There is a measure that you don't hear about in the news but is known in medical circles as NNT which stands for Number Needed to Treat. It refers to the number of patients that would need to be treated in order to prevent one bad result. Any NNT over 50 is considered to be "worse than a lottery ticket". The H-pylori virus, the main cause of stomach upset has an NNT of 1.1.1. 10 out of 11 people who take the antibiotic become free of the virus.
Not so with statin drugs. Most of them have NNTs between 250, 500 or higher. Lipidor has an NNT of 100. That means 100 people must be treated in order to prevent one from suffering a heart attack. The other 99 receive no benefit!
Cholesterol alone is simply not as important as C-Reactive protein and your homocysteine levels which are better markers for predicting future heart attacks.
If you are fixated on your cholesterol and want to do it safely, try the following natural products:
--Fish Oil and Flax seed: Fish oil and flaxseed are rich is omega-3 oils and improve blood flow and prevents blood clotting. Consuming less than one ounce of fish daily has been shown to reduce glucose intolerance. Fish oil helps to normalize heart rhythm and reduce the risk of sudden cardiac arrest. You should take 2 to 8 grams of fish oil daily.
--Folic Acid: Along with B6 and B-12 it help lower your levels of homocysteine and cleans out arterial plaque. Homocysteine can damage artery walls as has been shown in tests on baboons. It's this damage that allows cholesterol to stick to the artery walls. The recommended dose is between 800 to 1200mcg (micro grams).
--Magnesium: It relaxes artery walls making them more flexible so blood flow is greatly improved. It helps lower blood pressure. Most magnesium comes from seeds, nuts, legumes, tofu and green leafy vegetables. Magnesium is severely lacking in our diets. Take between 300 to 600 mg.
--Vitamin C and E both work to prevent free radical damage that contributes to cardiovascular disease. Vitamin C helps in maintaining the elasticity and function of the blood vessels and helps maintain proper blood pressure control. Vitamin E prevents free radical damage from LDL (bad) cholesterol and the damage to vascular linings. Recommended doses are 1000 to 5000mg of Vitamin C and between 400 to 800 IU of Vitamin E.
--CoQ10: If you are taking a statin, supplementing with CoQ10 is a must. Statins are notorious in robbing your heart of this enzyme and that's what eventually leads many to get heart attacks. It helps to increase the efficiency of the heart muscle. It is a powerful antioxidant and has the ability to trigger beta-cell function in the pancreas that helps to produce more insulin leading to better sugar control in diabetics. 100 to 400 mg daily is recommended.
--Niacin: It's a B-3 vitamin that helps reduce fats in the blood and has been shown to reduce cholesterol levels by 18%, triglycerides by 26% and increase the good HDL cholesterol by 30% when 1800 to 3000mg is used daily.
Statins are generally worthless. The above natural alternatives are far better at controlling cholesterol without the serious side effects that statins present.
High cholesterol can be found in any person. Still, at more risk are people who lead stressful lives but also maintain unhealthy diets. In order to lower your cholesterol level, the best thing to do is eat foods that are low in fat content (especially one kind of fat ? saturated fat) but also to increase the amount of physical activity. Cholesterol lowering herbs are generally available for people who do not start taking prescription drugs to lower cholesterol immediately. This article will also give you some examples of herbs that lower cholesterol.
Cholesterol is responsible for causing fatty deposits to harden and accumulate in the arteries. These fatty deposits harden to form a substance called plaque, which blocks the artery and prevents blood from flowing and reaching organs such as the brain. Blocked arteries are responsible for strokes and heart disease.
Herbs that lower your blood cholesterol levels are actually a fairly new science. In today's society, increased LDL cholesterol has become a major health issue. New ways to lower cholesterol naturally are researched by people of all over the world due to this. Because of the lack of side effects and contraindications, natural supplements to lower cholesterol levels are often preferred to their drug counterparts.
Other herb products that lower cholesterol include plant stanols and sterols. these are naturally occurring substances found in some plants. Stanols can also be found in dietary supplements or are added to margarine, orange juice as well as in dressings. According to research findings, plant stanols help reduce cholesterol, and being similar in structure to cholesterol, help in blocking absorption of cholesterol from the intestines.
Since ages guggul has been the companion of mankind saving him from many diseases. Botanically known as Commiphora mukul, it is a wonderful herb that is responsible for treating so many ailments that man suffers. The powerful action of guggulu helps in lowering down the levels of triglycerides and cholesterols there by managing the proper ratio of High density lipoproteins to low density lipoproteins. In a study it was proved that guggulu helps in lowering the cholesterol levels by 15 to 28 % and triglycerides level by 20 to 30 %.
Garlic. Garlic is a cholesterol lowering herb that is slowly but heavily gaining popularity. It has been shown through medical reports that it can increase the HDL cholesterol levels while lowering LDL levels. Studies have also shown that garlic can reduce both triglycerides and cholesterol by up to 15 percent. In one study, people who were given 800 milligrams (about one clove) of garlic daily experienced lower cholesterol levels as well as lower blood pressure.
Artichoke leaf is another herb that helps lower cholesterol levels. This herb works by limiting the synthesis of cholesterol in the body. Artichokes are also known to contain cynarin that supposedly increases bile production in the liver and speeds the flow of bile from the gallbladder, which together increases the excretion of cholesterol
Both Mario Carini & John Adison 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.
Mario Carini has sinced written about articles on various topics from Fitness, Vitamin Guide and High Cholesterol. Safer alternative are far better than a drug prescription. For natural cholesterol control try Omega-3-6-9. You can get it here: