Increase in the blood cholesterol level leads to many diseases or complications of already existing diseases. With this knowledge, people are getting more health conscious and are more particular in choosing their food, supplements, and lifestyle to lower cholesterol.
There are various ways to reduce cholesterol levels - you can choose one which suits your lifestyle or you can combine all of them to make sure you get the healthiest level possible. The top methods to lower cholesterol include a change in diet and lifestyle; or the taking of vitamins, plant supplements, herbal remedies, or prescription medication.
Here are proven ways to reduce blood cholesterol:
1. Modifying your diet to include stanols-fortified foods. Stanols are substances that are introduced into fortified foods like margarine or fruit juices and they serve to lower cholesterol level by up to 10 percent. To be more effective though, you must take in a minimum of two grams of plant stanols. This is not a hard task because there are plenty of foods and beverages already fortified with stanols. There are no known side effects and it does not lower (good) HDL cholesterol in the body.
2. One way to lower cholesterol is by taking in niacin since it is a lipid lowering agent that is said to prevent heart disease and increase longevity. However, to avoid side-effects, you are advised to take niacin in the form of inositol hexaniacinate. The use of niacin to lower cholesterol levels and improve peripheral blood flow has been proven to be effective. One may get niacin from lean meat, poultry and fish, peanuts, milk products, or rice bran.
3. Another way of lowering cholesterol levels is by taking in vitamin E supplements - from 600 to 800 I.U. daily. However, a person possessing certain diseases like diabetes, rheumatic heart condition and hypertension warrant a different treatment. People with these conditions should only take 100 I.U. per day. Vitamin E is a fat soluble nutrient and is better absorbed from the intestinal tract in the presence of fat. It should also be complemented with the mineral selenium. Vitamin E is one of the best antioxidants available. The minimum dose of mixed tocopherol needed to significantly decrease the susceptibility of LDL cholesterol to oxidation is 400 I.U. per day. Food rich in vitamin E include sunflower seeds, almonds, crab, sweet potatoes, fish, and whole wheat bread.
4. Research has also proven that moderate alcohol intake is effective in lowering cholesterol thus decreasing the risk of heart disease. A regulated amount of alcohol drinking is advised per day because too much of it increases LDL cholesterol and plasminogen activator which helps decrease clots in the blood vessel. However, red wine and dark grape juice are said to be harmless as they are associated with reduced incidence of experimental atherosclerosis. It has natural contents that are considered potent antioxidants or that demonstrate reduction of blood clots. Red wine has also been found to increase the HDL cholesterol level while reducing LDL cholesterol level.
5. Herbs, too, are also proven to be good in reducing high cholesterol. One example is the hawthorn plant which has procyanide and flavanoids that have been shown to improve the blood supply to all parts of the heart and the peripheral vascular system. Thus, it results to a strengthened contraction of the heart muscle, and improved exercise tolerance. People having advanced heart failure have shown decreased symptoms and improved conditions after having been treated with 900 mg of hawthorn extract. Recommended dosage is 120 mg for thrice a day.
6. One can also maintain a healthy body weight by eating more grapes. The compound in grape skins and seeds are believed to be effective in lowering cholesterol. Grape-seed oil has been shown in several studies to help lower cholesterol better than other oils. Experts claimed that grapefruit, carrots, and apples are rich in pectin, a substance that reduces cholesterol levels by bonding with dietary fat and cholesterol.
With the various ways to lower cholesterol level you won’t have a reason to have unhealthy cholesterol levels anymore, except of course if it is an inherited condition which requires continuous medication.
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