Levels

Cholesterol is a soft way substance found in all parts of the human body. Some of the cholesterol is produced by the body and some of it comes from the food you eat. The body does need some cholesterol to function properly. Too much cholesterol can cause arteries to clog and can lead to heart disease. Maintaining a diet that is designed to reduce cholesterol levels can reduce risks of heart disease and lower cholesterol. Increasing physical activity and losing weight will help lower your cholesterol too.

Cholesterol can be found in eggs, dairy products, meat, and poultry. Egg yolks and organ meats like kidneys, liver, and sweetbreads are very high in cholesterol. Some shellfish are high in cholesterol but fish contains less cholesterol than that of other meats. Fat content of foods is not always the way to go to measure cholesterol in foods. Some times foods can be very low in fat and have high cholesterol content like liver. Foods of plant origin have no cholesterol like veggies and fruits.

To lower your high cholesterol levels you can limit your intake of fats to 25 to 35 % of the total day’s calories. Eating less than 200 mg’s of dietary cholesterol per day and getting more fiber in your diet can help to lower your cholesterol levels as well. It is still very important to get enough calories in your diet to support health.

A low cholesterol diet does not have to be hard to follow. There is such a huge variety of foods and ways to cook them that it would be hard to get bored. There are even many food companies that offer low fat and low cholesterol for people who don’t have time to put together large meals.

When shopping for food with your new diet in mind keep the following things in mind as well. Fruits and vegetables have no cholesterol in them. Lower the intake of saturated fats in your diet because these foods can raise your cholesterol levels. Partially hydrogenated vegetable oils contain a form of saturated fat called Trans fats. They raise blood cholesterol levels the same way saturated fats do. Trans fats are found in foods like margarines, shortenings, and cooking oils.

Whole grains should be used instead of foods with white flour. Eating large amounts of carbohydrates can raise cholesterol levels, especially if you have diabetes. Buying low fat or skim milk dairy products instead of whole milk products can help you lose weight along with decrease cholesterol levels. Lean meats like turkey, chicken, or fish are better for you rather than eating red meats. Instead of using ground beef using ground turkey is a healthy substitute for hamburgers or spaghetti. Olive and canola oils are lower in saturated fats which can help lower cholesterol.

Another great thing to add to a low cholesterol diet is an herbal supplement. Cholesterol Control is a product that can assist the body’s normal ability to balance cholesterol levels. Using this product with the diet and adding exercise to your daily routine can decrease bad levels of cholesterol. This product can be found at Alternative Health Supplements and is all natural and perfectly safe to use with no negative side affects.

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Cholesterol is a sterol lipid, a form of fat, found in the cell membranes of all body tissues of humans and animals. Most of it is synthesized internally in the liver, but a part of it comes directly from animal-derived foods (meats, eggs and dairy products) present in the diet.

Cholesterol is an essential ingredient of many physiological body functions. For example, it helps produce bile, combines hormones and vitamin D, and metabolises fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, K). It is, therefore, important to keep cholesterol levels within an ideal range, not too low and not too high.

Link Between Cholesterol Levels and General Well-Being

Studies show a link between lower than ideal cholesterol levels and depression, anxiety, mood swings, and Parkinson’s disease. On the other hand, high cholesterol levels can lead to a host of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases such as high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke, paralysis, and so on. This happens because the build up of a hard fatty deposit (the plaque) in the arteries and consequent narrowing and hardening of the arteries (atherosclerosis).

The problem of plaque formation gets worse if the fraction of HDL cholesterol in the blood is low. HDL (high-density lipoprotein) is the good cholesterol that prevents the buildup of plaque in the arteries. The HDL helps to carry the plaque-forming bad cholesterol (LDL) away from the arteries and tissues to the liver for breakdown and disposal. LDL means low-density lipoprotein.

The Age Factor

The need to pay attention to cholesterol levels increases with age. It is, therefore, important to know the various causes that can contribute to high LDL cholesterol levels and low HDL cholesterol levels. Some of these risks are:

Obesity: Obesity implies being overweight because of excess fat in the body, and excess fat translates to high cholesterol levels. The higher the total cholesterol, the higher would be the LDL level and, normally, the lower would be the HDL level.

Heredity: Heredity is another risk factor for developing high cholesterol levels, however, you can control it to some extent by adopting a healthy lifestyle and a low-cholesterol diet.

Diet: Diet plays an important role in controlling your cholesterol levels. Foods rich in cholesterol, saturated fats and trans fats push your cholesterol levels too high for your well-being.

Sedentary lifestyle: Lack of physical exercise decreases the HDL level, which in turn raises the LDL level and the total cholesterol level.

Smoking: Smoking hardens the arteries and decreases the HDL level, by increasing the LDL and total cholesterol levels.

Blood Test

A blood test called lipid or lipoprotein profiling measures the blood serum cholesterol levels, first on a fasting stomach and then after meals.

The lipid profile will give information about the total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and HDL cholesterol.

Lab technicians measure all cholesterol levels in milligrams of cholesterol per deciliter of blood (mg/dL).

The desirable total cholesterol level is less than 200 mg/dL.

You can consider 200-239 mg/dL as borderline high, but more than 240 mg/dL is considered high.

The matching figures for LDL cholesterol are: less than 100 mg/dL (optimal); 130-159 mg/dL (borderline high) and 160-189 mg/dL (high) and more than 190 mg/dL (very high).

An HDL less than 40 mg/dL is considered a major risk factor for heart disease.

From 40 to 59 mg/dL is considered satisfactory, and above 60 mg/dL is what provides protection against heart disease and is highly desirable.

Any treatment for high cholesterol levels aims at lowering the LDL level while raising the HDL level. Adopting some lifestyle and diet changes that minimize the risk factors can effectively lower moderately to borderline high cholesterol levels, without the need for prescription drugs. But for higher cholesterol levels one has to resort to cholesterol-lowering drugs as well as making therapeutic lifestyle and diet changes.

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Cholesterol is probably one of our biggest enemies, because it can lead to serious heart problems. Luckily, there are methods that you can use to change your cholesterol levels. A high level of cholesterol is a big threat to our health, so one must lower it, the level of cholesterol.

Here are some of the things that affect the changes in the levels of cholesterol. The first thing that has a huge impact on the levels of cholesterol is diet. It is a well known fact that the saturated fat and the cholesterol that we eat increase the levels of cholesterol in your blood. The main reason why our blood cholesterol levels goes up is the saturated fat, but food with cholesterol are also to blame. So in order to lower the cholesterol that you have in your blood, you should reduce the amount of saturated fat that you eat. The best thing to do is eliminate saturated fat completely to better lower the cholesterol. Furthermore, you should avoid any foods that have cholesterol in them. Your weight is also an issue when cholesterol is concerned. If you have a few extra kilograms than normal, this might be a problem. This condition increases the cholesterol in your blood, thus giving a higher risk of developing heart problems. By loosing weight, the cholesterol levels that are very bad for you, will go

down. Furthermore, the level of HDL cholesterol, which is the good cholesterol will go up. The physical activity that you have is also another important thing when cholesterol is concerned. If you have regular exercise, this can lower the levels of LDl cholesterol, which is the bad cholesterol. Furthermore, physical exercise also raises the HDL cholesterol level, which is very good for your health. A half an hour a day of exercise is all it takes if you want to lower those cholesterol levels and higher the good cholesterol level.

There are also other factors that can affect the levels of cholesterol in your blood. Unfortunately, these are things that you have no power over. The gender and age of a person can be a thing that can cause changes in cholesterol levels. Older people are more at risk of having high cholesterol levels as women are after menopause. Before they get to this stage in their life, women have lower cholesterol levels than men.

For greater resources on cholesterol please review http://www.cholesterol-info-guide.com/low-cholesterol-food.htm or http://www.cholesterol-info-guide.com/high-cholesterol.htm

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The cholesterol that is found in your blood is highly related to heart problems. That means that depending on your cholesterol levels, you can say if you are at risk or not. The main risk factor in having any heart related problems are high cholesterol levels in your blood. As the levels of cholesterol in your blood are higher, the bigger your chances are of developing a heart condition. High cholesterol levels can also lead to a heart attack. There is a very big number of people that die from heart problems that were cause by cholesterol. There are even more those that suffer from a heart disease because they did not take care of their cholesterol levels.

Cholesterol is a substance that is similar to fat and it is found in your blood. If there is too much cholesterol in the blood, this usually builds up in your arteries. In time, the cholesterol clucks build up and start to narrow the arteries, thus slowing the flow of your blood. The build up of cholesterol can also block your arteries. Because, the blood takes oxigen to your heart, when the flow is blocked, oxygen can not reach your heart anymore. This is terrifying consequence of cholesterol. If the blood is blocked, because of cholesterol and it can not reach even a small part of your heart, a heart attack occurs.

The high level of cholesterol has no symptoms. This is the main reason why a lot of people do not even know that their cholesterol levels are higher than normal. So in order to find out what your cholesterol levels are, a doctor must be seen. It is crucial that you know the levels of cholesterol before it is too late. A high cholesterol level can be lowered, thus also lowering your risk of having any heart problems. It does not matter if you are a child, an adult or an older person. A cholesterol level check must be done in all people. Then, if you find out that your levels of cholesterol are higher than normal, lowering the cholesterol level is the next step you have to take.

All people that have over twenty years of life should do the cholesterol test called lipoprotein. Some blood will be taken and by analyzing it, the cholesterol numbers that you have will be revealed. Before taking this cholesterol test, you must fast about twelve hours. What this test of cholesterol tells you are: total cholesterol levels, LDL cholesterol levels- the “bad ” cholesterol in your blood, the level of ‘good ‘ cholesterol, which is the HDL cholesterol and finally triglycerides level.

For greater resources on cholesterol please review http://www.cholesterol-info-guide.com/low-cholesterol-diet.htm or http://www.cholesterol-info-guide.com/cholesterol-levels.htm

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Before you begin eating your favorite food, you possibly would want to know if you’re ingesting too much cholesterol. Several years ago, many folks weren’t aware what a cholesterol level was. However, with all the information available. Individuals are becoming more acutely aware how their cholesterol levels impact their health. You need to remember you are what you eat. What you eat has something to do with your cholesterol levels.

Firstly, what is cholesterol? How do you know you have a healthy cholesterol level?

Cholesterol is a lipid necessary in all the vital functions of the human body. Every single cell is surrounded by cholesterol. Its fucntion is to insulate our nerve fibers. By insulating our nerve fibers, the cholesterol ensures the nerve signals are properly traveling . Also, cholesterol produces hormones which are used to carry specific signals around the body.

High cholesterol in your body increases your chances of heart disease. If your cholesterol level is high, you must lower it.

How do you measure your cholesterol? You need to consult with your doctor for blood tests to be taken. Knowing your cholesterol levels are not enough to determine whether you are at risk for heart disease. You should find out what your Lipoprotein levels are.

Lipoproteins are molecules designed to carry cholesterol throughout the body. They control how much cholesterol is currently in your body. There are two main types of Lipoproteins:

– High Density Lipoproteins

– Low Density Lipoproteins

You really need to be aware of Low Density Lipoproteins. A high level of Low Density Lipoproteins means you have bad cholesterol which has been built up. High Density Lipoproteins means good cholesterol. And they are used to carry cholesterol away from cells and to your liver.

The tricky thing about cholesterol is maintaining the right level. Your physician has the right ability to tell you how low your cholesterol levels need to be. The average person usually should have around 4.0mmol/l but if you have a low density lipoprotein count, then you should have around 2.0mmol/l. As I previously mentioned, each person is unique so get your levels checked.

Cholesterol is very important and you should know what levels you possess. An ever-increasing number of people are developing heart disease related to high levels of cholesterol. It’s advisable to see your doctor so they can test your cholesterol level.

To improve your cholesterol level; eat healthy foods which can lower your LDL cholesterol level. If you have a healthy diet, your body will be protected from the damaging effects of cholesterol. You must quit smoking, lose excess weight and exercise to raise your HDL (good) cholesterol level.

If you follow a healthy low fat diet. You can lower your cholesterol levels. If healthy eating and moderate exercise don’t work after approximately six months, consult your family physician for medicine to help lower your cholesterol level.

If you really want to lower your cholesterol or manage your weight, Proactol™, can help you achieve this very easily.

Proactol™ can assist you in trimming down your dietary fat intake by up to 28%. It is a clinically proven fat binder which helps you lower your blood cholesterol levels by slowing down your glucose absorption.

Many health experts recommend people to have a healthy lifestyle coupled with plenty of exercise and a balanced diet. Proactol™ is here to provide you with the healthy life you desire to achieve.

For more helpful dietary information on Proactol, Go Here!

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What is cholesterol, and is it all bad? What’s the difference between LDL and HDL cholesterol? What are the healthy or normal cholesterol levels you should strive for?


In this article, I’ll explain what happens when your cholesterol levels aren’t normal, as well as some of the ways to manage them, so that you can be better educated and proactive where your health is concerned, and maybe even extend your life.


First of all, cholesterol is a waxy substance found in cells in all parts of the body. And no, it is not all bad. In fact, cholesterol is necessary for building and regenerating cells. It also insulates nerves and produces hormones in the body. The key is maintaining normal levels.


Where does cholesterol come from? About 75% of the cholesterol in our bodies is manufactured in the liver, and the other 25% comes from food, mostly meat and dairy products. If your liver produces too much cholesterol, that is when the levels become abnormal or unhealthy, and a method for bringing them back in balance becomes a necessity in order to preserve cardiovascular health.


This is especially important in people with diabetes, or metabolic syndrome (sometimes referred to as pre-diabetes.) Unhealthy cholesterol levels, when combined with weight gain and increased blood pressure, can lead to all kinds of health challenges.


IT IS IMPORTANT TO KNOW YOUR NUMBERS


Notice the plural, because it is not only total cholesterol or just the bad cholesterol number that is important. Complete cholesterol care implies being aware of all the numbers.


So what are the numbers you should know that make up the complete cholesterol picture?


First is the LDL or bad cholesterol. This is the component that when it becomes elevated, causes buildup on the walls of the arteries. As this buildup hardens, it becomes plaque, which increases your risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Science is proving that this buildup starts to develop in late teens and early twenties, and continues progressively as we age.


Of course as this buildup continues, it starts to narrow the opening in the arteries, restricting blood flow and raising blood pressure. Left unchecked, it can continue until it ruptures which causes a clot to form, totally cutting off the flow of blood.


If this clot is in the area leading to the heart, it is a heart attack. If it is in the arteries leading to the brain, that is a stroke. Both are considered cardiovascular disease.


LDL levels of greater than 190 are considered dangerous. 160 to 189 is considered poor, 130 to 159 is fair, and readings less than 129 are considered healthy. Some doctors are suggesting levels be below 100, and recent research is showing that if we can reduce our LDL to less than 70, we can actually start to reverse the plaque buildup.


The next number to be aware of is HDL, or the good cholesterol, which reduces your risk of CVD. In fact, your HDL number is becoming much more important because research has shown that for every 1% you reduce your LDL or bad cholesterol, you get about a 2% reduction in cardiovascular risk. But for every 1% you increase your HDL, you get a 3% reduction in risk. What should your HDL be? Healthy levels for men are above 40, and for women, it should be above 50.


Total Cholesterol or TC is the addition of your LDL, HDL and a component known as VLDL. Healthy levels are anything under 200. Another important number to be aware of is your cardiovascular risk ratio. This number is determined by dividing Total Cholesterol by HDL. This number should be below 5, with the optimal amount of 3.5 or lower.


Where do triglycerides come from? Fats consumed in our diet, or made in the body from carbohydrates, cause triglycerides in the blood. Some calories are converted to triglycerides and move into the fat cells for storage. So how do those numbers stack up?


Triglyceride levels of less than 150 are considered acceptable. Levels from 150 to 199 indicate moderate risk, 200 to 499 indicate high risk, and levels in excess of 500 indicate extreme high risk.


If it’s confusing to remember what’s good and what’s not, an easy way to remember the different parts of the total picture is “L” stands for “lethal” LDL, “H” stands for “healthy” HDL, and “T” stands for “treacherous” triglycerides.


METHODS FOR DEALING WITH UNHEALTHY CHOLESTEROL


There are different methods a person can use for improving one’s cholesterol levels. The most widely known is through the use of special cholesterol lowering prescription drugs called “statins”. Statins such as Lipitor, Zocor, Crestor, and others represent nationally a 25 Billion Dollar per year treatment option. They have proved themselves effective at lowering the LDL segment of the cholesterol picture, however they do very little to reduce triglycerides or raise the HDL.


Besides, statins sometime carry very significant side effects, and therefore some people can’t take them. What are some of these documented side effects?


The Statin Effects Study concluded that the top two are possible liver and muscle damage. However, there are also lesser known effects such as sudden memory loss, increase in eye cataract risk, suppresses the body’s natural immune function, increased cancer risk, kidney and nerve damage, depletes CoQ10 levels (necessary for healthy heart function), sleep disturbance, blood sugar or blood pressure changes, and sexual dysfunction.


According to the drug manufacturers, only an insignificant number of patients are affected by these side effects. But if you’re one of them, is it “insignificant” for you? What you will hear more and more from the drug companies, is that they also will admit that just lowering the LDL is not enough.


Combination therapy will become the new buzz word. It means adding additional drugs to raise the good cholesterol, or lower triglycerides or blood sugar. Of course, it’s highly likely that these additional drug additives will have their own set of additional side effects.


In fact, reports on the recent results of a clinical study by one of the leading pharmaceutical company’s combinations to try to raise the HDL led to “pulling the plug” on the whole experiment. Why, you ask? According to the report, an “unacceptable number of people died” while taking the combination therapy. Makes me wonder what number of people would be “acceptable”.


Do we see increased costs and co-pays in our futures? I believe you can bank on it. Some people feel, and I’m one of them, that even the cheapest co-pay is more than they’re willing to risk their quality of life for.


So are there other, safer alternatives for you? The answer is yes. In fact, according to the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) guidelines for healthcare providers, statin drugs should not be the first treatment option offered. According to these guidelines, Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes (TLC) should be used as a first approach.


What are some of the features of TLC? Increase of soluble fiber, regular exercise, and weight reduction are the main ones. When it comes to diet, watch your fat intake, and eat more fruits and vegetables.


In addition to soluble fiber, other methods that can control cholesterol levels are the use of plant sterols or stanols, and a natural component called policosanol, from sugar cane, which blocks the enzyme in the liver that produces cholesterol. Statins block the same enzyme; however, the difference is that the policosanol does not damage the liver. Also ancient Chinese medicine has used a particular extract from the chrysanthemum plant to help in the breakdown of cholesterol.


If you’re concerned about safety and effectiveness, choose a natural solution with solid clinical evidence, that incorporates multiple methods, and raises HDL in addition to lowering LDL.


Be proactive in your own health, be educated on your cholesterol situation, make the right lifestyle choices, and you’ll improve your chances of living longer.


Additional information on lowering cholesterol can be found in “Your Guide to Lowering Cholesterol with TLC” by the US Nat’l Institutes of Health. NIH Publication 06-5235

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A 2007 report from the Women’s Health Study showed that high levels of cholesterol, even in healthy women, was a risk factor that increased a woman’s chances of having a stroke. Other studies have shown a link between high levels of cholesterol and Alzheimer’s disease. And the media has been warning us for years to cut down our intake of cholesterol because high cholesterol leads to hardening of the arteries. But what is cholesterol and why is it even it our bodies?

Cholesterol is a soft, waxy, fat-like substance that is made by the body. It is in all of your cells and can be found in all parts of the body including your skin, blood vessels, muscles, and so on. Since your body actively creates cholesterol, we can assume that having cholesterol in your body is not necessarily bad. In fact, you couldn’t eliminate all the cholesterol in your body if you tried.

Cholesterol is important for the body. The cells use cholesterol as a building block in creating its protective membrane. Studies have indicated that “good” HDL cholesterol protects against heart disease and stroke even if “bad” LDL cholesterol levels are high. Good cholesterol helps to prevent dangerous breakaway blood clots – which can be caused by sitting in a cramped position for too long. Cholesterol also helps to manufacture vitamin D in the body from the sun. And there is much more good that cholesterol does for the body.

There is also a second source of cholesterol. Dietary cholesterol comes form the foods that we eat. It can be only be found in animal foods and eating it raises the bad cholesterol level in your own body. There have been many studies over the years that correlate a high intake of dietary cholesterol to coronary heart disease. In other words, the more high cholesterol foods we eat, the greater our chance of developing heart disease or a stroke.

High density lipoprotein (HDL), the good cholesterol, is a form of cholesterol that circulates in the bloodstream. One of its jobs is to remove excess cholesterol from the body’s tissues and transport it to the liver where it will be excreted from the body. This process of “taking out the garbage” or cleansing the bloodstream is why HDL is a called good cholesterol and also why it’s good for your body to have a relatively high HDL level. Some researchers say that an HDL of 60 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dl) or greater is good and will protect you against hardening of the arteries and lower your risk of getting heart disease.

Conversely, a low level of HDL, such as less then 40 mg/dl, has a negative effect. Many studies indicate that a low level of HDL combined with a high level of LDL seems to be a precursor of heart disease

You can control your cholesterol. The total amount of cholesterol in your body at any point in time is a function of how fast your HDL and liver can cleanse your system of it’s existing cholesterol combined with the amount of dietary cholesterol that you’ve eaten during recent hours.

Controlling the amount of cholesterol that you allow into your body is a huge part of your lifestyle that you can modify to decrease your chances of heart disease or stroke. According to the American Heart Association, if you eat less then 300 milligrams of cholesterol a day, you can significantly reduce your cholesterol levels. By paying greater attention to the foods you eat, you can help to assure yourself of a long and healthy life.

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Yoga DVD’s are hosted by knowledgeable yoga experts that guide the listener through the series of exercises. The instructional DVD’s will be intended for different skill levels from beginner to advanced and something to challenge nearly everyone.

Beginners

Choosing the right yoga DVD to begin with is as simple as looking for the words beginner on the packaging. Choosing an AM/PM regiment for beginners or a total body yoga program would probably be best for people who have never taken a yoga class. These types of yoga DVD’s will teach the basic poses making learning more advanced yoga techniques possible.

Other choices for beginner yoga DVD’s include those for back support, weight loss, stomach sculpting, children, and seniors. Each instructor uses a calming well paced voice to lead the listener through yoga stretches and poses, helping them to make the essential, body mind connection. Some yoga DVD’s have different sections within them, which will allow the person learning yoga to use a more difficult variation of their routine as they become stronger. They also have an advanced routine with the same poses teaching the person how to gradually advance their flexibility and stamina.

Intermediate

Intermediate yoga DVD’s are intended for people who already know many of the basic yoga poses and are fit and limber enough to not be challenged by beginner exercises any longer. Intermediate DVD’s will have challenging poses that will deeply stretch the muscles and can help over all health. Yoga DVD’s are intended to bring the health benefits of yoga to anyone who is interested in learning the art form. Power yoga is a combination of cardiovascular exercises and intermediate to advanced yoga poses that give the entire body a feeling of wellness and exhilaration.

Advanced

Advanced yoga DVD’s are intended to challenge people who have been working at the intermediate level long enough to need deeper stretches and to learn more exercise and relaxation techniques. Some Advanced yoga DVD’s will give the person practicing yoga the skill-set to create their own routine. Some of these forms can include yoga trance dancing, total body power yoga, and complete body yoga routines. Most of these allow the individuals to express themselves by combining their yoga poses in different combinations.

Yoga DVD’s can be a fun and easy way to learn yoga, supplement yoga lessons, continue learning yoga in between locations when traveling or moving to a new city or state. Yoga is a fun, relaxing way to exercise the body and mind. People all over America are using yoga to be more physically fit and to escape from the daily stress of a fast paced life.

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Cholesterol levels are being tested all over the world in order to determine risk factors for heart disease, yet  many people are confused by their cholesterol numbers and how they are expressed.  Part of this confusion may stem from the fact that literature originating in the United States gives cholesterol levels in units that are different from those used in Canada, Europe, and a good portion of the rest of the developed world.  So when you are looking for information to help you understand your test results, on the internet and elsewhere, you might not  understand the numbers that are reported in the American literature because they might look quite different from the cholesterol numbers on your lab report.

The United States reports cholesterol levels in mg/dL (milligrams per decilitre) of blood.  The rest of the world is using the measurement called mmol (or millimoles per litre).  Without going back to basic chemistry from high school, let’s just say  that they are different measurements. So is it any wonder that these two ways of expressing your cholesterol numbers are so different?

Here is how the two different systems of measurement stack up for desirable cholesterol numbers.

As expressed in the system of measurement used in the United States

Total cholesterol = less than 200 mg/dL LDL  = less than 100-129 mg/dL (below 100 is best) HDL  = more than 40 mg/dL (greater than 60 is considered protective against heart disease)

However, as expressed in the SI units (International System of Measurement) that most of the world is using the numbers are stated differently. (You can remember which letters refer to the good and the bad stuff by remembering it this  way…H stands for healthy  and L stands for lousy.)

Total cholesterol = less than 5.2 mmol/L LDL  = in the range of than 2.6 – 3.3 mmol/L (less than 2.6 is best) HDL  = in the range of more than 1 to 1.5 mmol/L (higher is better) mmol/L

Can you see the difference in how the cholesterol numbers are expressed?  The difference of course is in the units that are being measured. Think of it like metric and imperial measures. Your weight in pounds might be a three digit number but in kilograms it could be a two digit number. Same weight different measurements.

Understanding the Cholesterol Ratio

When used to determine if you have cholesterol risk factors for heart disease it is not the specific levels that are analyzed but rather the ratio of HDL in your total lipid profile. This number is called the cholesterol ratio and it gives an indication of how much of your total cholesterol is the “good” stuff.

The reason this is important is because the HDL is so beneficial, if it is present is sufficient quantities it  has a protective effect and  the LDL in your system cannot do as much damage.  So even if your LDL is higher than the desired levels, if the HDL is high as well and the ratio comes within the desired range then the risk of heart disease is less.

The goal is to keep the cholesterol ratio below 5:1; the optimum ratio is 3.5. The cholesterol ratio comes in at the same number no matter which system of measurement is used. The cholesterol ratio is obtained by dividing the total cholesterol number by the value given for the HDL. For example, if a you have a total cholesterol of 240 mg/dL and an HDL of 60 mg/dL,  the ratio is 4. Using the SI system of measurement if the total cholesterol is 7.20 mmol/L and the HDL is 1.8 mmol/L  the ratio is still 4.

You can see how this is a better way of understanding the cholesterol risk factors for heart disease and expressing it this way can prevent confusion that might result from not being familiar with the units that are used. This information is also helpful for understanding why the strategies recommended  for cholesterol imbalances work. Some of the best strategies are the ones that raise the HDL levels.  In particular, exercise has been found to be one of the best ways to improve the cholesterol ratio because it raises HDL levels.  By contrast smoking has been found to lower HDL levels so no exercise and smoking is a recipe for low HDL levels, a poor cholesterol ratio, and a higher risk for heart disease.

Cholesterol is found in every cell of the body and is essential for the maintenance of good health.  Low cholesterol levels have been associated with poor health so the goal is not to eliminate or reduce cholesterol entirely but to obtain the desirable levels of each type so that the protective benefits of the HDL can work for you in maintaining good health.

So don’t get mixed up when trying to understand your cholesterol levels.  No matter what way the numbers are expressed the message is the same.  You want to have enough of the good stuff and not so much of the bad stuff in order to reduce your risk factors for heart disease.

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Cholesterol levels are being tested as part of regular health screening all over the world yet many people are confused by their cholesterol numbers and how they are expressed. Part of this confusion may stem from the fact that most of the cholesterol literature is coming from the United States where they still report cholesterol levels in units that are different from those used in Canada, Europe and a good portion of the rest of the developed world. So if you are looking for information to help you understand your cholesterol test results you might not be able to understand the numbers that are reported in the American literature, that includes the internet.

The United States reports cholesterol levels in mg/dl (milligrams per decilitre) of blood. The rest of the world is using the measurement called mmol (or millimoles per litre). Without going back to basic chemistry from high school, suffice it to say that they are different measurements. So is it any wonder that these two ways of expressing your cholesterol numbers are so different?

Here is how the two different systems of measurement stack up for desirable cholesterol levels.

* Total cholesterol = less than 200 mg/dL
* LDL = less than 100-129 mg/dL (below 100 is best)
* HDL = more than 40 mg/dL (greater than 60 is considered protective against heart disease)

However, as expressed in the SI units (International System of Measurement) that most of the world is using the numbers are stated differently. (You can remember which letters refer to healthy and lousy by remembering it this way…H stands for healthy lipoprotein and L stands for lousy lipoprotein.)

* Total cholesterol = less than 5.2 mmol/L
* LDL = in the range of than 2.6 – 3.3 mmol/L (less than 2.6 is best)
* HDL = in the range of more than 1 to 1.5 mmol/L (higher is better) mmol/L

Can you see the difference in how the cholesterol numbers are expressed? The difference of course is in the units that are being measured.

Think of it like metric and imperial measures. Your weight in pounds might be a three digit number but in kilograms it could be a two digit number. Same weight different measurements.

When used to determine risk of heart disease it is not the specific cholesterol levels that are analyzed but rather the ratio of HDL in your total lipid profile. This number is called the cholesterol ratio and it gives an indication of how much of your total cholesterol is the “good stuff”.

The reason that the ratio is important is because the HDL (good stuff) is so beneficial that it can protect you from the effects of the LDL if it is in your body in sufficient quantities. So even if your LDL is higher that desirable levels, if the HDL is high as well, if the ratio comes within the desired range then the risk to your health is less.

The goal is to keep the cholesterol ratio below 5:1; the optimum ratio is 3.5. The cholesterol ratio comes in at the same number no matter which system of measurement is used to express the specific cholesterol levels.

The cholesterol ratio is obtained by dividing the total cholesterol number by the value given for the HDL. For example, if a person has a total cholesterol of 240 mg/dL and an HDL of 60 mg/dL, the ratio would be 4.

Using the SI system of measurement if the total cholesterol is 7.20 mmol/L and the HDL is 1.8 mmol/L the ratio is still 4.

You can see how this is a better way of understanding risk and prevents confusion that might result from not being familiar with the units that are used to express cholesterol levels.

This information is also helpful for understanding why the strategies why the for cholesterol imbalances work. Some of the best strategies are the ones that raise the HDL levels. In particular, exercise has been found to be one of the best ways to improve the cholesterol ratio because it raises HDL levels. By contrast smoking has been found to lower HDL levels so no exercise and smoking is a recipe for low HDL levels, a poor cholesterol ratio, and a higher risk of heart disease.

Cholesterol is found in every cell of the body and is essential for the maintenance of good health. Low cholesterol levels have been associated with poor health so the goal is not to eliminate or reduce cholesterol entirely but to establish the desirable levels of each type of cholesterol so that the protective benefits of the HDL can work for you in maintaining good health.

So don’t get mixed up when trying to understand you cholesterol levels. No matter what way the numbers are expressed the message is the same. You want to have enough of the good stuff and not so much of the bad stuff!

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Greater levels of selenium, vitamin E and the tomato carotenoid lycopene have been shown to reduce prostate cancer in one out of every four Caucasian males, or those who inherit a specific genetic variation that is particularly sensitive to oxidative stress, say US researchers.

Conversely, if carriers of this genetic variant have low levels of these vitamins and minerals, their risk of aggressive prostate increases substantially, as great as 10-fold, over those who maintain higher levels of these nutrients, they write in today’s issue of Cancer Research.

“This large prospective study provides further evidence that oxidative stress may be one of the important mechanisms for prostate cancer development and progression, and adequate intake of antioxidants, such as selenium, lycopene and vitamin E, may help prevent prostate cancer,” said Dr Haojie Li, a researcher at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School.

The new findings are based on an analysis of 567 men diagnosed with prostate cancer between 1982 and 1995, and 764 cancer-free men from the Physicians Health Study.

The initial goal of this study was to assess the effect of aspirin and beta-carotene on men’s health. Li’s team decided to check for variants of the gene that codes for manganese superoxide dismutatase (MnSOD), an important enzyme that works as an antioxidant in human cells to defend against disease.

The MnSOD gene is passed from parents to offspring in one of three forms: VV, VA or AA.

“Compared with men with the MnSOD VV or VA genotype, people with the AA genotype seem to be more sensitive to the antioxidant status,” said Li. “Men with the AA genotype are more susceptible to prostate cancer if their antioxidant levels are low.”

The study’s results found that a quarter of the men in the study carried the MnSOD AA genotype, half carried the VA genotype, and the remaining quarter carried the VV genotype.

The results indicated that the VA and VV men were at equivalent risk for developing prostate cancer across all levels of antioxidants in their blood.

But compared to MnSOD VV or VA carriers in the lowest quartile of selenium levels, MnSOD AA males had an 89 per cent greater risk for developing aggressive prostate cancer if they had low blood levels of the mineral.

On the other hand, MnSOD AA carriers with high selenium – those men in the highest quartile – had a 65 per cent lower risk than the MnSOD VV or VA males who maintained low levels of selenium.

“The levels of selenium in the highest quartile of these men are not abnormally high,” Li said. “Our range is neither extremely high nor extremely low.”

While similar trends were observed for lycopene and vitamin E when tested independently, the contrast in relative risk was most pronounced for the men who had high blood levels for all three antioxidants combined, said the researchers.

“Among men with the MnSOD AA genotype, we observed a 10-fold difference in risk for aggressive prostate cancer, when comparing men with high versus low levels of antioxidants combined,”said Li. “In contrast, among men with the VV or VA genotype, the prostate cancer risk was only weakly altered by these antioxidant levels.”

“Our study, as well as many other epidemiological studies, encourages dietary intake of nutrients such as lycopene from tomato products, or supplements for vitamin E and selenium to reduce risk of prostate cancer,” said Li.

Prostate cancer is one of the biggest cancer killers in industrial countries and affects more than 500,000 men worldwide every year. This number is expected to increase with the ageing population.

Similar interactions between dietary antioxidants and the variations in the MnSOD gene have previously been linked to risk for breast cancer.

For more information visit: Prostacet

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Over the past year, our attention has been brought to our cholesterol levels. A few years ago not many people would have known what their cholesterol levels were, but now after a lot of advertising, people are becoming more aware of how their cholesterol levels affect their lives. However, there are still some who are confused as to what cholesterol is and how they can tell if they have a healthy cholesterol level. So just how can you tell whether your cholesterol levels are healthy?

Knowing What Cholesterol Is

Cholesterol is pretty vital within the body. Whilst it may be unknown to some of us, its role is to keep our bodies functioning normally. Every single one of our cells is surrounded by cholesterol and its job is to insulate our nerve fibres. By insulating the nerve fibres, the cholesterol ensures that the nerve signals are travelling properly which is extremely important. Cholesterol also produces hormones which are used to carry specific signals around the body.

Now, if too much cholesterol was made by the body, it would increase your chances of heart disease. That is why high cholesterol levels need to be brought down. So, whilst it is essential in order for our bodies to function properly, Cholesterol does have to be controlled properly.

Knowing What Your Cholesterol Level Is

How do you know if your cholesterol levels are high? Well, generally a trip to the doctor’s will let you know exactly what your cholesterol level is but really knowing your levels is not really enough to tell whether or not you have a risk of heart disease. Something else which is needed in order for you to find out is your Lipoprotein levels.

Lipoproteins are molecules which are especially designed to carry cholesterol around the body. They are important because they control exactly how much cholesterol is in your body. Now, there are two main types of Lipoproteins and those are high density Lipoproteins and low density lipoproteins. The one which you really need to be aware of is Low Density Lipoproteins. If you have a high level of Low Density Lipoproteins, you have bad cholesterol which means that there is too much of it to build up. High density lipoproteins are associated with good cholesterol and they are used to carry cholesterol away from cells and to the liver.

The complicated thing about cholesterol is the right level you should belong. The doctor has the ability to tell you how low your cholesterol levels should be. The average person usually should have around 4.0mmol/l but if you have a low density lipoprotein count, then you should have around 2.0mmol/l. As mentioned, however, each person is different so you need to get your levels checked to see exactly what you should be aiming for.

Overall cholesterol is important and you should know what levels you have and what you can do about it. More and more people are developing heart disease due to high levels of cholesterol so it is better to go to your doctors to know your cholesterol level.

You can do a number of things to improve your cholesterol level. Eating healthy food can help lower your LDL cholesterol level. A healthy diet may help protect the body from the damaging effect of cholesterol. You can raise your HDL cholesterol level by quitting smoking if you smoke, losing weight if you are overweight and exercising.

Following a healthy low fat diet can lower cholesterol levels. If healthy eating and exercising don’t work after about six months, consult your family doctor of the medicine to lower your cholesterol level.

If you are struggling to lower your cholesterol or manage your weight, then new clinically proven products that are now available on the open market such as Proactol™, can help you achieve this more easily.

Proactol™ is a clinically proven fat binder that helps reduce your dietary fat intake by up to 28%. It also helps you to lower your blood cholesterol level by slowing down your glucose absorption.

All health experts agree that people need to adopt a healthy lifestyle with plenty of exercise and a balanced diet. Proactol™ can help give you the initial support you need to adopt a new and healthy lifestyle.

If you want to lower your cholesterol level, visit www.proactol.com

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Every year countless number of people are diagnosed with diabetes and there are millions of people who die of this dreaded disease every year. Medical science is fast looking for a permanent cure to curb diabetes but to this date it has not met with any major success. In this article we are going to discuss some simple lifestyle changes which can help you keep diabetes under control and how some herbs can help in you leading a normal life even if you have been diagnosed with diabetes.

Lifestyle Changes
If you have been diagnosed with having diabetes the first thing is not to panic but take it in your stride. Take it as a challenge and introduce some healthy changes in your life like if you are overweight start an exercise regimen to loose weight because obesity and diabetes is a dangerous combination which can cause other diseases to crop up. Also avoid eating foods which are rich in sugar content. Vegetables like bitter gourd and green vegetables have been found to be very effective for diabetes patients. Also apple is a great fruit for diabetics they only contain about 80 calories and have loads of nutrition stored in them. Also one more important thing is to keep your carbohydrates intake into check.

Herbs That Curb Diabetes
There are certain herbs mentioned in alternative form of treatment which have been found to be very effective in keeping blood glucose level in control. Like gymnema sylvestre is one such herb which lowers the amount of sugar body absorbs from intake of foods. Also it has been found to promote the pancreas to produce beta cells which are the major source of insulin. Other herbs like salacia oblonga and pterocarpus marsupium also act as great supplements to keep diabetes under check.

Precautions
It has been found that some people completely stop taking their prescription medicines when they switch to herbal medicines which is completely wrong because herbs take their own course of time to treat the patient so if you are taking herbal pills you can take them along with your regular medicines so that your health does not deteriote.

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Before you start eating your favorite, you might want to know whether you’re having too much cholesterol. Few years ago, many were not aware what cholesterol level is but with all the information everywhere people are becoming aware how their cholesterol levels affect their lives. You have to remember that you are what you eat and what you eat has something to do with your cholesterol. What is cholesterol? How will you know if you have a healthy cholesterol level?

Cholesterol Is…

Cholesterol is a type of lipid needed in all the vital functions of the body. Every single one of our cells is surrounded by cholesterol and its job is to insulate our nerve fibers. By insulating the nerve fibers, the cholesterol ensures that the nerve signals are traveling properly which is extremely important. Cholesterol also produces hormones which are used to carry specific signals around the body.
Too much cholesterol in the body would increase your chances of heart disease. If you have a high cholesterol level, you should bring it down. Even though cholesterol is essential for our bodies to function properly, still it should be controlled properly.

What Is Your Cholesterol Level?

How do you know if your cholesterol levels are high? You have to consult your doctor let you know exactly what your cholesterol level is. Knowing your levels is not really enough to tell whether or not you have a risk of heart disease, you need to find out what your Lipoprotein levels is.

Lipoproteins are molecules which are especially designed to carry cholesterol around the body. They are important because they control exactly how much cholesterol is in your body. Now, there are two main types of Lipoproteins:

– High Density Lipoproteins
– Low Density Lipoproteins

The one which you really need to be aware of is Low Density Lipoproteins. A high level of Low Density Lipoproteins means that you have a bad cholesterol that here is too much of it to build up. High Density Lipoproteins means good cholesterol that they are used to carry cholesterol away from cells and to the liver.

The complicated thing about cholesterol is the right level you should belong. The doctor has the ability to tell you how low your cholesterol levels should be. The average person usually should have around 4.0mmol/l but if you have a low density lipoprotein count, then you should have around 2.0mmol/l. As mentioned, however, each person is different so you need to get your levels checked to see exactly what you should be aiming for.

Cholesterol is important and you should know what levels you have for you to know what you can do about it. More and more people are developing heart disease due to high levels of cholesterol so it is advisable to go to your doctors to know your cholesterol level.

There are many ways to improve your cholesterol level. Eat healthy food that can help lower your LDL cholesterol level. With a healthy diet, your body is protected from the damaging effect of cholesterol. You should quit smoking, lose weight and exercise to raise your HDL cholesterol level.

Following a healthy low fat diet can lower cholesterol levels. If healthy eating and exercising don’t work after about six months, consult your family doctor of the medicine to lower your cholesterol level.

If you really want to lower your cholesterol or manage your weight, Proactolâ„¢, can help you achieve this more easily.

Proactolâ„¢ can help you trim down your dietary fat intake by up to 28%. It is a clinically proven fat binder that helps you to lower your blood cholesterol level by slowing down your glucose absorption.

Health experts recommend people to have healthy lifestyle with plenty of exercise and a balanced diet. Proactolâ„¢ is here to provide you the healthy life you want to achieve.

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