Know About Cholesterol

Dear Friends,

              Nice to see the response through emails for the article posted in this blog, I really thanks all the readers of this blog. In the present article i would like to share some information about the Cholesterol Health and some details about that.

            Cholesterol is a soft, waxy, fatty substance that's made in your liver. If also comes from some foods. Despite cholesterol's bad reputation, if does have an important role in keeping your healthy. Cholesterol is stored in your cells and in your blood. It helps make hormones, vitamin D and bile acids, which help your body digest food. When you have too much cholesterol, it can build up in your blood vessels and be harmful. High Cholesterol doesn't have any symptoms, so you won't know you have it until you get tested.

                There are different types of cholesterol's are there, let's look into the details. Cholesterol and other fats can't dissolve in blood, so our body moves them to and from cells in carriers, called lipoproteins. There are two types of cholesterol:

                 High-density lipoprotein, or HDL, is the good cholesterol. It helps your body by carrying cholesterol away from the arteries to the liver. Our liver gets rid of the cholesterol. High HDL reduces your risk of heart disease.

                Low-density lipoprotein or LDL, is the bad cholesterol. If we have too much LDL, it can build up on your artery walls and harden to form plaque. As plaque builds, it narrows and may clog our arteries. If we have high LDL, our risk of heart disease is greater.  

                Triglycerides are another type of fat. They are made in your body and come from food. Any Calories you eat and don't use are turned into triglycerides and stored in fat cells. High triglycerides cab increase your risk of heart disease.

Arteries are a type of blood vessels. If we have healthy arteries, they are flexible, strong and smooth on the inside. This allows blood to flow freely through them, from your heart to other parts of your body.  If we have high blood pressure or other risk factors, such as smoking, our arteries may become damaged. This is called arteriosclerosis. Fatty substances, like cholesterol build up on the inner lining of your arteries. Buildup usually happens where the artery has already been damaged. When this buildup hardens, it's called plaque. this is called atherosclerosis. Plaque buildup narrows your arteries and restricts blood flow to your heart and brain. If plaque cracks or ruptures, a blood clot can form. This can lead to a heart attack or stroke.

Some Important information about Cholesterol :

               Get your cholesterol test done, In the report you can see some terms like HDL, LDL and Total cholesterol, Make sure that these levels are as per the following tables :

Type of Cholesterol	HDL Cholesterol	LDL Cholesterol	Triglycerides
Optimal levels	60 mg/dL and over	less than 100mg/dL	less than 150mg/dL
Acceptable Levels	40 - 59 mg/dL	100 - 129 mg/dL	150 - 199mg/dL (high)
Risky levels	40 mg/dL and lower	130 mg/dL and over	200 mg/dL and over (high)

This is simple table you can check with your doctor about exact detailed table to reduce the risk.

Healthy Eating Habits :

Making changes to your diet may help lower bad cholesterol and raise good cholesterol. Talk to your doctor/Nutrition specialist before you begin a new diet plan.

                Limit your total fat intake to no more than 25 to 35 % of your total calories a day. This includes saturated fat, which should be less than 7 % of your total calories and trans fat which should be less than 1% ( its good to completely avoid the trans fat if you can). Saturated fat raises cholesterol, It's found in foods from animals, including meat, poultry, butter, milk and other dairy products. It's also found in some plant, including cocoa butter and tropical oils, such as coconut and palm oils, even in your cooking oils, such as corn oil, peanut oil etc. Trans fat increases total cholesterol and LDL and decrease HDL.

                 Limit your daily cholesterol intake to no more than 300mg a day. If your LDL cholesterol is high, aim for less than 200mg ( daily cholesterol means bad fats ). Eat less sugar and fewer carbohydrates to lower your triglycerides.

                 Eat more Omega-3 fatty acids to help lower your triglycerides. Cold  water fish such as salmon, mackerel and herring usually have high amount of omega-3 fatty acids.

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Eat 25-30 grams of fiber a day. High fiber foods include: oatmeal, beans, oat bran, rice bran, peas, barley, strawberries and apples, try to eat raw so that you will be max amount of fiber.

Limit sodium to less than 2,300 mg a day. Some people may need less than 1,500mg a day your doctor can tell you what's best for you as per your medical reports.

Coming soon Different types of fats.

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