Raising HDL Cholesterol Levels - A Life Insurance Policy For Cardiovascular Health

Do you have a life insurance policy. I bet most of you over the age of 40 do. We look at life insurance as a way of protecting us against the unexpected. In the world of cardiovascular health raising HDL cholesterol levels works they same way. By raising HDL cholesterol levels we are protecting ourselves from the unexpected occurrence of heart attack or stroke that could leave our families high and dry at the drop of a hat.

HDL is short for high density lipoproteins and is known as good cholesterol. This very beneficial lipoprotein couldn't carry artery clogging plaque into our arteries even if it wanted to for the surprising reason that these molecules are so dense that they can't squeeze through the spaces in the walls of your arteries. What this ultimately means for you is that HDL and its payload of cholesterol travels away from the arteries to be deposited as solid waste in the near future.

So now we know why raising HDL cholesterol levels is so important but the very next question for most people is how to accomplish this? Well, the first thing is the chances are pretty good you will not be able to raise HDL cholesterol levels sitting on the couch, smoking a cigarette, and eating a bowel of high fat ice cream. This mean that some tough choices will have to be made such as quitting smoking, trying low fat dairy, and taking up a healthy dose of physical activity 3 to 4 times a week.

Exercise is the arch enemy of cholesterol. It raises beneficial HDL levels, lowers bad cholesterol (LDL), and reduces overall cholesterol. So getting a move on 3 or 4 times a week is one of the simplest and most affordable ways of raising HDL cholesterol.

We all know how damaging smoking can be and really it needs very little explanation except to say that even people who exercise, and consume a low fat diet that smoke are at increased risk of cardiovascular disease.

Another way of raising HDL cholesterol levels not often mentioned is calcium supplementation. A recent study found that who were given 1 gram of calcium a day for a year showed a 7 percent increase in good cholesterol. One reason this is worth mentioning is that as women age they tend to suffer from calcium deficiencies leading to bone, joint, and artery disease. So all you grandmothers out there do what you have been telling your children and grandchildren to do for years; drink your low fat milk!

What Next? Raising HDL cholesterol levels, in most cases, is about changing old habits, adopting new healthier habits, and enlisting the help of convention medications such as statins or lowered-cholesterol.com natural cholesterol reducing remedies if needed. Put simply, this basically means finding ways to increase HDL (good cholesterol) and decrease LDL (bad cholesterol levels). Certainly the aforementioned statin drugs will be one of your options but they do carry a number of serious label warnings. The side effect risks have made natural cholesterol reduction supplements combined with diet modification an alternative treatment combination worth considering.

Rob D. Hawkins is an enthusiastic advocate for the use of safe and effective high quality alternative health products and natural living, with over 10 years experience in the field. Learn more about natural remedies and natural health at purchaseremedies.com Purchase Remedies.com