In today's fast-paced electronic age, high stress levels, physically inactive lifestyles, and easy availability of ready-made processed foods has led to a drastic rise in cardiovascular (i.e., heart-related) diseases. One physiological factor that contributes largely to these is high cholesterol level in the blood. And the sad thing is that most of the times people are not even aware of their high cholesterol levels unless something more serious strikes them.
It is, therefore, essential to have some important information about what cholesterol is and how one goes about lowering it. Here we go.
Cholesterol is a fatty wax-like substance circulating in our blood. A major part of it is synthesized by our liver, but some part comes from our diet - particularly from animal-derived foods like fatty meats, egg yolk, and full-cream dairy products. Vegetarian food items do not contain cholesterol.
Some amount of cholesterol is absolutely essential in the body to carry out a number of physiological body functions, such as formation of cell walls, production of bile for digestion, synthesis of hormones, and metabolism of fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K.
Cholesterol is water-insoluble, and therefore requires water-soluble protein carriers to transport it via blood stream from liver to various tissues for necessary use and back to liver for breakdown and disposal. The combined units of cholesterol and protein are called lipoproteins (L), which can be either high-density (HDL) or low-density (LDL). HDL facilitates the transport of excess cholesterol from the arteries back to the liver for breakdown and disposal, and is therefore commonly referred to as "good cholesterol".
LDL is responsible for transport of cholesterol from the liver to various tissues and organs for necessary use. The problem arises only when LDL is in far excess amounts, and HDL (typically, only 25-30% of the total amount) is not enough to remove it from the blood stream. It then starts accumulating as a plaque on the internal arterial walls, hardening them and impeding normal blood flow - just as in a clogged water pipe - giving rise to a host of diseases. Since high LDL levels encourage plaque formation and artery clogging, LDL is referred to as "bad cholesterol".
When the arteries are clogged, the blood pressure increases and blood flow to various organs and tissues gets impaired. And if the arteries supplying blood to vital organs like heart, brain, kidneys and liver are involved, the results can be disastrous. For example, clogged heart arteries can lead to coronary heart disease and heart attack, those for brain to stroke and paralysis, those for kidneys to kidney diseases, and so on.
It is of utmost importance to maintain your cholesterol levels within optimum values. The goal should be to lower the total cholesterol and LDL levels and at the same time raise the protective HDL level.
As a first step to lowering cholesterol, experts recommend therapeutic lifestyle changes involving diet control and regular physical exercise. Here are some diet and lifestyle tips to achieving optimum cholesterol levels:
1. Say no to saturated fats (as in red meats and full-fat dairy products) and trans fats (as in commercial bakery items and processed foods), and use instead poly/monounsaturated fats like olive oil, groundnut oil, and other vegetable oils. 2. Eat a fiber-rich diet consisting of plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, oats, nuts and seeds, beans, legumes, and cold-water fish. 3. Maintain normal body weight. 4. Quit smoking. 5. Consume alcohol, if you must, only in moderation. 6. Embark on a regular exercise program. Exercise is the only means to raise your protective HDL level.
If these measures do not suffice to reduce your cholesterol to desired levels, you will need to take one of the cholesterol-lowering drugs (called Statins) as recommended by your doctor.
You need to first and foremost make sure you give up the junk food and the fast foods that we've all grown accustomed to and begin to focus more on what you are actually putting inside your body.
There are scientists and specialist who have pointed out that muscle building is 85% diet and 15% training, and if you think about it, they've got a point.
Let's say you spend an hour working out every day; that's good. But that's one out of 24 hours. The rest of it is spend eating and sleeping and working. Since you spend more time eating than working out, doesn't it make sense to pay attention to what you eat?
The first muscle building foods type that is extremely important when you are ready to build muscle. This is protein. Foods such as eggs, chicken, fish, and red meat are packed with proteins your body needs for energy.
Another important component in muscle building foods is fat. No, not the kind of fat you find in greasy fried foods. We're talking about good, natural fats found in peanut butter, steak, and eggs.
When you're consuming fats, make sure you avoid trans fat. It's evil, because it doesn't benefit your body in any way and could in fact harm you.
Carbohydrates, otherwise known as carbs, are the last of the three muscle building foods. You should be eating complex carbs throughout the day to keep up your energy.
You can find these complex carbohydrates in good foods such as whole grain pasta, oatmeal, and brown rice. They will give you energy all day and keep your sugar levels in line.
Simple carbohydrates must be avoided, since they just add extra weight and flab to your body; avoid those sugary drinks and syrups. Your body won't be able to break down all that glucose.
These guidelines will be here for your easy access when you forget which muscle building foods are best.
Both Alex Olson & Idonea Caris are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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