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[R182]Remedy For High Cholesterol

by Mitamins Team, Mit

- James Rutz, Dec. 2006 It's always important to separate fact from opinion. The above quote, written about soy products, is pure opinion. For the rest of this article, we will be dealing only with facts.

?25 grams of soy protein a day, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease.?

- FDA statement, 1999

It may be less arresting than the opening quote, but the information contained inside is based upon a number of detailed studies made into the health benefits of soy supplementation. Since that statement was made, more research has been done that indicates soy proteins make an excellent natural remedy for high cholesterol treatment. Some more facts about soy:

1. Soy, rather than being a ?new-age? supplement, is a staple food in many Asian countries, and has been for centuries.

2. Soy contains valuable constituents for high cholesterol treatment, including protein, isoflavones, saponins, and phytosterols.

3. Soy protein provides essential amino acids.

4. When eaten with rice, soy provides protein comparable with that found in animal products.

5. Soy is low in fat and cholesterol-free.

In fact, the health benefits of soy, particularly in the treatment of high cholesterol, are rarely disputed anymore. Most research done now into the use of soy as a natural remedy for high cholesterol is aimed at discovering exactly why it works so well. A good summary of current thinking can be found here.

Intake of soy proteins can be a natural remedy for high cholesterol treatment because soy proteins can bring down bad cholesterol (LDL) levels, and promotes good cholesterol (HDL) levels. LDL and HDL are the lipoproteins that carry of cholesterol to cells. LDL is referred to as bad cholesterol because it causes plaque deposits in arteries and HDL is called good cholesterol because it prevents the built up of fat deposits in the arteries.

Soy can be found in soymilk, tofu, roasted soy nuts, and soy flour. All of these can be used in a low cholesterol diet to help in the treatment of hypercholesterolemia (high cholesterol). These foods can also prevent atherosclerosis, a disease associated with high cholesterol, and that can lead to increased risk of heart attack, heart disease, and stroke. Daily dosages of 30-40 grams of soy have been seen to reduce cholesterol levels by between 10 and 20%, making it an effective high cholesterol treatment(http://www.mitamins.com/disease/High-Cholesterol.html) by any stretch of the imagination.

A few people have hailed soy as a ?miracle health food? that can treat any number of diseases, not just high cholesterol(http://www.mitamins.com/disease/High-Cholesterol.html). This is, like the opening quote, only an opinion - and totally unnecessary. Soy supplements can be judged on their results, and all the research points to them being an effective treatment for high cholesterol(http://www.mitamins.com/disease/High-Cholesterol.html).

High cholesterol: two words that strike fear into the hearts of many people. High cholesterol: something that can strike more than fear into a person's heart if it goes untreated. Conventional medications for the may or may not be effective, but they certainly cause side effects: muscle pain, nausea, and if taken for too long, liver damage. Clearly medication is not a long-term measure, which is why many people try to find a natural remedy for high cholesterol; something that can lower cholesterol levels, and keep them down. Is Vitamin C a natural remedy for high cholesterol? That is what we will discuss in this article. But first...

The Skinny on Cholesterol

The truth is that most of the cholesterol in your body does not come from the diet, but is produced by your own body. What? How could your own body do such a thing to you! But cholesterol is vital for the body to function, as it is used in cell repair and maintenance. When doctors or nutritionists talk about high cholesterol, they are referring to the amount of cholesterol in the blood. Cholesterol travels in the blood so that it can be used anywhere in the body as and when it is needed. However, if blood levels become too high, cholesterol deposits itself onto the walls of your arteries, as a kind of "plaque." As the cholesterol builds up, the blood has less and less space to travel through the arteries. This causes a build-up in pressure, and high cholesterol easily leads onto hypertension, and hypertension severely increases the risk of , heart attack, and stroke.

So, a natural remedy for high cholesterol must seek to lower cholesterol in the blood, rather than eliminating it all together. What natural supplement could help in this?

Vitamin C's role in High Cholesterol Treatment

Vitamin C is considered an excellent natural remedy for high cholesterol because of its properties in dealing with the effects of high cholesterol and because it actively reduces cholesterol levels in the blood.

Vitamin C deals with the effects of high cholesterol

Vitamin C is a good natural remedy for high cholesterol because it helps to widen arteries and so minimize the effect of cholesterol deposits on the artery walls. A study conducted on rabbits showed that high doses of Vitamin C can prevent the narrowing of arteries by anywhere between 4% and a whopping 50%. Counteracting the effects of high cholesterol in this way effectively "buys time" for you, so that Vitamin C can reduce cholesterol in other ways.

Vitamin C deals with the cholesterol in your blood

Vitamin C also helps in increasing fibrinolytic activity, which is responsible for removing cholesterol plaque from the arteries. A number of studies conducted on animals suggest that Vitamin C can reverse plaque formation caused by high cholesterol, making it an excellent natural remedy for high cholesterol. Vitamin C also eliminates excess cholesterol in the bloodstream by converting it to bile.

Vitamin C keeps the cholesterol levels down

Vitamin C isn't just a , it can also maintain healthy levels of cholesterol in the blood. There is a continuous recycling process where excess cholesterol in the blood is removed and converted to bile (as mentioned above). This process only occurs when you have enough Vitamin C in your body. However, in the absence of enough Vitamin C, the conversion of cholesterol into bile is affected and cholesterol accumulates in the bloodstream.

Vitamin C does all of the above. Safely

Vitamin C is also incredibly safe compared to high cholesterol medications, and even compared to other vitamins, having no known fatal dosage or side-effects. If Vitamin C is taken in extremely high dosages then minor side-effects can occur, such as stomachache or diarrhea, but we're talking huge dosages here. People have been reported taking 150 times the recommended daily allowance of Vitamin C (RDA of around 100mg). Up to 2000mg of Vitamin C daily is considered by most experts to be completely safe, with no harmful side effects.

Bottom line: Vitamin C safely deals with the effects of high cholesterol, lowers cholesterol, and then keeps it down.

Article Source : Pg. 10

Mitamins Team has sinced written about articles on various topics from Stress Management, Soccer and Stress Management. Author Bio: Mitamins teambd@mitamins.netTargeted: High Cholesterol; Safety: Avoid Vitamins Overdose, Supplement Drug Interactions; Quality: Freshly Made with Brand Ingredients.vitamin support for High Cholesterol treatment(. Mitamins Team's top article generates over 110000 views. to your Favourites.