grows in time while the passable area of the vessels shrinks. In the event of inflammatory processes on the vessel walls, the cholesterol plaques can rupture. Then, a blood clot may develop on their place. If the blood clot tears apart, it will travel through the main arteries. This can be a life threatening condition.

The body needs 300 mg of cholesterol per day. Our daily food supplies 400 mg. So, we see that it is vital to eat healthily. We have to start asking the following questions. What is the percentage of fats in the cheese I am about to buy? What is the level of cholesterol in my blood?

With aging, we have to exclude the fatty meats from our daily diet. Large amounts of cholesterol are contained in the caviar, salami, butter, and many others foods. Many enthusiasts fight cholesterol with a meat-free diet. This is one of the ways to get normal levels of cholesterol.

Here comes our second option. Arteriosclerosis is virtually lacking in many Third World countries. We know that their citizens consume mainly rice and vegetables. Follow the lead!

Many times, eating habits are difficult to change. However, we should be aware of the cholesterol risks. We have to do our best to eat healthily. Weight treatment in any form is a matter of health. By the same token, when we eliminate weight excess and reach our good weight, we reduce bad cholesterol and embrace health!

The articles below may be of interest:

HAPPINESS DIET
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THE CLEANSING POWER OF VEGETABLES
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High Cholesterol Medication

Cholesterol is a lipid that is present in the cell membranes of all animal tissues. Scientists also consider it as sterol, a combination of steroid and alcohol. Eukaryotes synthesize cholesterol in the cells of the body. Hence, small amount of cholesterol is also present in membranes of plants and fungi.

Cholesterol aids the body to develop new cells, produce hormones and protect nerves.

Cholesterol medication is necessary along with a low-fat and high-fiber diet to reduce cholesterol levels. Usually, treatment for extreme cholesterol levels start with fiber diets along with exercise routines. However, some patients might require a cholesterol medication along with dietary changes to reduce their cholesterol levels.

Below listed are certain cholesterol medications to reduce cholesterol levels:

1. Niacin

2. Statins

3. Fibric acid derivatives

4. Bile-acid resins

High Cholesterol Treatment:

Hypercholesterolemia shows high blood cholesterol. To understand the causes of high cholesterol levels, it is very crucial to understand that high level of cholesterol in the blood is not a disorder.

Instead, this particular medical phenomenon is similar to a metabolic unbalance and may contribute to specific types of disorders such as cardiovascular diseases. Doctors closely link high cholesterol with the following medical terms:

1. Hyperlipoproteinemia (high levels of lipoproteins), and

2. Hyperlipidemia (advanced levels of lipids).

The level of blood cholesterol increases in the body without any previous indications. Although, it is serious threat as it leads to cardiovascular diseases such as heart attack or stroke, affected people still feel healthy and do not take the disease seriously.

Harmful levels of cholesterol always relate to bad diets, obesity, excessive alcohol intake, stress, age, smoking, physical lethargy and heredity. Doctors may prescribe specific diet plans and weight loss advice for patients diagnosed with high blood cholesterol levels.

Usually, doctors recommend a systematic diet to reduce dietary fat, particularly saturated fat. Several patients following such diets end with reduced blood cholesterol levels.

However, sometimes, exercise and diet are not sufficient to lower cholesterol levels. In such cases, doctors often suggest medications. Lipitor, Zocor, Pravachol, and Lescol are certain prominent cholesterol treatment medications that help to reduce high cholesterol level in the body.

Submitted by Marcia Henin, Content Editor at Inter-dev - Internet marketing company, On behalf of E-newcells.com - Provider of a natural Antioxidant supplement [e-newcells.com] that is used as a High cholesterol treatment [e-newcells.com/Pages.asp?PageName=high-cholesterol].

Why Consider A Diet With Low Calorie and Vegetarian Recipes?

Meat can be very unhealthy. Not including cholesterol and fats, there are antibiotics, bacteria, parasites, and chemical toxins that can be present in commercial meats that are consumed. These harmful ingredients can be extremely detrimental to physical and mental well being and can create problems with digestion and can even lead to a reduction in cancer fighting agents in the body.

Also becoming a Vegetarian can be a result of having certain beliefs about life and all of its components. Most Vegetarians believe that eating animals is cruel and unethical. Most commercial meat is from animals such as calves, young chickens, and pigs that are many times raised in unbelievably terrible conditions (which are believed to produce the choicest cuts of meat).

Another reason is ecological. The environment suffers from the inefficient raising of livestock. Fertile land is being destroyed to the point that it may never be usable again. Not to mention methane emissions, bacteria, and other ills of major corporate agriculture farms. Meat is also more expensive, more perishable, takes longer to process, needs refrigeration, and is transported over vast distances. This process takes up an enormous amount of resources.

Dietary Benefits of a Vegetarian Lifestyle

A Vegetarian diet can fight many chronic diseases. Numerous studies have shown that a Vegetarian diet rich in plant foods like whole grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and legumes can aid in lowering the risk of obesity, heart disease, high blood pressure, and certain cancers.

A Vegetarian diet is very kind to your waist line! The whole grains, fruits, and vegetables fill you up but don't fill you out. The fiber in these foods and their high water/low calorie content makes you feel full long before you are able to over eat or consume too many calories.

Great heart health is another wonderful aspect of the Vegetarian lifestyle. Most plant foods are very low in saturated fats (artery cloggers). A high blood cholesterol level is the number one culprit for heart disease and since dietary cholesterol is found only in animal foods, Vegetarians have the opportunity to eat dietary cholesterol-free. Vegetables, fruits, and whole grains are also rich in antioxidants which provide extra benefits for your heart.

There are many benefits to a Vegetarian lifestyle that are physiological and ecological. If you are considering becoming a Vegetarian then take your time, pick the best meals for you, and enjoy all the incredible benefits that this diet offers!

Discover all the other great low calorie and vegetarian recipes just waiting for you at my low calorie and vegetarian recipes [low-calorie-and-vegetarian-recipes.org] website or at [low-calorie-and-vegetarian-recipes.org]

Guide to Cholesterol Treatment Alternatives

if you are looking for cholesterol treatment alternatives, your doctor may have recommended statin drugs. If you know about the side effects of the drugs, you will be happy to hear that there are effective natural solutions.

The dietary recommendations include reducing meat and dairy products in the diet, but that is not always effective. If you eat less cholesterol, your body compensates by producing more. The waxy compound is essential for various functions of the human body.

When being transported in the bloodstream, the particles are harmless. It is only if they become oxidized on the arterial walls that they cause problems.

Only the LDL particles are actually dangerous. The HDL particles are larger, contain more proteins and do not clog up the arteries.

The latest studies indicate that reducing simple carbohydrates in the diet may be more effective than other recommendations. Foods like refined grains, white rice, pasta, breads, sweets, junk food and white potatoes cause a spike in insulin levels, which stimulates the liver to produce more cholesterol.

So, what should you eat? Fish, fruits, vegetables, brown rice, whole grains, beans, legumes, soy, olive and rice bran oil are good to start with. If you like beef, chicken and lamb, choose the grass-fed, free range or organic varieties. They are leaner and contain a healthier balance of fatty acids.

Taking rice bran oil is one of the cholesterol treatment alternatives available in supplement form. Policosanol, a substance extracted from raw sugar cane, is another. It does not cause elevated blood sugar or insulin levels.

Theaflavins and catechins found in black and green teas are beneficial. D-limonene, a type of oil extracted from citrus rind, is helpful too. Lecithin and phytosterols have been shown to improve blood profiles in several studies.

You don't see these cholesterol treatment alternatives advertised on TV, because the manufacturers are not allowed to promote the health benefits. If a supplement is found to treat, cure or prevent a disease, it becomes a drug.

An example is fish oil, which has been used by people for years as a remedy for painful joints and to lower blood triglycerides. Now it is produced by pharmaceutical companies, although the supplements are cheaper and readily available.

Some of the better supplements on the market contain all of the extracts and compounds mentioned above, because each addresses a different factor contributing to unhealthy LDL levels.

Cholesterol treatment alternatives that address only a single factor, such as high triglycerides or low HDL levels, are simply not that effective. Not only do we have to worry about the cholesterols in the foods that we eat and the LDL particles produced by the liver, we must also be concerned about re-absorption.

Once the particles make their rounds in the bloodstream and are returned to the liver, they are passed into the digestive system. About 95% of them are re-absorbed through the intestinal walls. So, they travel through the bloodstream yet again, increasing the risk that they will become oxidized.

The best cholesterol treatment alternatives are those that inhibit re-absorption, raise HDL levels and lower LDL levels. It might take a little research, but I have found that they are well worth the effort.

Jackie Leone is a consumer advocate and a dedicated researcher who has been on a search to find the lowercholesterolinfo.com best natural cholesterol balancing supplements available. Visit her website at lowercholesterolinfo.com lowercholesterolinfo.com to discover what she personally takes and why.

Good and Bad Cholesterol

Studies have shown that excess cholesterol in the blood stream can cause major damage to your cardiovascular system, resulting in various forms of heart disease and even death. All of your cells need cholesterol, yet they have only a limited ability to produce it. In order to get cholesterol where it is needed, the liver has developed a system that puts cholesterol and and triglycerides together into lipoproteins. There are three lipoproteins in your bloodstream, very low density lipoprotein (VLDL), low density lipoprotein (LDL) and high density lipoprotein (HDL) Two of these are produced by your liver (VLDL and HDL) while LDL is created in the bloodstream from VLDL under certain circumstances. VLDL carries triglycerides to the tissues and cells and unloads some which is used for energy or stored as fat.VLDL, however, still has cholesterol, which is used for hormone production, nerve insulation, cell wall creation, to name a few.

If your body produces too much cholesterol, or if you eat too much of the wrong foods, you would have more cholesterol than is needed by the body and it would eventually start depositing on the artery walls. Cholesterol passes through the artery wall quite easily, since the membrane covering the inner surface of every artery is made of fat. The cells of the artery wall shed chemical wastes that can cause oxidation of the trapped LDL cholesterol. Substances known as antioxidants serve as preservatives and keep the LDL from spoiling. If antioxidants are present in the LDL itself, or if it is present in the area where LDL is trapped they can prevent this oxidation from taking place.

Vitamin E, a fat-soluble antioxidant is one of the most effective in preventing this oxidation. There are many other antioxidants as well. Iron, on the other hand, stimulates the oxidation of LDL. Once this oxidation of LDL occurs it attracts other cells into the space it occupies in the artery wall. These cells eat the spoiling rancid LDL and become "foam cells" Foam cells fill up with cholesterol and ultimately burst open when they die. In the process, various factors stimulate the growth of smooth muscle cells in the artery wall, which means that there is an overgrowth of muscle. Over a number of years, all of these cellular events contribute to the progress of atherosclerosis.

It's easy to see why LDL is called the "bad Cholesterol".It is responsible for the formation of plaque in the arterial wall. This can lead to atherosclerosis and other debilitating conditions. What then is "good cholesterol"?HDL carries cholesterol back to the liver. HDL is produced principally by the liver and intestines and carries very little fat. It is the most soluble and easily transported of the lipoproteins.

HDL is known as the good cholesterol for good reason.HDL is able to tow VLDL back to the liver before they can be converted into LDL. HDL can also inhibit the LDL oxidation process, thus preventing the cholesterol from going rancid.

You should reduce your overall fat and calorie consumption to minimize the amount of LDL circulating in your blood stream. However, you should also take positive steps to increase your HDL level independently of your cholesterol count. Losing weight can lead to a decrease in triglycerides and an increase in HDL cholesterol. Giving up smoking has a number of benefits, including a reduction in LDL oxidation. As mentioned before, Vitamin E can help prevent oxidation of LDL as well. Exercising can increase HDL and lower total cholesterol.

In the battle to stop atherosclerosis, multiple approaches work best. There is no single magic bullet. Natural therapies only produce the greatest improvement when used in combination with a healthy diet and exercise. In fact the most powerful cholesterol lowering drugs can be neutralised by poor diets and lifestyles.

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Be Cholesterol Conscious, Be Aware of Your Cholesterol Levels

Did you know that it was the UK's first National Cholesterol Week last week (13-19 September, 2010) run by the organisation H.E.A.R.T. UK, the cholesterol charity, and supported by the likes of MP's such as Halton MP Derek Twigg who publicly had his cholesterol checked in this week - not only for his own health - but to raise awareness and support a national drive for better heart awareness. Did you know there was an all party parliamentary group on heart disease? Neither did I but they support this initiative.

Heart disease is the biggest killer in the UK, so any support in getting the message out so we can all be aware of our cholesterol levels, and take preventative measures to avoid the risk factors which lead to high cholesterol - and the consequential probability of heart disease - is fantastic.

We only have one body - and one heart - and so we need to respect this, by being aware of what goes into our body, and the consequences of poor diet, low exercise levels, and inadequate supplementation (in today's over processed world, gm crops and food additives, some essential minerals or vitamins may be lacking). Small changes can have great consequences, so start looking at prevention. And if you already suffer with high cholesterol, there are supplements and diet changes which can have a beneficial effect on lowering it. Any supplement which contains essential fatty acids - omega's 3 or 6 - will be a st art on prevention or mitigation. We have all heard of cod liver oil, or primrose oil, but high concentrations are also found in flax seed, which can be used to dress salads or as an oil to cook with, or I bet you might not have heard of chia seed oil - the highest plant source of Omega 3. Or even green tea! Green tea Lowers LDL cholesterol, levels of lipid peroxides, and a fibrinogen - a blood protein which assists in the formation of blood clots.

So, be aware of your heart, and be pro-active in keeping it healthy. We are all masters of our own destinies - make yours a healthy and long-lived one. And if anyone out there has their own story relating to heart health, please feel free to comment on this and add your own experiences.

Heather Robinson

Heather Robinson has set up her own health and beauty online shop, offering a range of health supplements and other health and beauty support products, aiming to protect, prevent and preserve our beautiful bodies. For further information or advice please visit bodyconscious.co.uk bodyconscious.co.uk

Ten Tips on Foods for Lower Cholesterol

Eating foods for lower cholesterol is a great option for people who find it difficult to take prescribed drugs. So as well as taking a daily amount of organic supplements which help with lowering cholesterol, probably the most natural way to lower your cholesterol is to have a good daily intake of happinesslifetime.com cholesterol lowering foods.

Here's a list of some of the top foods for lower cholesterol:

1. Complex carbohydrates and soluble fibre. One the main reasons why eating foods that are rich in fibre are great for lowering cholesterol is that they have the ability to soak up fats in the blood stream and the intestines. Some good examples of fibre foods are: oatmeal, whole meal pasta, whole grain bread and brown rice. Using foods like white carbohydrates are usually very high in sugar and have low nutrient levels. It's also a good idea to have a good daily intake of foods such as beans, pulses, soya and plenty of vegetables and fruit.

2. Polyunsaturated fats. Consuming polyunsaturated fats can have a positive effect on lowering Both LDL and HDL cholesterols in the body. Keep a look out for foods like sesame oil, corn oil, soya oil and sunflower oil all of which are a good source of polyunsaturated fats. It can also be found in foods such as almonds, walnuts, sesame seeds and sunflower seeds.

3. Monounsaturated fats. These are good foods for lower cholesterol, because they help lower your LDL levels while helping to maintain your HDL levels. You can find monounsaturated fats in foods like canola oil, rapeseed and olive oil. Some other good sources are pecans, peanuts, cashews, hazelnuts, pistachios and avocados.

4. Antioxidant foods. One of the key points to note about LDL "bad cholesterol" is that it's very unstable. LDL can start to affect the arteries and doing harm, the minute it is oxidized. There are foods you can eat to counter act the effects of LDL oxidizing, and they are dark chocolate, red wine, green tea and another good one is fresh berries.

5. Here are a few more foods that you can incorporate into your diet that will help with lowering cholesterol levels, and they are fish full of omega 3 oils- lentils and garlic.

More tips to lowering cholesterol:

1. Try to limit the amount of dairy products you consume on a daily basis, i.e. margarine, egg yolks, full fat milk coconut oil and palm oil.

2. Try eating more chicken (without the skin) instead of red meats such as beef. a great source of fish which are full of omega 3 fatty acids are herring, mackerel, sardines, pilchards, lake trout, halibut, wild salmon and tuna (these are all good oily fish).

3. If the majority of the food you eat is fried, try cooking it in a more healthy way. Some good healthy ideas for cooking are boiling, steaming, poached or grilled.

4. Where ever possible try to buy foods that are fresh. You greatly lower the amount of saturated fats, Tran's fats, hydrogenated oils, preservatives, artificial colourings and flavourings that you consume on a daily basis.

5. Last but most importantly. Before making lots of drastic changes to your diet, always consult with your doctor to decide which course of direction is best suited for you.

Richard Bratt is a nutrition expert. For more information on loweringcholesterolmadeeasy.com/foods-for-lower-cholesterol foods for lower cholesterol, please visit loweringcholesterolmadeeasy.com loweringcholesterolmadeeasy.com

Simple Ways To Reduce Cholesterol Levels

You must be looking for ways to reduce cholesterol levels, the reason why you chanced upon this article to begin with. Perhaps your latest blood chemistry revealed that your cholesterols are up, and "up" is not always a good thing, most especially when you are talking about bad cholesterol. Bad cholesterol that are higher than normal is life threatening if left untreated. In many cases though, you may not always be able to detect that your bad cholesterol levels are rising. That is why it is always recommended to monitor your cholesterol levels on a regular basis, more so when you are already in your middle years. Blood cholesterol monitoring is recommended to people 20 years and beyond.

It is easy to reduce cholesterol levels back to the normal range with the right attitude. For very high bad cholesterol readings, medications may be necessary, but since these medications formulated to lower cholesterol levels often come with side effects (among the most serious of which affect the kidneys and the liver), many health experts advise patients to take alternative means first.

There is no big secret to lowering bad cholesterol levels the natural way. All you have to remember is to eat right, exercise, and take the recommended supplements, and your cholesterol can be reduced to a more manageable level.

Now what does it mean to eat right? When you have high cholesterol, eating plenty of greens and foods rich in fiber can bring the numbers down significantly. Fiber should be made an important part of the diet more so when you have to keep your cholesterol down. Almost all vegetables have a good amount of fiber in them, but broccoli, cauliflower, beans and peas are among those that have the highest fiber content. Many fruits contain fiber, too. To aid in cholesterol reduction, it is recommended that you include fresh apples and citrus fruits in your diet. Fiber occurs naturally in oats and barley, so starting your day with oatmeal or barley bread is highly recommended. If you can find Psyllium fiber supplements, that will be even better because Psyllium is one of the richest sources of fiber. Choose the kind that comes with no additives, no preservatives, no flavorings, though.

While on a fiber-rich diet, it is important that you avoid foods that are obviously bad for your health. Saturated fat increases bad cholesterol levels and you must be prudent enough to avoid foods that are high in saturated fat. Milk is good, but choose skimmed milk or low-fat milk so you will not load your body with saturated fat. You still can eat meat, but do not fry it as much as possible, and do not eat the skin of the meat. Chicken skin is especially high in saturated fat. You need to avoid foods that are prepared with too much oil, too. Better yet, avoid frying your foods, unless you are using olive oil.

Exercise is always a good thing, whether you are in good health or not, but the need to exercise becomes more urgent when you want to naturalcholesterolsupplements.com reduce cholesterol levels as this tends to help you burn fat more quickly.

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The Fantasy and Trauma of Low-Carbohydrate, High-Protein (LCHP) Diets

Have you tried losing weight on a low-carbohydrate, high-protein diet (LHCP)? Chances are the answer is 'yes,' especially since this approach to dieting has been repackaged many times over. Unfortunately, the joke was on you.

Not only do LHCP diets have a terrible track record for long-term weight reduction, there is ample evidence mounting over the past forty years that they are detrimental to your health. In 2001, the American Heart Association warned of the increased risk of coronary artery disease, diabetes, stroke, and several types of cancer as a result of the LCHP diet fantasy. A number of studies have even found it to increase death. Ultimately, the fantasy and trauma of a low-carbohydrate, high-protein diet sets the stage for chronic disease.

So, why were so many duped by the low-carbohydrate, high-protein diet fantasy? Because, at first, people did lose weight. After multiple unsuccessful dieting adventures, people were desperate for the typical "quick fix" diet to miraculously make them "healthy". But, the physiology behind this staged, fantasy weight loss is very simple: losing vital body water and using up carbohydrate (glycogen) stores in your body. Thus, losing 5-10 pounds in one week is completely possible. But, never mind the absolute disarray and imbalance the body must endure during such a period.... never mind the trauma!

Simply put, LCHP diets produce a state of ketosis through a form of starvation which causes the body to become acidic. In order to protect itself, the body will continue to "wash out" excess acid through the kidneys lending to a state of dehydration. Furthermore, due to the low carbohydrate intake the body uses up its glycogen stores, a process that requires significant amounts of water. So, that quick weight loss during induction is due to losing large amounts of water from all the cells of the body. This explains why people complain of always feeling thirsty. When chronically acidic, the body will try to neutralize the acid by pulling calcium phosphate from bone causing osteoporosis. This is our body's way of "putting out the fire" of the excess acid and "cooling down" the overworked/stressed organs and their cells.

But, as most dieters quickly find out, the LCHP diet is a fantasy. In the long-term, most people regain their lost weight, and some even gain back more. As soon as they resume carbohydrate intake, the state of ketosis will reverse and the body replaces lost water/electrolytes and restores glycogen in the body causing a rebound weight gain. For those that successfully lose weight and keep it off, the reason is usually because of a decreased total caloric intake in general. However, these people usually have nutrient and fiber deficiencies that help set the stage for chronic disease.

Aside from regaining weight, listed below are a number of concerning symptoms and disease processes worth mentioning. Most of these symptoms are related to a combination of ketosis/acidosis, dehydration, malnutrition, electrolyte loss/disturbances, and low fiber intake. Such adverse effects of the low-carbohydrate, high-protein fantasy and trauma diet are (and not limited to):

Symptoms of Ketosis (dehydration, dizziness, headache, lethargy, fatigue, mental "fog", nausea, stomach ache, sleep disturbance, bad breath, shortness of breath)
Symptoms of low fiber (constipation, bloating, indigestion, acid reflux/heartburn, flatulence)
Muscle cramps
Irritability
Depression/apathy
Increased uric acid and/or gout attacks
Ketogenic state/ketosis
Chronic Metabolic Acidosis
Osteoporosis
Renal stress and/or damage
Loss of minerals (especially calcium)
Nutritional deficiencies
Optic Neuropathy
Increased serum cholesterol and LDL
Nephrolithiasis/Kidney Stones
Liver Damage
Atherosclerosis/Vascular Diseases
Coronary Artery Disease
Diabetes
Stroke
Cancer
Possible abnormal fetal development

So, are you still interested in a low-carbohydrate, high-protein diet? If you're on a LCHP regimen, do not be discouraged. MENDication can help free you of this joke; it can bring you back to reality from fantasy and repair the trauma. But, time is of the essence. Some basic steps to take immediately: stop the protein overdose, eat more vegetables and fruits (yes, do not fear complex carbohydrates), eat more naturally, drink plenty of water, and remain active. Again, straying from healthy, complex carbohydrate foods such as fruits, vegetables, grains/brans/oats, and various legumes is to the detriment of your health.

MENDication's program is personalized and helps the individual to effectively lose weight and keep it off. Of course, this is only a sign of its efficacy as its primary focus is to optimize metabolism, nutrition, digestion, and detoxification in order to restore vitality and health.

Don't allow this joke to be played on you or your loved ones!

Discover Natural Cholesterol Reducers That You Usually Take For Granted

Natural cholesterol reducers are those organic foods or even supplements that are not chemically manufactured. These cholesterol reducers in short, are not synthetic supplements. If you don't know, there are many organic cholesterol reducers that Mother Nature has generously provided for man. The problem is that you don't have an idea what they are and you tend to overlook their importance. They have so many health benefits and one of these benefits even include helping lower down the high cholesterol levels of the body. This article will help you find out the untapped wonders of the organic cholesterol reducers. Some of these are even found in your home. Who knew that you can keep your cholesterol within normal levels just by knowing and tapping into Mother Nature's gifts?

One example of an organic cholesterol reducer that you can use to help you become healthier is garlic. This is one cholesterol reducer that you might be familiar with. Garlic contains properties which could aid you in reducing your cholesterol levels. There are so many ways on how you could prepare garlic. You could crush the garlic and immerse it in a glass of warm water, like what you would do with tea bags. Other preparations would include cooking the garlic and eating it. This is what most people do. But some experts claim that raw garlic is a much more potent source than its cooked counterpart because cooking strips it of its cholesterol reducing properties.

Natural cholesterol reducers are found even inside your home, or you can look for them in supermarkets. Aside from garlic, fruits and vegetables also help in lowering the cholesterol in your body. These are very rich in antioxidants and have high amounts of soluble fiber in it. Antioxidants are known of course to detoxify the body and rid it of harmful chemicals. Cholesterol is not bad for the body just as long as the values are within the normal limits. Because fruits and vegetables have soluble fiber in them, the fiber sweeps away the cholesterol. Other food items that are rich in soluble fiber are oatmeal, and those that contain wheat, should also be included in your diet.

Fish, like tuna, mackerel, salmon, herring and sardines are excellent sources of omega 3 fatty acids. You might have heard that omega 3 fatty acids help in the development of healthy cells and tissues and is especially helpful for pregnant women. Omega 3 fatty acids are effective in lowering down the LDL (Low Density Lipoprotein) or the bad cholesterol of the body. This also boosts the HDL, High Density Lipoprotein, which is the good cholesterol of the body. Eating a serving of foods with omega 3 fatty acids every day will help stabilize your uncontrollable body cholesterol.

These naturally occurring cholesterol reducers are not chemically induced or are not from synthetic materials, thus you are sure that these will not cause any harmful side effects for your body. If you want to get healthy the organic way, then naturalcholesterolsupplements.com natural cholesterol reducers are the way to go.

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Ten Things to Look For to Spot a Fad Diet

Fad diets are everywhere. They come and they go. some simply run their course then disappear forever, while some pop up, go away for a while, then sort of show up again a year or two later and continue to repeat this cycle. the fact is, there are a lot of good, sound ways to lose weight and keep it off for good, but finding these ways to a more fit and trim body means you'll need to be able to spot the "fads" out there that simply do not work long term and can be dangerous to your health in the long run. Here are some tell tale things to look for to help you see your way past the fake and phony gimmicks that are out there and remember, if it sounds too good to be true......

1) A MAGICAL PILL, DRINK, POWDER OR FOOD IS USED: The weight loss industry is a $30 billion dollar per Year Empire. These companies are making massive amounts of money marketing new "breakthrough" potions that make lots of false claims. They know how desperate many overweight people are to lose weight and so they know how easy it is to target this market. the FDA has very little jurisdiction over these kinds of products since the weight loss companies claim that their products are "natural" or "herbal", and only when these products cause health problems or even deaths like in the recent case of ephedrine, the FDA will step in.

2) DIFFERENT FOOD COMBINATIONS SUPPOSIDLY MAKE YOU LOSE WEIGHT: There is no scientific evidence to support any claims that certain food combinations will induce weight loss. Simply consuming fewer calories than you burn each day with a good balance of nutrients will lead to healthy weight loss.

3) THE PLAN WORKS "WITHOUT EXERCISE": While most people would like to be able to take the easy way out, a little exercise goes a long way in any weight loss effort. Sure you can lose weight without exercise, but if you want to lose mostly fat and not muscle and water, and look healthy and good once you've achieved your weight loss goal, you need at least 30 minutes per day, 4-5 days per week of light to moderate exercise like walking, swimming and even a little weight training.

4) IT PROMISES MORE THAN ONE OR TWO POUNDS OF WEIGHT LOSS PER WEEK: In order for any well balanced weight loss plan to be both affective and healthy, you should not strive to lose more than 1-2 pounds per week. A plan that proposes that you will lose 30 pounds in 30 days is not a good, sound, healthy plan. One pound of fat equals about 2500 calories. This means that if a person were to burn up 400-500 more calories per day with, say, a small reduction in food and a little exercise, they would lose around one to one and a half pounds of fat per week. This is a healthy and ideal way to lose weight.

5) YOU SEE THE WORDS "FAT BURNER", "FAT TRAPPER" OR ANYTHING ALONG THOSE LINES: Run like the wind from these types of products. Most of these products have side effects that would make the most desperate of dieters cringe. All I can say here is, if your really considering any of these types of products, do your homework and read everything you can about them first, or take my advice and avoid them like the plague.

6) IT SAYS IT WILL "BOOST YOUR METABOLISM": Most of these products are little more than caffeine products. A pill, powder or drink cannot speed up your metabolism. There is no logic behind this at all! These products are usually diuretics that serve only to speed up you heart rates in turn making your organs work faster thus flushing water out of your body. The temporary feeling of being thinner will be short lived, and you will only end up fatter in the long run.

7) ONE TYPE OF FOOD IS CONSUMED TO EXCESS: Most of you have heard of the cabbage soup diet. Remember the grapefruit diet? How many people do you know who have tried one of these diets, lost weight, and kept it off? Probably none! I personally know people who have tried these diets, swore by them with complete assurance they would work (against my advice, mind you) and failed badly. Only a few even lost any weight at all, sung the praises of the plan, only to end up fatter in 6 months than when they began the diet. These types of happinesslifetime.com weight loss programs are meant to be discontinued after a certain time meaning that when you go back to your normal routine, you can expect to get a high rate of "return" back for your investment.

8) ITS A LOW CARBOHYDRATE DIET: The long and short of it here is that you need carbohydrates in your diet, particularly if you are trying to lose weight. Removing most of the carbs from your diet means that more fat (at 9 calories per gram) will replace those carbs (at 4 calories per gram) not to mention the wide variety of health issues associated with a high fat intake. Also, excess protein will not help because your body can only use so much protein within a certain period of time. All of the extra protein will just store as fat. Carbs are also your body's main source of energy, and you need that energy to get you through your exercise routines that you should be doing anyway.

9) DRINKING WATER IS NOT MENTIONED: Water is absolutely essential for proper weight loss. If you're not being told to drink at least 8 glasses or two liters of water per day, you are not getting good advice. Water helps your body to mobilize and get rid of excess fat. It also helps your liver convert fat into energy, which in turn will help you to burn more calories.

10) THERE IS NO WARNING FOR PEOPLE WITH MEDICAL CONDITIONS: If a weight loss product or plan yields no warning for people with problems such as diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disorders and such, the product or plan should be looked at very suspect. The high fat content of a low carbohydrate diet can be very dangerous to a person with high cholesterol or high blood pressure and someone with diabetes should never tamper with their diets without consulting with their doctor. Any good, sound weight loss program will always be concerned first and foremost with the safety and well being of the people using them. If there are no warnings, then you can rest assured that your health and well being are not an issue that is important to the company that is selling their products to you.

While it can be very difficult to see past all the hype and advertising that gets in the way of the truth behind all of the "fad" diets on the market today with new ones coming all the time, at least now you have some basics to help guide you through the maze of falsehoods out there and lead you on your way to being able to find a weight loss program that truly will give you the long term weight loss results you have been searching for.

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Diabetic Exchange Diet

For the many people suffering from diabetes, you may have heard about the diabetic exchange diet, if not, been on it. The diet is specifically designed to control weight and also the amount of cholesterol and sugar present in your blood. It is important to closely watch and record the food you intake while on the diet. It is recommended for this to diet to have 3 meals a day (as per usual), and 1-3 snacks as well.

The diet splits what you should eat into six different groups, whom are all measured by their serving size. This is done to ensure that the right amount of a certain food is consumed per day. The groups include bread and starches, fruit, vegetables, dairy, meet, and fats. As you can see, these groups are quite similar to what you would see in a food guide.

There are guides on the web as for exactly what to eat when on the Diabetic Exchange Diet, but these guides may not be best for everyone. To get the diet custom made to optimize results for you, you should consult a doctor or dietitian. Some people will require more foods from one group, and less from another. The doctor or dietitian will also tell you alternatives that you can have (for example, instead of this much bread, you can have this much Al-Bran cereal).

Throughout the diet, it is also important to have very little sweets, or best of all, none. Sugar will only take you down, and cause the diet to be less effective. For optimal results, stay away from sugar products as much as possible. Lastly, do not give up. As tempting as it is to have your favorite food, even on a special occasion, do not do it (given the food is not part of the diet). You need to be dedicated to succeed.

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Low Carb Dieting - It's Not About Eliminating Carbs

The low carb diet revolution may have slowed down a bit, but the fact is that there are so many people that have just starting this style of diet plan. With all of the yoyo diets around, people are looking for a true diet plan that will aid in shedding off the pounds quickly. The biggest question when it comes to low carb eating is how healthy is it?

Traditionally, calories were what dieters counted. They had charts and scales to insure that they were eating the right amounts of food at a certain caloric level each day. Although trimming calories can result in weight loss, it is not the goal for a person following the low carb way of eating.

So what is it that low carb eaters count? Just as the name implies, it is the amount of carbohydrates that is the significant part of the plan. What many people don't understand is how it works.

When you keep your carbohydrates down to a certain level, your body looks for a source for energy. Since there is a reduced level of carbohydrates, your body then goes down to the next step...burning fat. Yes, fat can be used as an energy source. Keep in mind that you are still eating the minimal amount of carbohydrates, not eliminating them from your diet.

In a traditional diet, people stay away from fatty foods. If you are using the low carb diet plan, you will be eating fatty foods. Whether you are eating a steak, some fish, or even nuts, there are oils and fats that you'll be consuming. What you must consider are the types of fat that you're eating...as there are bats that are bad for you such as the ones in margarine. These are often referred to as trans-fats.

So will your health improve or go down the hill while following the low carb diet plan? While following this diet, your insulin levels will decrease, your cholesterol will lower, your blood pressure will lower, and your blood sugar levels will stabilize. This are all moving you into a healthier position.

Another thing to consider is your nutrition. While eating low carb foods, you may be reducing nutrient rich foods which can be high in carbohydrates. So it's important that your body gets all of the vitamins, minerals and fiber so that your body gets the recommended daily levels. The easiest thing to do is take nutritional supplements.

Just remember, everybody is different. Remember to ask a diet professional about any diet advice, especially if you have pre-existing health problems. This diet does change your chemistry to burn fat, so it's important that you do it in the correct way.

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Lower Blood Cholesterol Naturally With Exercise and the Right Foods

Daily exercise doesn't only help people manage their weight, but it helps in maintaining a lower blood cholesterol level. The causes of high blood cholesterol are from various factors like genetics, a high fat diet, and lack of exercise, obesity and for women it's hormones. Women get a natural boost of HDL (good cholesterol) from their hormones until they reach menopause.

Changing your eating habits is a necessity too if you were eating a lot of high fat content foods. A change in diet will only be beneficial in the long run as a healthy diet will decrease the risk of heart disease, cancer, stroke and diabetes.

One of the best ways to lower cholesterol naturally is exercise daily for at least an hour or break it down to two 30 minutes intervals. Any type of physical exercise is good for you like biking, hiking, jogging, walking, swimming, tennis, etc.

Here are some other ways to lower blood cholesterol.

Have no more than 3 eggs per week or eat egg whites or egg substitutes
Cut the fats from meats
Eat a smaller portion of meats and choose lean meats (chicken, pork, beef etc.)
Drink skim milk or 1% milk
Eat canned sardines to boost your HDL and it's also rich in omega-3 fatty acids
Eat smaller portions of ice-cream or choose ice milk
Choose low-fat dairy products
Bake, broil or roast your meat instead of frying; remove the skin on chicken
Eat more fruits and vegetables
Eat fish at least once a week
Choose margarine over butter
Eat more starch and fibre
Have more home cooked meals

It will take some time to adjust to your new way of eating so do this gradually. You may want to consult with a dietician. If you want to do it on your own here are three tips to help you make the changes.

1. Figure out what needs to be changed. Evaluate your eating habits like if you need to add fish to your diet or eat out less. You don't have to cut out all of your favourite foods. You can look for food substitutes, eat them sparingly and eat smaller portions.

2. Then make a promise to yourself to change for the better. It's way better to do this naturally than to be popping cholesterol pills which for some people provides a false sense of security that you don't have to make a diet and lifestyle change and that's completely untrue.

3. Make it a habit and start reading labels! It's amazing what you will learn about foods when you read labels.

These are the ways to lower blood cholesterol naturally, and it's well worth the time and effort as your health depends on it. It's never too late to make changes, but make them now and live a healthier tomorrow.

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How a Simple Cholesterol Test Can Save Your Life

Cholesterol tests are much different from any other medical test you get. This is because they are not used to diagnose a disease, but rather to prevent one - specifically heart disease. High cholesterol levels have been linked with hardening of the arteries, heart disease and a much higher risk of death from heart attacks. Cholesterol tests are now a routine part of preventive health care.

These tests are recommended as a screening exam that is to be done on adults at least once every five years. They are normally administered along with a routine physical exam. A cholesterol test is usually ordered in combination with other tests including HDL and LDL. This combo is called a lipid profile.

Cholesterol levels are tested more often with people who have been prescribed a particular diet and/or medication to control their cholesterol. The test is done to see how well these regimens work in lowering cholesterol to optimal levels and in turn lower the risk of developing heart disease.

In an average setting where testing is done, the results are put in three categories of risk:

Desirable: A result below 200 mg/dL shows a low risk of heart disease.
Borderline High: A result of 200 to 240 mg/dL shows a moderate risk of developing heart disease. At this point, your doctor may decide to do a lipid profile to see whether your levels are either bad cholesterol (high LDL) or good cholesterol (high HDL). The results of this test will dictate what happens next.
High Risk: A result above 240 mg/dL means that you are in the high risk category to develop heart disease. Your doctor probably will get a lipid profile as well as order a battery of other tests to find out the cause of your high cholesterol. Once the cause is found, your physician will prescribe the appropriate treatment.

Testing will be done after treatment has started to monitor how much your cholesterol levels are decreasing. After seeing the changes, your target value will be determined by your doctor. This target is usually based on LDL levels.

Learn more about cholesterol test and how you can monitor your own cholesterol at the cholesterol.best-health-guide.info Reduce Cholesterol Guide.

The Low Down On Low Glycemic Foods and How It Can Help Curb Hunger and Lose Weight

Glycemic index (GI) measures the rate at which glucose (or blood sugar) enters the bloodstream. Glycemic load (GL) measures both the GI and the total carbs in a particular food.

Sometimes eating foods that are low GI, doesn't always reflect the effect of eating a food. Sometimes foods that are healthy and have a high GI, don't have enough carbohydrate in a serving because GI is calculated by carbohydrates. You would have to eat a couple pounds of carrots for the GI of carrots to reflect the effect on the body.

Glycemic Load is the best measure of how a food is affecting our bodies. Fiber is one of the reasons why research links low GL diets with less hunger, greater weight loss, and improved blood sugar control (being able to curb your droopy spells during the day). It also lowers the risk for heart disease.

People that are on high protein diets, low carb (nutritionally void carb) diets are more satisfied, than those doing the low-fat diet. This makes sense when you think of it. For example, you might eat a piece of meat and you are eating food that has a lot of substance and is satisfying, and your friend eats some crackers. Those crackers have less substance and nutritional value and is turning into glucose too quickly, making your friend hungry 15 minutes later, while you feel satisfied until your next meal.

A low GL load diet allows 40 % of daily calorie intake from low GL carbs (fruits, vegetables, whole grain foods), and 30% each from protein and healthy fats (monosaturated and omega-3 oils) have been proven to lower BMI (Body Mass Index). It also lowers bad cholesterol.

I have seen lists on the internet on the foods that are high GI and low GI. There should be lists as well of low and high GL foods. GL is something that is becoming more popular as a means to understand how certain foods affect our bodies, but I have been using the low or high GI approach since I have seen more information about it. The list is easy to obtain over the internet. I usually stick to low GI foods before periods of activity or exercise and if I eat high GI foods, it is always after exercise. This is my personal preference. It makes me feel good all day. I have done workouts where I have eaten bananas or grape juice (both high GI) and have felt the "sugar rush" in the workout, making me struggle a little in the workout. If I eat a little protein and something with low GI, my energy is sustained much better. This is something you might want to test out yourself.

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Why Should You Adopt A Low Carb Diet?

People would feel the need to diet if they want to shed those extra calories. If weight is not kept under check, one could end up with obesity which in turn causes many disorders in the body functioning. Some reduce their weight gradually and sustain the new weight, while others indulge in prescribing to fad diets for faster results. The latter is erratic in losing weight and does not last for long. Invariably, the individual gains all the weight and more while actually attempting to loose weight.

'Fad diet' is considered unhealthy and the individual feels pangs of hunger which increases the craving for food. The initial weight loss is quick but this is not long lasting. A controlled diet would restrict intake of fatty foods and junk foods along with exercise routine for weight loss. Such dietary control sustains for longer time spans. A diet low in carbohydrates is effective for weight loss.

'Atkins's diet' is the most popular diet food in the market. Here, the meal prescribed is fairly sufficient in quantity but low on carbohydrates. This will allow weight loss but not cut on the intake of healthy dietary food. This diet will include meat, fish, egg, poultry and cheese. This also allows the individual to have specific amount of green leafy vegetables in the food intake.

This kind of dieting will ensure lowering cholesterol levels and blood pressure. It also stabilizes blood sugar in the body. Since the diet is tailor made for people requiring weight loss, one must supplement vitamins in the form of pills for meeting basic vitamin requirements of the body.

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The Science of Lowcarb Diets: Why They Work

You long for firmer muscles and smaller waist. Everybody does. Do you think you can't lose weight? Yes, you can. But the truth is you can't lose weight without a diet - a plan.

Low Carb Diet

Weight-loss experts and diet plan authors all agree that much of our excess weight comes from the carbohydrates we eat, especially the highly refined or processed ones such as potatoes, baked goods, bread, pasta and other convenient foods. To aggravate the problem, few of us get enough exercise to ward off excess pounds.

The basic science behind the low carb diet is to limit the consumption of foods with a lot of carbohydrates. The low carb diet includes many popular weight-loss programs such as the Atkins, South Beach, Zone and Carbohydrate Addict Diet.

Does It Really Work?

One of the food groups which the body needs to survive are carbohydrates. Carbohydrates also referred to as carbs come in two types - sugars and starches. Sugars are simple carbs usually sweet tasting like biscuits and sweets and easily digested. Whereas, starches are complex carbs found in bread, pasta, noodles and rice and take longer to digest.

The body transforms all these digestible carbs into glucose, the sugar that our cells use as fuel or energy. When glucose molecules pass from the intestine into the bloodstream, the pancreas releases insulin, a hormone that mobilises cells to absorb it. Muscle, fat and other cells then absorb the excess glucose from the blood and insulin levels return to normal.

After a meal high in glycemic index (ranking of foods according to how fast their sugars are released into the bloodstream), blood-sugar levels rise higher and rapidly. The insulin needed to fill all that sugar into muscles and fat cells also weaken the activity of glucagon, a hormone that signals the body to burn stored fuel when blood-sugar levels fall below a certain point. Glucose level drops so low leaving the body starved for energy. The brain and intestine then send out hunger signals. New cravings are created requiring more carb intake. We, then overeat that leads to more fat, rise in blood insulin level, more hunger, and more weight gain and the cycle goes on.

On the contrary, adhering to a low carb diet puts an end to this cycle. Reduced carbohydrates would mean decreased insulin level, increased glucagon level, weight loss, improved triglycerides (fats carried in the blood which are necessary but when excessive cause coronary damage), decrease in LDL (bad cholesterol), increase in HDL (good cholesterol).

The bottom line - Give refined or processed carbohydrates which cause rapid changes in blood sugar, trigger hunger, thereby encouraging overeating that ultimately leads to obesity smaller spots on your plate. Anyway, nobody ever died from skipping potatoes, pasta, rice and white bread.

That said; go get yourself a few good low carb cookbooks. Better still, leaf through this site's 1,000+ low carb recipes - a seemingly endless variety of recipes. Try every recipe imaginable and make this diet as enjoyable and diverse as possible.

Yes, you can diet. Lose weight! Live longer!

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Living A Low Fat Lifestyle

The majority of people would like to live a healthier lifestyle, this normally involves getting more physical exercise and eating a healthy diet. If your goal is to lose weight, then you will need to make some permanent changes to your diet. The reason most diets fail is because people make drastic changes for a short time, lose some weight quickly then return to their old ways. Once you go back to the eating habits that resulted in you becoming overweight in the first place, then the weight will simply return. Small permanent changes to your diet and lifestyle are the only way to achieve successful long term weight loss.

An excellent starting point is to take a long hard look at your eating habits, and look to reduce the amount of total calories you consume. If you burn more calories each day (you body burns calories all day, even at rest) than you consume, you will start to lose weight. UK guidelines recommend 2500 calories a day for men and 2000 for woman, you will need to consume less than this (or burn more calories through exercise) to lose weight. Avoid fad and crash diets which involve drastic changes and not enough calories to keep you nourished all day, you should be getting a minimum of 1200 calories a day and ideally around 1500.

Fat has an important part to play in helping our bodies to function properly, but there are good and bad fats. You need to cut down on saturated and trans fats, which are found in dairy products, processed and convenience foods and junk and fast food among other things. If you are going to enjoy a treat which is high in saturated fat, then exercise portion control. try eating less of the fatty food and add a healthy side dish. Instead of eating a full pizza, enjoy a couple of slices with a fresh green salad. Swap your dairy products for low or fat free alternatives. Butter is high in saturated fats and margarine can contain trans fats, look for a light margarine or low fat spread that is low in saturated fat and is trans fat free (no hydrogenated fat).

You do need fat in your diets, look out for foods that contain polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats (such as low fat spreads) which can help to lower your cholesterol levels. Fat is not your enemy, you just need to recognise the different kinds of fats contained in food and eat accordingly.

Here are a few low fat options: -

Skinless chicken breast and fish (not fried or battered) are excellent tasty low fat options.

Any pasta, rice, bread or breakfast cereal that contains whole grains, these foods are packed with fibre and are low in saturated fat.

Avoid frying food and grill or boil instead.

Try not to add additional salt or sugar to meals.

Avoid frosted or sugary breakfast treats.

Beware of salad dressings laden with fat and substitute for a reduced fat option.

Fat free milk and low fat cheese and yoghurt

Swap your fries for a baked potato

Swap your salty and sweet snacks for fruit

Eat as much vegatables with your meals as possible.

Get in the habit of reading labels BEFORE purchasing products. Compare calorie, fat (particularly saturated and hydrogenated), salt and sugar content, and ask yourself if this product is a healthy option? It is ok to have an occasional treat in moderation, as long as overall diet is balanced and healthy.

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