Village Journals
Resonate your identity with Naseeb journals. Express your opinions, share your thoughts, post your writings and connect with like minded people through the power of expression.
Resonate your identity with Naseeb journals. Express your opinions, share your thoughts, post your writings and connect with like minded people through the power of expression.
Cholesterol strikes Fear
Cholesterol is a word that strikes fear into many of us because of its link with heart disease.
But - to some extent at least - the cholesterol level in our blood depends on what we eat, so we can all do something to lower it. We take a look at foods with cholesterol zapping powers.
-What is cholesterol?
Cholesterol is an important substance that's used by the body in many ways. It's the starting point for many of the body?s natural steroid hormones and for vitamin D, which controls calcium in the body.
It is also an essential component of the membrane that forms the walls of individual cells in all tissues. Eighty percent of the cholesterol we have is produced within our own body ? mostly by the liver. It's then transported from the liver via the blood stream to other tissues.
Cholesterol travels through the blood in minute packages mixed with large molecules called lipoproteins. Lipoproteins are themselves combinations of fats and proteins. Fats such as cholesterol don't dissolve well in the blood stream, but become soluble when coated with lipoproteins.
- Why is cholesterol dangerous?
When we eat foods containing cholesterol it circulates in our blood stream. Although the walls of blood vessels are smooth, there are some roughened areas which catch cholesterol as it flows past in the blood stream.
Cholesterol builds up to form 'fatty plaques' and, just like a drainpipe, the more plaque builds up the narrower the vessels become. This can lead to high blood pressure. If the whole vessel becomes blocked by cholesterol, oxygen cannot reach the tissues and the tissues die, possibly leading to a heart attack. If the vessel is in the brain, then oxygen delivery to the brain ceases, causing a stroke.
-What causes high blood cholesterol?
Our lifestyle is one contributing factor to the level of cholesterol in our blood. Smoking, for example, is just one thing that will lift our cholesterol levels (for ways to give up smoking, click HERE. What we eat is another - saturated fats in particular are full of cholesterol.
Some people, however, have a naturally high level of cholesterol in their blood, while there are other medical conditions which can lead to high cholesterol such as liver disease and hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid gland).
- What about good cholesterol?
There are two main types of cholesterol: high density lipoproteins (HDL) and low density lipoproteins (LDL). LDL carries cholesterol to the cells and if there is too much of it this results in higher levels in the blood stream.
HDL carries cholesterol away from the cells to the liver to be broken down, so high levels of HDL are a good thing. Triglyceride is a third type of cholesterol, and this also increases risk of heart disease and stroke in the same way LDL does.
-How are we Brits doing?
Not very well. The average cholesterol level in the U.K is 5.8 - the British Heart Foundation recommends we aim for less than 3. This means many of us have high cholesterol. But doctors don?t just look at cholesterol levels to decide whether a person is at risk. There is also a social risk score which takes into account weight, diabetes, high blood pressure, pre-existing heart conditions, smoking, family history and more.
How are Americans doing?
How are Canadians doing?
How other nations doing?
Sisters and Brothers would you please post here your country's cholesterol ratio...Thanks.
But - to some extent at least - the cholesterol level in our blood depends on what we eat, so we can all do something to lower it. We take a look at foods with cholesterol zapping powers.
-What is cholesterol?
Cholesterol is an important substance that's used by the body in many ways. It's the starting point for many of the body?s natural steroid hormones and for vitamin D, which controls calcium in the body.
It is also an essential component of the membrane that forms the walls of individual cells in all tissues. Eighty percent of the cholesterol we have is produced within our own body ? mostly by the liver. It's then transported from the liver via the blood stream to other tissues.
Cholesterol travels through the blood in minute packages mixed with large molecules called lipoproteins. Lipoproteins are themselves combinations of fats and proteins. Fats such as cholesterol don't dissolve well in the blood stream, but become soluble when coated with lipoproteins.
- Why is cholesterol dangerous?
When we eat foods containing cholesterol it circulates in our blood stream. Although the walls of blood vessels are smooth, there are some roughened areas which catch cholesterol as it flows past in the blood stream.
Cholesterol builds up to form 'fatty plaques' and, just like a drainpipe, the more plaque builds up the narrower the vessels become. This can lead to high blood pressure. If the whole vessel becomes blocked by cholesterol, oxygen cannot reach the tissues and the tissues die, possibly leading to a heart attack. If the vessel is in the brain, then oxygen delivery to the brain ceases, causing a stroke.
-What causes high blood cholesterol?
Our lifestyle is one contributing factor to the level of cholesterol in our blood. Smoking, for example, is just one thing that will lift our cholesterol levels (for ways to give up smoking, click HERE. What we eat is another - saturated fats in particular are full of cholesterol.
Some people, however, have a naturally high level of cholesterol in their blood, while there are other medical conditions which can lead to high cholesterol such as liver disease and hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid gland).
- What about good cholesterol?
There are two main types of cholesterol: high density lipoproteins (HDL) and low density lipoproteins (LDL). LDL carries cholesterol to the cells and if there is too much of it this results in higher levels in the blood stream.
HDL carries cholesterol away from the cells to the liver to be broken down, so high levels of HDL are a good thing. Triglyceride is a third type of cholesterol, and this also increases risk of heart disease and stroke in the same way LDL does.
-How are we Brits doing?
Not very well. The average cholesterol level in the U.K is 5.8 - the British Heart Foundation recommends we aim for less than 3. This means many of us have high cholesterol. But doctors don?t just look at cholesterol levels to decide whether a person is at risk. There is also a social risk score which takes into account weight, diabetes, high blood pressure, pre-existing heart conditions, smoking, family history and more.
How are Americans doing?
How are Canadians doing?
How other nations doing?
Sisters and Brothers would you please post here your country's cholesterol ratio...Thanks.