What is cholesterol?

Cholesterol is a fat-like waxy substance that helps your body to:

-make cell membranes;

-make hormones;

-produce vitamin D.

The cholesterol in our body comes from two sources

–the food we eat

–our liver

What are LDL and HDL?

Cholesterol and other fatty substances are carried in our bloodstream as spherical particles called lipoproteins. The two most known lipoproteins are LDL (low density lipoproteins) and HDL (high density lipoproteins).

• LDL (low-density lipoprotein), called “bad” cholesterol, makes up most of your body’s cholesterol. It takes cholesterol to your arteries, where it may collect in artery walls. High levels of LDL cholesterol in your arteries may lead to a buildup of plaque known as arteriosclerosis, which can raise your risk for heart disease and stroke.
• HDL (high-density lipoprotein), or “good” cholesterol, absorbs cholesterol and carries it back to the liver. The liver then flushes it from the body. High levels of HDL cholesterol can lower your risk for heart disease and stroke.

Because the plaque on the arteries, caused by high levels of cholesterol and arteriosclerosis, can breaks down and form a blood clot. If the clot becomes large enough blocks the blood flow.

This leads to serious health conditions such as: angina pectoris, heart attack, carotid artery disease, stroke, peripheral arterial disease ecc.

What causes high cholesterol?

• Unhealthy eating habits such as eating lots of bad fats (meat, dairy products, chocolate, deep fried food ecc).
• Lack of physical activity.
• Smoking (lowers HDL and raises LDL).

As risk factors for having high cholesterol levels in our blood we can mention:

• Age – cholesterol levels tend to rise as we get older.
• Heredity.
• Weight – being overweight or having obesity can increase cholesterol levels.
• Race – cholesterol levels are different in different populations. For example African American people have higher HDL and LDL cholesterol levels than whites.

How can we lower cholesterol levels?

The first think to do when you notice than you cholesterol levels are high is to change your habits.

Start eating healthy. Create a healthy eating plan so you know which foods you are allowed to eat and which are not.

Manage your weight. If you are overweight (that probably you are) start losing weight. You can lose weight by reducing the amount of food that you eat and doing physical activity.

Do regular physical activity.

If this is not enough you may need to add supplements that lower your cholesterol levels or medicines like statins.

What a good diet means?

To be healthy does not mean to be overweight. It is not correct to eat a lot of food, but to eat the right food, the one that contains proteins, vitamins and low-fats.

Your diet should contain:

-fruits and vegetables (berries, oranges, apples, broccoli, spinach, peppers ecc);

-whole grains (oats, barley, whole wheat);

-chicken, turkey and 92% fat free meat;

-nuts and seeds;

-low fat products (yogurt, milk, cheese);

-omega – 3 rich foods.

Use olive oil because it raises HDL levels.

Avoid simple carbs and eating sugar especially added fructose, because it raises triglycerides levels.

Use turmeric roots in fresh juices or the powder in curries or soups.

Eat foods that contain Magnesium like greens, almonds, avocado, black beans, banana ecc. It helps to lower your LDL. Taking 400 mg Mg per day gives a positive effect. Eating 1 cup of spinach + ¼ cup of pumpkin seed gives you 400 mg magnesium.

Eat soluble fiber. They absorb the liquid in your digestive tract decreasing the amount of LDL that passes on the bloodstream. We recommend adding 2 teaspoons of chia seeds on smoothies, pudding or as a salad dressing.

Take 1000 mg omega-3 per day. It lowers your LDL and increases your HDL.

Advice

Instead of butter use:

• Coconut oil
• Avocado puree
• Mashed banana

Instead of eggs use:

• Chia seeds

Instead of white flour use:

• Almond flour

It usually takes 6 months for your body to get used with your diet changes.

When the diet is not enough, we can start using supplements that contain Monacolin K.

What is Monacolin K?

Monacolin K is a substance found in red yeast rice. It is chemically similar with lovastatin, a statin which lowers cholesterol level by lowering the production of cholesterol in the liver.

Using supplements that contain Monacolin K (not more than 10mg/day) helps to lower your cholesterol levels.

Let’s mention some supplements that contain Monacolin K:

1-Berbered Plus is a supplement that contains Monacolin K, curcumin and berberine which lower your cholesterol levels. You should use it for at least 2 months regularly.

2-Calip Plus is a supplement that contains Monacolin K (that comes from fermented red rice), CoQ10 (with antioxidant properties) and Biox-Save (a patented material based on a mix of plant extracts). It contributes to maintaining normal levels of cholesterol in the blood.

3-Esi Normolip is a dietary supplement that helps to maintain normal cholesterol levels. It contains 10 mg Monacolin K per capsul, CoQ10, chromium ecc. Clinical tests show that the level of cholesterol in your blood decreases with 27% after two months of use.