Natural Ways to Lower Blood Cholesterol Level

Many people are actually confused about the good effects and ill effects that high levels of cholesterol can cause to our body. In fact, there are two types of cholesterol, the good cholesterol or the HDL and the bad one, the LDL cholesterol. Cholesterol is actually needed for stimulating production of estrogen and testosterone. Also, presence of bad cholesterol cannot singularly harm your life, but its combination with bad lifestyle practices, lack of physical exercise regimen and excessive body weight can prove to be lethal, if not controlled effectively.

However, demonization of cholesterol in the medical circles has resulted in a spurt in production of drugs that are peddled as great cholesterol reducers. With different companies rushing into the scene, the scene is very hot with manufacturers vying with each other to attract potential customers with attractive advertisements and campaigns. Unfortunately, none of these write ups give conclusive evidence on how their merchandise would work and also about what are the side effects.

It has been observed that the major side effects of cholesterol reducing drugs are damages to kidney and muscles, inexplicable weakness, weakening of the immune system and most frighteningly, some types of cancers. In truth, prescription drugs never act as a life enhancer, but as a destroyer of health in the long term. Regular consumption of such drugs can also cause problems with eye sight and general pain.

Statin drugs are commonly used to fight bad cholesterol, but they need to be consumed with caution. Consuming the drug with grapefruit juice, anti-fungal drugs and antibiotics can invariably deteriorate your physical health, which may, in some cases, lead to death too. The most prominent negative effects of statin drugs are continuous headaches, pain in joints and stomach, numbness or tingling in limbs, nausea, depression, breathlessness, weight fluctuations, diabetes, skin problems, unwarranted blood pressure variations, loose bowels or constipation, bleeding from the ears etc.

This effectively points to the fact that drugs are not the one stop solution for bad cholesterol as one may think. This also means that one has to adopt a healthy lifestyle regimen involving consumption of natural foods and exercises to keep cholesterol levels at acceptable rates effectively, without any side effects. Many common foods out there are great cholesterol suppressants. These include olive oil, popcorn, fatty fishes, oats, dark chocolate, beans, apples, almonds and artichokes. It is no wonder that newer generations of cholesterol management drugs are claiming to contain extracts of these in enough quantities. But still, it is better to consult an expert in the field before you take a dive towards changing your dietary habits.

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Foods To Eat For A Lower Cholesterol Level

The dietary changes required have the objective of lowering the bad cholesterol (LDL) and raising the level of good cholesterol (HDL). Lowering the bad cholesterol means that the bad cholesterol foods with high contents of saturated fats and trans-fats should be avoided or significantly reduced altogether. Examples of such foods are meats, full fat dairy products, some oils, margarines, cookies, crackers and cakes, butter, ice cream, cheese, eggs, etc.

Good cholesterol foods include fatty fish, walnuts, oatmeal, oat bran and all fruits and vegetables. If one is chronic then these foods together with cholesterol lowering medication and an appropriate exercise program should improve the cholesterol level. With this discipline in place the time will come when medication may not be necessary and this will be to the relief from the debilitating side effects that these medications bring about.

The other lifestyle change is to put in place a regular exercise program. Thirty minute of brisk walking five days a week will lower your bad cholesterol and raise your good cholesterol. In addition a more active routine during the course of one's day can help with weight loss. A lower weight usually means a reduction in LDLs and overweight usually means an increase in LDLs. In addition being overweight usually means susceptibility to such diseases like diabetes which further complicates the bad cholesterol condition.

Stress can also lead to one having high cholesterol as studies have shown that chronic stress over a long period does lead to bad eating habits and the overconsumption of fatty foods containing saturated fats and trans-fats.

The other issue that is of major importance today is the impact that modern statin drugs are having on those who consume them. Statin drugs are prescriptions drugs that remove bad cholesterol from the system. These drugs are quite effective but their downside is the harsh side effects that attend upon their usage over the medium and longer terms. They have been known to cause cancer, cause immune system suppression, create fatigue and cause kidney failure. It is normally recommended that the use of any particular medication should not exceed four years.

The true cause of bad cholesterol is the consumption of foods that are not natural to the human body. As long as we continue to eat man-made foods in overall preference to nature-made or natural foods that are not compatible with the human body we will have this problem.

Consultations with your health professional is also always recommended when dealing with health issues.

Nigel Gittens is a writer and researcher on Nutrition. For more great free information on lower cholesterol, visit http://www.lowercholesterolstrategies.com/

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