Lower Cholesterol Levels By Watching What You Eat

Your body needs cholesterol believe it or not

There is a widely held belief that all the cholesterol in your body comes from your diet. This is not true; in fact most of your cholesterol is actually created from within your body itself. Your body actually needs cholesterol to remain healthy and so your liver obliges by providing it.

The problems that most people have with cholesterol is that they have too much of it. An excess of cholesterol tends to build up in your arteries over time causing hypertension or high blood pressure and heart disease which often leads to heart attacks.

Maintaining a cholesterol level balance

Your body tries to maintain your cholesterol level at a level that keeps you healthy but not high enough to cause excess deposits that constrict the blood flow in your arteries. This is a fine balance and one, which is easily upset by introducing more cholesterol into your body by eating it in your diet. This is why you must watch what you eat and be particularly careful if your cholesterol levels are high.

Why is your cholesterol level too high?

There are several factors that can combine to make you prone to high cholesterol levels. These factors include smoking, high blood pressure and eating too much fat in your diet. If you smoke then you should give up right away for many reasons, not least of which is the increased risk of high cholesterol levels.

Watch what you eat

One of the most common causes of high cholesterol levels is too much saturated fat in your diet. Saturated fat encourages the production of cholesterol in your body and it builds up to a level where your body can no longer get rid of it fast enough. Watching what you eat and reducing the amount of saturated fats in your diet can help to bring your cholesterol levels back into balance.

Types of cholesterol

Cholesterol is often referred to as LDL (Low Density Lipoproteins) and HDL (High Density Lipoproteins). This actually describes the proteins that cholesterol binds to as it is carried through the body. This is necessary for the distribution of cholesterol in the body because it isn't water-soluble.

LDL cholesterol is often called 'bad cholesterol' because too much of it can build up on artery walls and lead to coronary heart disease. HDL cholesterol on the other hand is known as 'good cholesterol' because it seems to carry cholesterol back to the liver where it can be disposed of.

Food that Lower your bad cholesterol and raise your good cholesterol

When you select your diet you should aim to eat foods that have low or zero levels of saturated fats and especially trans-fats, which are particularly bad for you. You should also look out for foods that can lower your LDL and raise your HDL.

The article how-to-reduce-cholesterol.magicblur.com/cholesterol-food/food-that-lower-bad-cholesterol.php Food that lower bad cholesterol contains a handy list of foods that you should try to include in your diet.

You must consult your doctor before making any changes to your diet. This article and any information referred to is for information only.

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