what is cholesterol,what to do to bring it down?

Answer 1

Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance made in the liver and found in certain foods, such as food from animals, like dairy products (whole milk), eggs and meat.

The body needs some cholesterol in order to function properly. Its cell walls, or membranes, need cholesterol in order to produce hormones, vitamin D and the bile acids that help to digest fat. But, the body needs only a small amount of cholesterol to meet its needs. When too much is present health problems such as coronary heart disease may develop.

A few simple changes can help lower your cholesterol:

Eat low cholesterol foods. The American Heart Association recommends that you limit your average daily cholesterol intake to less than 300 milligrams. If you have heart disease, limit your daily intake to less than 200 milligrams. People can significantly lower their dietary cholesterol intake by keeping their dietary intake of saturated fats low and by avoiding foods that are high in saturated fat and that contain substantial amounts of dietary cholesterol.

Quit smoking. Smoking lowers HDL ("good") cholesterol levels. This trend can be reversed if you quit smoking.

Exercise. Exercise increases HDL cholesterol in some people. Even moderate-intensity activities, if done daily, can help control weight, diabetes, and high blood pressure -- all risk factors for heart disease.

Take medication as prescribed by your doctor. Sometimes making changes to your diet and increasing exercise is not enough to bring your cholesterol down. You may also need to take a cholesterol lowering drug.

Answer 2

Natural Cholesterol Guide?

Answer 3

There is good and bad cholestrol. When bad cholestrol is formed it clogs up your arteries. We all have cholestrol but the bad can be your bodies inability to break down fatty foods. Cutting out fatty foods such as crisps, dairy foods, chocolate (all nice things) can help in the battle of cholestrol build up. Sometimes if strict dieting doesn't help you will require medication - your doctor will discuss this with you. They will do a blood test to tell if you have bad cholestrol and they will explain how you may be able to help reduce it by eating healthy and to stop smoking. If not checked then you could suffer heart problems so it is very important to visit your doctor for the test which is quite simple and painless. It doesn't mean you have to cut out fatty foods completely but you should watch your diet carefully. Exercise is also an important factor so get regular exercise. I hope this helps.

Answer 4

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Cholesterol is a soft, waxy substance found among the lipids (fats) in the bloodstream and in all your body's cells. It's an important part of a healthy body because it's used to form cell membranes, some hormones and is needed for other functions. But a high level of cholesterol in the blood — hypercholesterolemia — is a major risk factor for coronary heart disease, which leads to heart attack.

Cholesterol and other fats can't dissolve in the blood. They have to be transported to and from the cells by special carriers called lipoproteins. There are several kinds, but the ones to focus on are low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL).

People get cholesterol in two ways. The body — mainly the liver — produces varying amounts, usually about 1,000 milligrams a day. Foods also can contain cholesterol. Foods from animals (especially egg yolks, meat, poultry, fish, seafood and whole-milk dairy products) contain it. Foods from plants (fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts and seeds) don't contain cholesterol.

Typically the body makes all the cholesterol it needs, so people don't need to consume it. Saturated fatty acids are the main culprit in raising blood cholesterol, which increases your risk of heart disease. Trans fats also raise blood cholesterol. But dietary cholesterol also plays a part. The average American man consumes about 337 milligrams of cholesterol a day; the average woman, 217 milligrams.

Some of the excess dietary cholesterol is removed from the body through the liver. Still, the American Heart Association recommends that you limit your average daily cholesterol intake to less than 300 milligrams. If you have heart disease, limit your daily intake to less than 200 milligrams. Still, everyone should remember that by keeping their dietary intake of saturated fats low, they can significantly lower their dietary cholesterol intake. Foods high in saturated fat generally contain substantial amounts of dietary cholesterol.

People with severe high blood cholesterol levels may need an even greater reduction. Since cholesterol is in all foods from animal sources, care must be taken to eat no more than six ounces of lean meat, fish and poultry per day and to use fat-free and low-fat dairy products. High-quality proteins from vegetable sources such as beans are good substitutes for animal sources of protein.

Answer 5

Cholesterol is a fatty substance blocking your arteries.
Don't eat animal fat, prefer olive oil but not cooked, eat mostly fish instead of meat, exercise, don't smoke, have fruit and veg..

Answer 6

cut down on fats, eat oatmeal every am, take a niacin tab everyday, exercise..if all that fails....your dr will put you on a cholesterol lowering medication..
for more info, go to :
www.mayoclinic.com

Answer 7

Eat Cheerios or oatmeal pretty regularly, walk a lot, don't eat much meat, don't fry your food or get fast food. Cut down on eggs and use fat free milk.

Answer 8

Set your personal machine alarm to ring hourly—stand upwards for 1 to 5 minutes every time it goes off.

Answer 9

On breakfast, go ahead and drink orange juice. But throughout all of those other day, focus on water rather then juice or soda

Answer 10

Stop eating red meat, instead eat plenty of pulses and have a bowl of porrige for your breakfast.
Get rid of stress levels.