Understanding Cholesterol

Cholesterol and General Health

Despite the common perception, only a small percent of cholesterol is obtained through food. The liver creates most cholesterol; however, the more saturated fats a person eats, the more cholesterol his or her body makes.

Although this fatty substance is necessary, excess production of cholesterol can also cause problems for your body. The extra cholesterol spills out and circulates into your bloodstream. It is an elevated level of cholesterol in a person’s blood that causes clogging of blood vessels, thus increasing the risks heart disease or stroke.

Cholesterol helps your body in any number of ways. A person’s body needs cholesterol for daily functions, such as producing healthy cell walls, creating hormones, and making vitamin D. It also produces bile acids that help in the digestion of fat.

Cholesterol comes from animal-based food like dairy products, eggs or meat. The two types of cholesterol are low-density lipoprotein (LDL) - bad cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) - good cholesterol. LDL causes the clogging of blood vessels. HDL helps clear LDL out of your bloodstream, thereby reducing the risks of heart disease.

Understanding Food Types and Blood Cholesterol

Saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats are three types of fats found in food. Each type of dietary fat affects a person’s cholesterol in different ways. For instance, saturated fats are those found in beef, lamb, pork, and other red meat products. Excessive saturated fats in the body can be dangerous to your health.

Monounsaturated fats are those found in plant oils, such as canola, peanut and olive. Polyunsaturated fats, such as omega-3 fat, can help in slowing down blood clots and fight heart disease. They are found in fishes and plant oils, such as soybean, corn, safflower and sunflower.

Since all kinds of fats are sources of calories, they can all contribute to weight gain. However, consuming too much saturated fat is harmful to your body because it is the main cause of high cholesterol levels in the blood. Be aware that the more saturated fats you eat, the more cholesterol your body produces, which eventually end up in your bloodstream.

In lowering blood cholesterol, substituting saturated fats with monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats can help by getting rid of newly formed cholesterol in the body. For this reason, people with high levels of blood cholesterol, (especially LDL), need to improve their eating habits to ensure that the right kind of fat enters their bodies.

The Effects of Bad Cholesterol

There are basically two things you can do to prevent the build up of bad cholesterol in your body. One is to eat food low in bad cholesterol and elevated in vitamins and natural nutrients and two, exercise daily. So what types of food are good for lower cholesterol levels in the blood? Foods high in antioxidants and fiber are the types of foods you should be looking for.

These include fruit and vegetables, oatmeal and many more of similar types. Foods to stay away from are those considered as being fatty. Basically most fast food restaurants cook their meals using an exorbitant amount of oil. Yes, it does taste great, but so do bananas, grapes and pears. Maybe next time you having a craving for a nice juicy steak, why not go down to the local fruit market instead and pick out a new exotic fruit that you have never tried before, you might be surprised!

If you are unsure about whether you have a too much level of bad cholesterol in your blood then you should go down to your local GP and be tested. It only takes a couple of minutes, and it might save your life!

Bad cholesterol is something that has gripped our fast food hamburger nation. We are on the verge of total disaster in terms of unhealthy eating. More kids today are considered obese because of the eating habits taught to them at an early age. Bad cholesterol rates are rising amongst the youth of today and strangely we are seeing cases of heart disease in people in their early 30's. This can only be because of the level of bad cholesterol in the types of food we are eating today.

Perhaps the easiest way to start is with the parents and guardians who are setting the example for their children. There are many families out there who practically live off French fries and hamburgers. If we can get those families to reduce the number of times they visit a fast food restaurant by one time in a week, then we will go a long way to reduce the fast climbing rate of bad cholesterol in the people of our country.

If we as a nation are ever going to get out of our fast food, sugar loving mindset, we need to start with our kids. There are multiple schools today who are putting in place new healthier menus in their cafeterias. Is there more that could be done though?