What Is Cholesterol?
Cholesterol is a substance that the human body produces naturally. You get it also from your diet.
There are two types of cholesterol – LDL and HDL.
Bad Cholesterol
LDL is known as bad cholesterol. Why?
It’s bad because too much of it in your system may put you at risk of suffering from either a heart attack or a stroke.
Good Cholesterol
HDL in simple terms is good cholesterol. Its job is to regulate the flow of the bad one. So the harmful cholesterol can be filtered out of your system.
However, there must be a balance between the two types of cholesterol. Only this way you’ll stay healthy.
Total Cholesterol and Triglyceride
Whenever you get a blood test, you will see a breakdown of the LDL and HDL in the system. But doctors pay attention to two other figures as well. These are the total cholesterol and the triglyceride level. They are not that significant as the first two, though.
In order to be given a clean bill of health, you must stay within a certain range. Those who have less than 200mg/dl in total cholesterol are safe. The same goes for someone who has less than 150mg/dl in the triglycerides.
What happens if you go beyond the limit?
In simple terms, you are at risk of developing high blood pressure or a heart disease.
The good news is that you can still prevent such a thing from happening.
How to Prevent High Blood Pressure?
There are four simple ways to do it. But this must be done gradually before something bad really happens.
The first is to change the diet.
This means eating less of foods high in saturated fats such as red meat and dairy products. Just change those foods for fish, fruits, nuts, oatmeal and vegetables. It has been established that eating low cholesterol and high fiber foods can cut individual cholesterol level by seven percent.
Studies have also shown that people who eat oatmeal regularly are able to reduce the LDL and triglycerides level in just 2 weeks. Imagine what could happen if this is done even after just a month?
The second is exercise.
The body has stored fat after how many years of not engaging in any physical activity. Changing the eating habits can only go so far and sweating it out will increase the metabolic rate thus helping reduce your cholesterol levels.
You can lower the cholesterol levels naturally through exercise.
This can be achieved easily in many ways. Brisk walking, jogging or running around the neighborhood are simple and affordable ways of moving. Learning a new sport and doing it regularly is another option.
Those who want to be looked after by a personal trainer can check out the gym since there are professionals that can create a program to achieve desired results. This will be a combination of cardio-vascular exercises as well as weight lifting to burn the calories and lower the cholesterol levels.
The third, taking supplements.
Dietary supplements to aid in the reduction of cholesterol are available in different brands.
Studies have proven that supplements can lower the cholesterol from 15% to 30% when taken in regularly.
The fourth, medication.
What about medication? Well, you can choose from the wide range of drugs that can be used to lower cholesterol. The drugs work but remember that the intake of them has certain side effects.
Your doctor should explain to you why a prescription drug is necessary before even prescribing.
All in all, keep in mind that there is a drug-free way to lower your cholesterol. It involves a proper diet, exercise and taking food supplements. This combination can be as effective as drugs used to treat people with high cholesterol levels.
Self Help for High Cholesterol
Prevention is the best way to stand up to any disease. A regular checkup at the doctor’s office will surely save money instead of being confined in the hospital.