High cholesterol affects nearly 100 million Americans, and left untreated can lead to life threatening health conditions. High cholesterol leads to a buildup of plaque on artery wall, dramatically increasing a person’s risk of stroke, blood clots and heart attack. Conventional medicine treats high cholesterol patients with an almost never ending regimen of prescription drugs. This drug dependent therapy, once begun, is almost impossible to quit, and patients find themselves dependent on statin medications for years. It is an expensive treatment, which seeks to address a patients cholesterol levels by adding potentially addictive chemicals to an already compromised system.
Alternatives to conventional treatments for high cholesterol can be found in natural, holistic, therapies that address the heart of the condition by concentrating on a whole body approach to health and well-being. The natural approach to high cholesterol offers the real results that patients desire.
Common Causes of High Cholesterol
There is little question about what causes high cholesterol. Poor nutrition and unhealthy lifestyle choices are the worst offenders. High fat diets, lack of exercise, alcohol consumption and smoking all play a part in the development of high cholesterol. All of these factors contribute to the reduction of HDL (good cholesterol), and the increase of LDL (bad cholesterol) levels in the blood stream. While heredity does play some part in determining a patient’s predisposition for high cholesterol, lifestyle choices cannot be ignored as the major cause of high cholesterol in otherwise healthy individuals.
Step One – A Change of Diet
Good nutrition is the foundation of any healthy lifestyle, and patients at risk for high cholesterol can do much to protect themselves by ensuring that their diet supports HDL cholesterol, and reduces LDL cholesterol. Whether we like to hear it or not, many of the foods we love to eat are simply bad for us. Fried foods, sugary sweets, processed meat products and high fat dairy products all raise the levels of unwanted LDL cholesterol. The first step to avoiding high cholesterol, and to reducing already elevated bad cholesterol levels, is to eliminate these problem foods form the diet, and to replace them with healthy alternatives. Substituting plant proteins for unhealthy animal proteins has been proven to lower bad cholesterol levels, while supporting overall heart health. Foods rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, such as, flax seed, walnuts, hemp and chia seeds should also be added to a healthy diet. Omega-3 fatty acids act as an anti-inflammatory, and help to decrease the growth of plaque in the arteries. Foods rich in Omega-3 also decrease the rate at which the liver produces LDL and triglycerides, thereby reducing the production of so called ‘bad’ cholesterol. Fiber rich foods, such as green vegetables also help to lower cholesterol levels and should be a staple of a healthy diet.
Certain natural dietary supplements can help patients to lower their cholesterol levels. Garlic, ginger, turmeric and rosemary have all been used to reduce the levels of bad cholesterol, minimizing the need to depend on medication. Other supplements, like CoQ10 reduced and plant source EPA/DHA have a positive effect on patients with high cholesterol levels, and can be added to a nutritionally sound diet to help reduce the levels of LDL cholesterol.
Lifestyle, Weight and Exercise
It’s another hard truth, but inactivity and excess weight provide fertile ground for the development of high cholesterol. One of the best ways to control high cholesterol is to begin, and maintain, a regular exercise routine. Not only does regular exercise help to promote the levels of good (HDL) cholesterol in the blood stream, but helps patients to maintain a healthy weight. Carrying excess weight causes the body to produce higher levels of triglycerides, and decreases the overall level of HDL cholesterol in the blood stream.
Tobacco smokers already know that they need to quit. Smoking puts patients at a higher risk for high cholesterol, and actively lowers the levels of good cholesterol in the blood stream. Smoking is also the leading cause of heart disease, with high cholesterol running a close second. The combination of smoking and high cholesterol can be a ticking time bomb.
Patients diagnosed with high cholesterol can find themselves fast tracked onto a long term regimen of prescription therapies. But with the help of Total Health Institute, patients can learn to manage and control their cholesterol naturally. By making the necessary dietary changes, and by adopting a regular exercise routine, patients can enjoy better health without resorting to potentially harmful chemicals.