Foods to Reduce Cholesterol
Your cholesterol is more than just a number. When cholesterol levels are high, the threat of atherosclerosis (aka hardening of the arteries) can rear it’s ugly head. Why? LDL carries cholesterol to the tissues, where it is deposited as fat. HDL transports cholesterol to the liver for processing and excretion. In the arteries, cholesterol based fat deposits become hardened adhesions called plaque. As plaque accumulates, the arteries narrow and harden, then blood flow is blocked. If the arteries narrow enough to cut off the heart’s blood supply – you die of a heart attack.
How to fix high cholesterol:
A low fat diet with no more than 30 percent of your daily calories from fat and 10 percent or less coming from saturated fat.
Exercise – 30 minutes 4 times a week.
Reduce stress. When we stress our bodies take the fat and turns it into fuel. Great if we need to run from a burning house. Not so great when we can’t burn that fuel off. The fat or mobilized lipids have no place to go. The fuel ends up floating around in your blood bessels and ends up depositing in your arteries.
Foods and Herbs that fight high cholesterol: Garlic has the greatest potential for lowering cholesterol and blood pressure and is a member of the allium family.
More than 30 years of research shows that garlic lowers cholesterol and triglyceride levels. As well as research has show garlic is an aid to lowering the rise of heart disease. In addition to potentially lowering blood cholesterol levels, some research suggests that garlic further protects against heart disease by preventing the formation of blood clots that can block arteries.
Cooked or uncooked is the question. Nothing beats raw garlic for potency, so most herbal experts recommend that you eat garlic raw to get its medicinal benefits. Capsules are no where near as potent as raw garlic or onions, scallions, leeks, shallots, chives (all members of the Allium family). It has bee noticed that people have a lower incidence of heart disease in the Mediterranean countries, where red wine, olive oil, and cooked garlic are essential components of the cuise. Therefore, cooked garlic may also have some cholesterol lowering benefits.
Raw or cooked, fresh garlic is a heart healthy herb.
What else can you try to reduce your cholesterol?
Garlic’s not the only cholesterol lowering herb. Guggal is a gum resin closely related to myrrh. The herb has come into the spotlight for its ability to lower cholesterol. Guggul helps the liver create more receptors for LDL, which enables the liver to catch more for LDL from the blood and excrete it from the body through feces rather than having it float around and creating fat deposits in your arteries.
Ginger gives you a double bonus of protection because it temprarily lowers elevated blood pressure and reduces LDL while raising HDL levels. As well, ginger can help ward off strokes and heart attacks because it keeps platelets from aggregating, or getting sticky and blocking the arteries.
Dandelion supports liver function. Since cholesterol is a building block for homones it is produced in the liver. Anything that supports the liver, which dandelion does, is good for you. Dandelion is bitter, and bitter helps normalize liver and pancreatic functions, which affects the way your body metabolizes fat, including cholesterol.
