Lowering Your Cholesterol

Everybody loves chocolate. But do you know that even though it might seem like it surely can’t be good for you that in fact it really is. In small quantities that is, this tasty treat can do much to help your heart and even prevent heart disease. First of all chocolate is a plant product.  It is made from the cacao bean that comes from a tree. Plants do not produce cholesterol, only animals do. Additionally dark colored plants are known to have many health benefits one of which is flavonoids.  Flavonoids act as antioxidants which protect the body by neutralizing free radicals (charged chemicals which are byproducts of body processes).  Free radicals roam the bloodstream and when they encounter LDL particles (bad cholesterol), they can oxidize them. In their oxidized state, LDL particles can more easily burrow into the artery-cell walls and hasten hardening of the arteries (atherosclerosis).  

Dark chocolate contains a large number of antioxidants (nearly 8 times as many as found in strawberries). It has been shown to reduce LDL levels by as much as 10 percent.

  Dark chocolate does contain fats, but only about one third of them are harmful to the arteries. 

Since dark chocolate is high in calories, consumption should be limited to 100 grams a day or about 3.5 ounces. One bar of dark chocolate has about 400 calories, so if you eat ½ a bar a day you may balance your diet by eating less of something else.

Researchers are getting closer and closer to repairing heart tissue. At Mt. Sinai School of Medicine in New York,  researchers are successfully growing three types of human heart cells from laboratory cultures derived from embryonic stem cells.

The researchers created the so-called master heart cells by adding a mix of growth factors and other development-related molecules to the laboratory dishes containing stem cells at key times during the experiment. By timing these steps correctly, the researchers encouraged the cells to grow into ancestors, or “progenitors,” of the three specific heart cell types which are: cardiomyocytes, endothelial cells, and vascular smooth muscle cells. Each type of cell plays an important part in the makeup of functioning heart tissues. 

The second set of cells, the endothelial cells are the first barrier to the invasion of cholesterol. They are on the outer surface of the arteries and touch the bloodstream. When these cells are breached by LDL particles, cholesterol can begin to store inside the artery-cell walls and the process of atherosclerosis or hardening of the arteries begins.

It looks quite promising that in the near future heart repair will take place. This is one (big) step towards the reversing of heart disease.

Yesterday Yahoo mentioned that a ‘large study offers the strongest evidence yet that a diet (The DASH diet) the government recommends for lowering blood pressure can save people from heart attack and stroke’.   

It seemed to me that it was obvious that the DASH diet which was designed ot lower high blood pressure would also be heart friendly and lower the risk of heart attack and stroke. I guess it took a study to make that conclusion.

The DASH diet, favors fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat milk and plant-based protein over meat. It is a very heart friendly diet. Click on the following link if you would like to look at the DASH diet.

http://tinyurl.com/2avkvv

While shopping yesterday I noticed that some fruit juices are sold enriched with vitamins. First of all if the fruit juice has a lot of the original fruit in it, it should be loaded with vitamin C at least. So if it mentions that vitamin it is almost false advertisement.

Vitamins A, D, E, and K are oil soluble. If you see that any of these are added to the juice, then be sure to drink the juice with oil or some fats like in meat or fish. Drink the juice with a meal to get the full benefits of these vitamins. This is because these oil soluble vitamins will not be absorbed by the body if they don’t find any fats to cling to. This is also true when you take multivitamins.

Vitamins A, C, and E are important vitamins in the prevention of heart disease. They each serve an important role.

Soy Protein is Plant Protein. Soy beans have one of the best protein digestibilities among all protein sources. Soy beans also contain little or no fat. Being a plant protein, soy is free from steroids and antibiotics animal protein contains. 

Soy products are also a great source of other nutrients such as saponins, isoflavones, and phytosterols.
Saponins help support a healthy immune system. They also combine with cholesterol to avoid increased absorption
of cholesterol in the body. Phytosterols also help reduce the absorption of cholesterol in the body in the
same way saponins do.

Isoflavones are powerful antioxidants and prevent the effects of free radicals in the body. They prevent  
atherosclerosis or hardening of the arteries. This alone makes soy a miracle protein source in its own right.

Isoflavones, along with vitamins A,C, and E are among the front liners in the fight against disease –
they also counter the effects of pollution, and stress.

Vegetarians love soy bean as it provides a comparable – if not better – source of protein than that of animals.

Eating fiber has been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease. Fiber refers to complex carbohydrates that cannot be digested. The average American adult consumes between 12-17 grams of fiber daily. The American Dietetic Association recommends eating 20-35 grams of fiber (both soluble and insoluble) daily. It’s easy to consume more fiber if you are not eating enough.

For example: three-quarters of a cup of dried oat meal has 6 grams of fiber. A medium-sized apple has 3 grams. A half cup of kidney beans has 6 grams. And:

● Eat whole fruits instead of drinking fruit juices.

●  Replace white rice, bread, and pasta with brown rice and whole-grain products.

●  Snack on raw vegetables instead of chips, crackers, or chocolate bars.

●  Substitute legumes for meat two to three times per week in chili and soups.

·         Eat five servings daily from the fruit and vegetable group

·         Choose whole-grain cereals for breakfast

·         Include 3 servings of whole grain products daily

·         Eat more fresh fruit and vegetables for snacks

·         Eat fresh or dried fruit on breakfast cereal

·         Pack fruit and vegetables for lunch

·         Eat sandwiches topped with fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce, sprouts, green peppers, and onions or make salads with these ingredients

·         Make homemade soups with legumes, beans, and vegetables

·         Buy whole grain cereals, breads, and crackers with at least 3 grams of fiber per serving

·         Try popcorn for snacks

·         Drink plenty of fluids to help the fiber do its work

·         Don’t remove skins from fruits and vegetables.

Resveratrol came from the French paradox. Health researchers wondered why the French, who love creamy sauces, foie gras, and similarly high-fat foods, tend to live as long as people with better eating habits.

The French have an equally strong taste for red wines that contain resveratrol, a chemical compound proven to extend the lives of yeast cultures and fruit flies, and which may have similarly beneficial effects on humans by lowering cholesterol levels.

Resveratrol is produced naturally by grapes to fight off fungal diseases that can take hold when it’s damp outside. Could these same properties extend human life? I’m sure this will be studied. For now resveratrol, some call it a ‘nutraceutical’, can be purchased in tablet form.

Resveratrol is found primarily on grape skins, it is almost nonexistent in most white wines, which are fermented only after the skins are removed. The same is true of some mass-produced red wines that are filtered to remove the tannins, which can make recently bottled wines taste bitter. But filtering also eliminates the resveratrol.

One or two small glasses of red wine with the supper meal will probably be give you your daily supply of the nutraceutical.

 Some researchers say that grape juice from dark-purple, concord grapes has resveratrol in it. So taking a few small glasses of grape juice a day should keep you supplied without the alcohol of wine.

Beta-Sitosterol comes from soy or rice. It is a healthy plant oil, found in soybeans and rice. It can decrease the absorption of cholesterol in the digestive system and decrease the amount of cholesterol produced by the liver. Beta-Sitosterol decreases absorption by locking onto the fat molecules eaten and by blocking the fat molecule absorption gates in the intestines. The fats and cholesterol are then excreted rather than absorbed. A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed a 42% decease in cholesterol absorbed when taking beta-sitosterol before eating scrambled eggs. The liver actually manufactures more cholesterol than is typically absorbed from food. Beta-sitosterol acts on the liver enzymes in a way which inhibits cholesterol production. An important enzyme for the manufacture of cholesterol in the liver is broken down rapidly in the presence of beta-sitosterol. Cholesterol is also more easily broken down by the liver in the presence of beta-sitosterol. The specific liver enzymes which break down saturated fats are significantly more active. There are possibly even more benefits to taking beta-sitosterol including aiding in weight loss.Beta-Sitosterol can be purchased as a supplement - Beta-Sitosterol Complex in 300mg tablets. There might be medication interactions, so it is best to check with your medical doctor before trying this supplement.

It’s defined as a cluster of factors that put a person at risk for developing cardiovascular disease.  If you have: 

A waist size – 40 inches for men; 35 inches for women.

High Blood Pressure – greater than or equal to 130 mm Hg systolic (top number) or greater than or equal to 85 mg Hg diastolic (lower number) or taking medication for high blood pressure.

High triglycerides greater than 150 mg/dL or taking medication for high triglycerides.

Low HDL good cholesterol – less than 40 mg/dL for men less than 50 mg/dL for women or taking medication for low HDL.

High blood sugar – greater than or equal to 100 mg/dL or taking medication for blood sugar. Yes, in addition you may develop diabetes.

Obviously as our society becomes more and more obese, more and more people may be classified as being in the metabolic syndrome. A person is not necessarily in pain in the syndrome, but if s/he stays in this category long enough heart disease will continue within her or his body. It is an unhealthy state – one to avoid.

How to get out of it? Change your eating habits and exercise. After all you have your future health and well being to consider.

An apple a day keeps the doctor away. We’ve all heard that saying. Apples do contain certain nutrients that help prevent heart disease. Flavonoids like quercitin are known to help with antioxidant activity preventing the LDL bad cholesterol particles from becoming oxidized. In their oxidized state, the LDL particles are more able to penetrate the artery cellular wall and deposit cholesterol there; thus furthering heart disease.

A study just released has shown that adults who eat apples or applesauce or drink apple juice have a reduced risk for developing metabolic syndrome, a group of health problems that can be precursors to heart disease and diabetes. The research was gleaned from data collected between 1999 and 2004 in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, the largest food consumption and health database of the United States government. Those who consumed apple products were 27 per cent less likely to be diagnosed with metabolic syndrome, compared to those who don’t eat apple products. So all the vitamins and flavonoids in apples, and I’m sure in other fruits, have a very beneficial effect on preventing metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome is a serious step towards developing more life-limiting heart and diabetic related problems.