”Hot on the Trail of Locating Cholesterol Reducing Foods” is a blog post that gives a summary of how avacados once thought bad for cholesterol are now thought to be safe and good for actually lowering cholesterol.

There are lots of fruits, such as mangos, all sorts of berries, oranges, apples, and bananas can also be helpful. They also add antioxidants to the system, great for boosting the immune system as well.

Leafy green vegetables like spinach, Swiss chard, beet greens are very good. So is cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli, onions, garlic, and tomatoes. They don’t have a high calorie content, and have little or no cholesterol. Making these items a regular part of the diet also means less calories overall. this in turn keeps weight under better contol.

When it comes to meat, stick to the leanest cuts. Chicken, for example, must have all skin and fat removed. Grilling or roasting allows the fat to fall away from the meat in the cooking process. Most fish are a safe choice, but remember shellfish, such as shrimp have a higher cholesterol count, so consumption of shrimp should be limited.

There are plenty of choices for you that are healthy yet delicious. Learning to look at food labels at the grocery store is a good habit to get into.  Know the fat, cholesterol, and salt content of what you are buying for the family.

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I personally prefer to lower by cholesterol by the safest method first, followed by prescription medication only if the natural methods don’t work. Pills can be convenient but not always safe!

Statin drugs can have serious side effects and you need to be an informed consumer. They are often given by physicians as a prescription answer to your high cholesterol. Drug companies would like you to believe it’s quick, convenient and safe.

Yes, they do the job well, and do lower cholesterol, but it has been estimated that one in five patients may suffer some sort of side effects from these medications. Although the serious side effects are not that frequent, they must be recognized early and the medication stopped. Here is a list of some of the common and serious problem symptoms:

Common side effects include either constipation or diarrhea, dizziness, nausea, stomach pains, or headache. These may or may not be bothersome enough to stop the medication.

1. Severe side effects include muscle aches, muscle weakness, even a change in the color of the urine to a dark or dark red color. This indicates a serious problem of the muscle tissue breaking down. Contact your doctor immediately if you have these symptoms.

2. Numbness, weakness, burning pain, or prickly sensations on the skin. This can mean a problem with the nerves themselves–called peripheral neuropathy. Again, call you doctor if you experience these symptoms after starting a statin drug.

3. Rarely, some can develop problems with memory and have a feeling they are developing Alzheimer’s. This usually clears in a few days after the medication is stopped.

4. Development of liver disease.  Doctors will monitor your liver function tests when they start statin drugs. This can be done easily with blood tests. If the blood tests show liver function abnormalities, the statin drugs will be stopped by your physician

If your cholesterol is so high that it needs to be brought down immediately, then there is no doubt the prescription medications should be tried.  This is usually not the case, and there is time for a stepped approach. Here are some suggestions for lowering cholesterol.

1. Change your diet to cut out all those high-fat fast foods. Stick to a low fat diet and eat more vegetables and fruits, less red meats. Keep your weight down and exercise.

2. Add a natural supplement such as Bios Life Complete that has been clinically proven by placebo-controlled studies to lower cholesterol. There are no serious side effects to this supplement, and it works. Try it for two months before having your cholesterol re-tested. This supplement is not a substitute for sensible eating habits. Keep to the lower fat diet!

3. Use prescription drugs as the last step if the above two steps are unsuccessful. Bios Life Complete studies have shown that it can work with people already on statins to lower the cholesterol even further. this is called a synergystic effect. It can also take a lower dose of the drug to be effective. It’s OK to take both together, but check with your doctor.

4. It’s a good idea to take Co-enzyme Q10 if you are on statins.  There is some evidence of less side effects. Statins work to interfere at the cellular level with the synthesis of Co-Q10. Less Co-Q10 means less production of energy at the level of the cells.  Taking Co-Q10 has not been shown to interfere the cholesterol-lowering effect of the statins.

Your health depends on you being an informed consumer. Taking the time to read information like this blog is a good first step.

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I have hereditary high cholesterol, I am not overweight, I workout regularly, and I don’t consome alot of cholesterol foods. Ldl is bad cholesterol that builds up in your arteries and hdl is good cholesterol. Please do not suggest surgery or any medication.
Surgery is not the treatment for high cholesterol. Medication is one treatment. Cholesterol comes from heredity and lifestyle. One you can do something about, the other you cannot. If you always eat low saturated fat foods and exercise regularly, you have conquered the lifestyle portion of the equation. There is nothing you can do about your heredity. If the lifestyle changes have not lowered your numbers adequately, you must resort to medication. The alternative is heart and circulatory disease, causing heart attack and stroke. Please re-evaluate your stance on the statins that can lower your numbers to an acceptable level.

My husband has high cholesterol, does anyone have any tips for me to help him eat better? Right now he eats a good amount of fast food, and I want to help him transition into eating better.
Fruits n veggies. Eat lots of fiber. Some of the best soluble fiber rich foods include; oatmeal, barley, lentils, Brussels sprouts, peas, beans (kidney, lima, black, navy, pinto), apples, blackberries, pears, raisins, oranges, grapefruit, dates, figs, prunes, apricots, broccoli, and sweet potato. Avoid oily food. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/cholesterol/CL00002

I’ve always been curious as to which foods exactly contain good cholesterol. The type of cholesterol (HDL) that will actually lower the cholesterol that is bad for you.
foods contain no good cholesterol,your body makes the good cholesterol.Only animal foods(meat and dairy) contain cholesterol. Eating a low-fat vegan diet may be better at managing type 2 diabetes than traditional diets, according to a new study. Researchers found 43 percent of people with type 2 diabetes who followed a low-fat vegan diet for 22 weeks reduced their need to take medications to manage their disease compared with 26 percent of those who followed the diet recommended by the American Diabetes Association (ADA). In addition, participants who followed the vegan diet experienced greater reductions in cholesterol levels and weight loss than those on the other diet. A vegan diet is plant-based and consists of vegetables, fruits, grains, and legumes and avoids animal products, such as meat and dairy. People who are on a vegan diet are at risk for vitamin B12 deficiency, and so B12 vitamins were given to the participants on that diet. “The diet appears remarkably effective, and all the side effects are good ones — especially weight loss and lower cholesterol,” says researcher Neal D. Barnard, MD, adjunct associate professor of medicine at the George Washington University, in a news release. “I hope this study will rekindle interest in using diet changes first, rather than prescription drugs.” Barnard is also president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, a nonprofit health organization that opposes animal research and advocates a vegan diet. Vegan Vs. ADA Diet For Diabetes In the study, published in the journal Diabetes Care, researchers compared the effects of following a low-fat vegan diet and the ADA diet on reducing the need for drugs to manage diabetes, kidney function, cholesterol levels, and weight loss in 99 adults with type 2 diabetes. Meals were not provided, but participants met a dietitian to come up with a diet plan and then met regularly each week for nutrition and cooking instruction. Forty-nine of the participants followed a low-fat vegan diet consisting of about 10 percent of daily calories from fat, 15 percent protein, and 75 percent carbohydrates. They were asked to avoid animal products and added fats and instead favor foods like beans and green vegetables, but portion sizes and total daily calories or food intake were unrestricted. The other 50 participants followed the dietary guidelines recommended by the ADA, including 15-20 percent protein, 60-70 percent carbohydrates and monosaturated fats (such as olive oil), and less than 7 percent saturated fats (such as animal fats and butter). Total cholesterol was also limited to 200 milligrams or less per day. Overweight participants in the ADA diet group were also advised to reduce daily calorie intake by 500-1,000 calories per day. The results showed that both diets improved diabetes management and reduced unhealthy cholesterol levels, but some improvements were greater with the low-fat vegan diet. For example: 43 percent of those on the vegan diet reduced their need to take drugs to manage their diabetes compared with 26 percent of the ADA diet group. Weight loss averaged more than 14 pounds in the vegan diet group vs. less than 7 pounds in the other group. LDL “bad” cholesterol dropped by an average of 21 percent in the vegan group compared with 11 percent in the ADA diet group who did not change their cholesterol drug use. Measures of blood sugar control also improved more significantly among those who followed the low-fat vegan diet than among those who followed the ADA diet and who did not change their diabetes drug use. Researchers say the vegan diet represents a major change from current diabetes diets because there are no limits on calories, carbohydrates, and portions, which may make it easier for some people to follow. Talk to your doctor about what diet changes you might consider to help with diabetes or other medical conditions. SOURCES:Barnard, N. Diabetes Care, August 2006; vol 29: pp 1777-1783. News release, Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. By Jennifer Warner Reviewed by Louise Chang, M.D. © 2006, WebMD Inc. All rights reserved.

A shocking new study from the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine reports that almost one in five American four-year-olds is obese. We’re not just talking about baby fat, but a national problem of epidemic proportions!

All kids should be gaining weight as they grow older, but extra pounds–more than what’s needed to support normal growth and development– is very unhealthy for your child. Childhood obesity is particularly troubling because the extra pounds often start kids on the path to health problems that we normally think of as adult diseases, such as diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and heart disease. And this is just the short list. Many more health problems also are linked to obesity.

Causes of Childhood Obesity

 Many things can contribute to your child being overweight.  Here are a few:

•  Diet—eating fast foods, lots of snacks low in nutrition but high in calories, soft drinks, candy and desserts
•  Watching too much TV—well, it’s more than just TV.  An inactive lifestyle like TV, video games, internet surfing, Facebook time, talking with friends on the phone.  Does this all sound familiar?  None of these activities will burn off calories
• Genetics—unfortunately this counts.  If Mom and Dad are overweight and genetically tend have more body fat, then the children will have the tendency too. This is made worse by an environment where physical activity isn’t encouraged.
•  Psychological factors—some children may overeat to cope with problems. They may see their parents do it, and think it’s the thing to do.
•  Family factors they can’t control—such as eating what’s in the cupboard.  Most kids don’t do the grocery shopping. Putting healthy foods in the kitchen and controlling access to sweets, candy and other high calorie snacks is key.

Life is tough enough, but being an obese child can be crushing. Overweight children are subject to social isolation, bullying, low self esteem, and depression. However we do find when a child loses weight these negative trends can improve dramatically.

It’s hard, if not impossible for the child to go it alone. The best solution for you, your child, and your whole family is eating healthier (and less) foods, increasing physical activity, and by providing healthier foods and snacks.

Your commitment to helping your child make the needed changes is very important.  Changing eating habits is hard and will take time.

A recent study showed that weight loss can be socially contagious. If one person (like the parent) takes the initiative to start a healthier lifestyle it can have a ripple effect throughout the family. It can increase the chances that children and the spouse will trim down too.

So do your child a favor and start the process today.  The alternative is a lifetime of increased medical problems  that start earlier than normal and end up having a real impact on overall life expectancy.

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