If you are worried about your cholesterol levels, then you should visit your doctor, fasting, and have some blood tests done, as this is the most accurate way of finding out whether or not you have high cholesterol.
High cholesterol causes heart disease, heart attacks, strokes and clots, so it is very important to be aware if you have it or not. Now of course we are referring to LDL cholesterol, commonly known as bad cholesterol. But equally important in knowing what your cholesterol levels are, is to know your HDL cholesterol, commonly referred to as good cholesterol.
Let us start by taking a look at the LDL cholesterol chart:
USA and some other countries
Below 70 mg/dl would be considered ideal for people at high risk of heart disease
Below 100 mg/dl would be considered ideal for people at risk of heart disease
100-129 mg/dl would be considered near the ideal
130-159 mg/dl would be considered as being borderline high
160-189 mg/dl would be considered high
190 mg/dl would be considered very high and the worst LDL cholesterol range
Most of Europe and Canada
Below 1.8 mmol/l would be considered ideal for people at high risk of heart disease
Below 2.6 mmol/l would be considered ideal for people at risk of heart disease
2.6-3.3 mmol/l would be considered near ideal
3.4-4.1 mmol/l would be considered borderline high
4.1-4.9 mmol/l would be considered high
Above 4.9 mmol/l would be considered very high and the worst LDL cholesterol range
Now let's look at the HDL cholesterol chart:
USA And Some Other Countries
Below 40 mg/dl in Men and 50 mg/dl in Women would be considered poor
50-59 mg/dl would be considered better
60 mg/dl and above would be considered the best HDL cholesterol range
Most Of Europe And Canada
Below 1 mmol/l for Men and 1.3 mmol/l for Women would be considered poor
1.3-1.5 mmol/l would be considered better
Above 1.5 mmol/l would be considered the best HDL cholesterol range
If you have already had a heart attack, bypass surgery or angioplasty, then it is very important that you keep your LDL cholesterol low and in check.
Having checked the above cholesterol levels, if you find that you are not in the ideal category, then you need to start taking action.
Firstly, if you are overweight, then you need to try losing a few pounds. Exercise will help you achieve this, and is known to help with lowering cholesterol.
Take a good look at your diet. Lower your intake of saturated fats, found in animal products (beef, pork etc.) and dairy products (cheese, spreads, ice cream, chocolate etc.). Add oily fish like salmon, sardines, mackerel etc., to your diet. Eat more wholegrain cereals and breads, rice and pasta.
Choose low fat dairy products and low fat spreads. Switch from frying to grilling, baking, steaming etc.
All of the above will help lower LDL cholesterol levels and increase HDL cholesterol.
And if you want some extra help at not only achieving your goal, but also maintaining it long term, then add a quality, proven, cholesterol lowering natural supplement to your diet. If you choose the right one, then you will benefit enormously from the LDL cholesterol lowering nutrients, whilst maintaining good HDL cholesterol levels.
Discover what I personally use to maintain good cholesterol levels. Visit my website today.
Mary Ruddy is a strong advocate of natural and safe health care and enjoys nothing more than helping others make a positive impact on their lives. To find out more about how you too can improve your health naturally visit her website today at curing-cholesterol.com curing-cholesterol.com/
Visit her site curing-cholesterol.com curing-cholesterol.com/ to learn the natural and safe way for lowering cholesterol.
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