Love your heart

Protect your heart by lowering your cholesterol levels.



iStock

Heart disease doesn't just attack men. It is also a major threat to women’s health and is the leading killer, claiming six times the number of lives lost to breast cancer.

Having high cholesterol levels or high blood pressure is one of the things that can cause heart disease so if your doctor tells you that you need to lower your cholesterol levels to prevent the risk of heart disease, then you will need to change your diet and lifestyle. Read on and find out how you can decrease your cholesterol level.



What is cholesterol?

Cholesterol is a soft, waxy substance found in your bloodstream. Although your body needs cholesterol to help build and maintain cells, too much cholesterol can build up on your artery walls.



Where does it come from in the body?

Your body produces cholesterol naturally, based on family history. Your liver makes cholesterol, as do other individual cells throughout your body. Once cholesterol is produced, it can make its way into your bloodstream.

Take the cholesterol your body makes and add it to the cholesterol you get from food. Now you can see how easily cholesterol can build up in your bloodstream and how your overall cholesterol level can increase.



What can happen as a result of high cholesterol?

Having high LDL (bad) cholesterol can put you at risk of heart disease, especially if you have any of these additional risk factors: Smoking, diabetes, family history of heart disease, you’re a woman aged 55 or older or you have a high fat/cholesterol diet.

Some of these risk factors can be changed or controlled, such as high LDL cholesterol and smoking. Others cannot be changed such as your family history and age, for example. That is why it is very important to treat the risk factors that can be changed.

The more risk factors you have, the higher your risk of heart disease. Your LDL goal is related to how many other risk factors you have, and your doctor may set your LDL goal to be lower than another patient who has fewer risk factors. You and your doctor will work together to assess your specific risks and create a plan to help lower your LDL cholesterol.



Cholesterol: The good and the bad

Your body needs a small amount of cholesterol to function properly. However, we may get too much saturated fat and cholesterol in our diet and both of these raise the levels of LDL. This can cause plaque to build up in the arteries which will ultimately lead to heart disease. HDL ‘good’ cholesterol, on the other hand, helps to clear the bad from your blood. You want to lower LDH and raise HDL cholesterol, starting with your diet.



Tips to lower cholesterol

Portion control helps to lower cholesterol, so use your hand to work out what you should be eating for a meal. One serving of meat or fish should fit in the palm of your hand. A serving of fruit is about the size of your fist and a serving of vegetables, rice or pasta should fit in your cupped hand.

Fruits and vegetables are nature’s low cholesterol diet so load your plate with them. You will also help your body to lower blood pressure and maintain a healthy weight. Foods which contain plant sterols, such a margarine and yoghurts can also help to lower LDL cholesterol.

For good heart health make sure that you eat plenty of fish or at least twice a week. Fish is low in saturated fat and high in healthy omega-3 fatty acids and these help to lower levels of trigylcerides, a type of fat in the blood. They also help to lower cholesterol by slowing the growth of plaque in the arteries. Go salmon, tuna, trout or sardines.

Go nuts with some smart snacks and have almonds, walnuts or pistachios as they are high in monounsaturated fat which lowers bad cholesterol. Studies have shown that people who eat about an ounce of nuts a day have lower risk of heart disease.

“Beans, beans, good for the heart” so make sure that you eat plenty of them as they are high in fibre and don’t raise sugar levels. They lower the risk of diabetes and high cholesterol. Other carbs such as those found in white bread, potatoes and white rice do exactly the opposite and quickly raise levels.

Make sure that you move it for 30 minutes five times a week as this will help to lower LDL cholesterol. It will also help you to maintain an ideal weight which will reduce your chance of developing clogged arteries.

Walk it off if you aren’t use to exercising or hate the thought of going to the gym. It’s easy and healthy and all you need is a good pair of walking shoe. Aerobic and cardiovascular exercise, such as walking, lowers the risk of a stroke and heart disease.



Make some simple changes in your life to lower your cholesterol as well as exercise and changing your diet. If you are eating healthy at home then make sure that you don’t blow out if you go to a restaurant as it can be loaded with saturated fat, sodium and calories. Choose boiled, baked, streamed and grilled foods rather than fried.

Shop smart by reading the nutrition labels on the packaging. Make sure that you check for serving sizes and a foods with ‘0 grams cholesterol’ could still raise your LDL levels as saturated fat is the other culprit to work for.

Don’t stress out as this can raise your blood pressure, adding to the risk of atherosclerosis which occurs when plaque builds up in the arteries. Studies have also shown that stress may directly increase cholesterol levels in some people.

Drop pounds and lose weight as it is one of the best ways to fight cholesterol and cardiovascular disease. Being overweight affects the lining in your arteries, making them more prone to collecting build up. The fat around your stomach is the best to lose as it is linked to the hardening of the arteries.