At a 1984 conference, scientists for the National Institutes of Health stated that lowering cholesterol levels, when they are higher than 200mg/dl, will reduce the risk of heart attacks caused by coronary artery disease. The scientists say that this has been established beyond a reasonable doubt, even though there are groups of scientists that disagree.
Many scientists object. They feel that statin drugs are dangerous and lower blood cholesterols to unnaturally low levels. Mainly, they object to prescribing drugs to otherwise healthy individuals, when natural approaches are safer and just as effective for reducing the risk of heart disease.
Most agree that prescribing statin drugs to people with known coronary heart disease is a good idea. The big disagreement is over suggestions that obese kids, teenagers and other people that are free of arterial disease should take the drugs, when all that they need to do is change their diets, exercise more and perhaps take some good dietary supplements.
The causes of age-related arterial diseases are quite complicated. Inflammation, oxidation, excessive calcium, lack of protein, high insulin levels, high fat diets, low nutrient intake, too many omega-6s in the diet and too few omega-3s are just some of the factors involved.
That being said, lowering cholesterol blood levels need not be that complicated. If you like beef, switch to grass-fed beef. The fat content is lower and the balance of omega-6s to omega-3s is healthier.
If you like chicken and eggs, start buying free range chickens and organic eggs. Again, the omega 3-6 content is healthier. The meat is leaner and more nutritious.
Eat 3-5 servings of fish every week. Choose wild Alaskan salmon or mackerel. Avoid farm-raised fish and seafood from the Atlantic Ocean, because of mercury and PCBs.
If you like anchovies or sardines, you're in luck. They may be beneficial for lowering cholesterol, because the oils they contain are rich in omega-3s, which increase HDL (good) cholesterol levels. Additionally, because they are small, they are less likely to be contaminated with mercury or other toxins.
If you like fried foods, use canola, olive or rice bran oils. Corn, sunflower, peanut and grape seed oils are not good choices, because they contain little or no heart healthy omega-3s.
Try drinking black or green teas, rather than coffee or sodas. The caffeine content is lower and the nutritional value is higher. Theaflavins and catechins found in tea leaves have been shown to lower LDL levels and raise HDL levels; that is simply ideal.
You see, lowering cholesterol totals is not as important as reducing LDL levels and increasing HDL levels. The food substitutions mentioned above are not the only things that you can do to accomplish that. There are many others.
If you do a little shopping around, you will find that there are cholesterol-reducing dietary supplements on the market containing rice bran oil, theaflavins and catechins, as well as policosanol, lecithin and phytosterols, all of which have been proven effective for lowering cholesterol levels, naturally. Taking a dietary supplement is the easiest thing you can do.
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.
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