LDL HDL Ratio

Posts Tagged ‘Bad Cholesterol’

Cholesterol is a component of lipid rafts, this helps to secure proteins involved in cell signaling. When sleeping at night, our brain synthesizes cholesterol to benefit our mood and increase our memory. Cholesterol supports the nervous system, in which cholesterol is a vital component of the myelin sheath. The myelin sheath allows neurons to conduct impulses with each other. Cholesterol has been found to be the rate limiting factor found in the formation of synapses, this formation is necessary for learning and the formation of memories.How many of you know that besides the cholesterol that causes many medical conditions there is also a “good ” cholesterol. In your body there are two types of cholesterol: HDL, which is the good cholesterol and LDL, the bad cholesterol. For many years now, having a high level of HDL was thought to be very beneficial to your health. This high level of cholesterol was thought to give you some kind of protection against heart conditions. However, lately there have been some attention to lowering all cholesterol levels, not only the LDL cholesterol level, known as the bad cholesterol.Good Cholesterol (High Density Lipoprotein)HDL (high-density lipoprotein) cholesterol is also known as the “good” cholesterol. HDL removes cholesterol from your bloodstream and carries it back to the liver. I like to think of HDL as a vacuum cleaner, picking up cholesterol LDL leaves behind in your arteries. HDL should be greater than 40 mg/dL, ideally greater than 60 mg/dL.The cholesterol test you normally take actually measures lipoproteins. These lipoproteins are sorted by their density: the measure of fat versus protein in the combination. High density means that there is more protein ratio compared to fat. High density lipoproteins (HDL) are good cholesterol. They do the necessary work assigned to cholesterol, they help to un-clog your arteries and help flush excess fat from your body.Bad CholesterolThe bad cholesterol is Low Density Lipoprotein or LDL. This is the way cholesterol is carried into the bloodstream and it is one of the major causes of the dangerous fatty build up in the arteries. The higher the levels of LDL are in your blood, the higher you are at risk of developing heart disease.The LDL is considered as bad or damaging cholesterol while the HDL is the good and protective cholesterol. LDL cholesterol is made up of larger particles and are more likely to get caught in the artery’s lining. It is carries the cholesterol from the liver to the cells of the body and blood vessels and ends up inside the cells that line the artery walls. HDL cholesterol is made up of smaller particles and hence are less likely to get caught in the artery’s lining. It is responsible for the transportations of cholesterol from the arterial walls to the liver where it is broken down for removal from the body. The higher the level of LDL cholesterol, the greater the risk of developing coronary heart disease.

Men who are at the ages when they are most susceptible to coronary heart disease and hypertension are required to subject themselves to monthly tests, including a blood test to measure their HDL (high density lipoprotein or good cholesterol) and LDL (low density lipoprotein or bad cholesterol) levels. The tests will indicate the ratio of LDL to HDL, and the individual values for each. A higher value of LDL and lower value of HDL will indicate that a man is likely to develop heart ailments if he does not take precautions. Too much LDL or bad cholesterol can lead to atherosclerosis, a condition that is characterized by the lowering of blood flow from the heart to the rest of the body due to deposition of fatty tissues inside the blood vessels. This condition can result in angina and heart attack, caused by a blocked artery inside the heart.Increasing the amount of HDL in the blood stream protects against heart ailments and prevents the blockage of arteries. Bad cholesterol is carried away from the arteries by the HDL to be metabolized inside the liver, and eventually gets expelled from the body. A cholesterol level of below 200 means a guy can rest easy. A value above 200 is dangerous and this means a drastic change in diet and exercise behavior in the afflicted individual is imperative. Early hypertension and coronary heart disease symptoms could lead to serious complications, and doing away with too much alcohol and nicotine intake (through smoking) could help a lot to prevent the occurrence of a stroke or a heart attack. In addition, one may be required to take medication to reverse the increase in cholesterol level. The benefits of increasing HDL levels are numerous. Not only will the man increase his lifespan, he will also improve his life quality by staying healthy and not spending much on expensive medication that he must take for the rest of his life. Some studies have linked antihypertensive medication intake with libido loss during love making, which makes it even more crucial that men prevent the development of this disease.

With adequate, accurate information and changes in your lifestyle, you can take control of your cholesterol, lower it and then maintain it at a healthy level.

Here is your step by step program to enable you to lower your cholesterol within a few weeks - without medication.

• get your physician to test your personal cholesterol levels – it is simply done with a blood test;

• when you get the results, discuss them in detail with your physician. There are two important readings – HDL and LDL levels. The LDL level is the one that can become high and threaten your wellbeing. Also important is the ratio between the two readings – a slightly higher LDL level may be compensated for by a very low HDL.

• if your HDL and/or LDL level readings need to be improved, ask your physician for advice. If the situation has become serious, it may be necessary to commence some medication to quickly stabilize the HDL and LDL levels. If however, the levels are just a little out of kilter, or even if you are told they are high but within the normal range for your age group, it should be possible for you to take control and, with some changes in your lifestyle – in the areas of food and activity – reduce your cholesterol to more satisfactory levels and to maintain them at those levels. This contributes significantly to your ongoing wellbeing and to your future prospects of maintaining good health as you age.

• what do I have to change about my eating habits to achieve this? You do not have to go on a strict diet. Merely ensuring that certain types of food are not, or at least not very often, included in your meals and making sure that other types of food that you may not at present eat much of, make up a larger part of your meals.

You should try to eat:

a. much of different kinds of fresh fruit and vegetables as possible;

b. lean cuts of meat and poultry [make sure the poultry is skinless];

c. lean fish and shellfish;

d. use low-fat dairy products – fortunately there is an abundance of them available now – it was not always so;

e. reduce the amount of salt and fat you use in your cooking;

f. use herbs and spices to add flavor to your food - not salt and fats;

g. grill, steam, poach, broil or bake your food – avoid frying it;

h. in other words, reduce the amount of fat you eat. Check the labels on the food you buy – it is not only the total amount of fat in the food that is of concern, but also the amount of saturated and trans-fats. These are the deadly, and I use that word advisedly, the deadly components of our fat intake;

i. prepare your own meals, AND serve smaller portions of them. It is better, not only for this program, but for your general health, to have smaller meals, and to have more of them during the day if you still feel the need for more food;

j. stay away from the fast-foods – no pickups or deliveries!

• what else do I have to do?

a. increase your activity levels – it may have been almost non-existent or you may already be reasonably active. Increasing the level will have a major impact your health. You do not have to over-exert yourself to gain the healthy benefits of exercise – just be consistent with what you do. Try to get regular exercise, every day if possible;

b. not only will increased levels of activity help any cholesterol problems you may have, but it will also allow you to get to achieve, and maintain, a healthy body weight;

c. if you are a smoker – STOP – enough said;

d. if your physician has prescribed medication to stabilize your cholesterol levels, follow the advice and treatment you were given precisely;

e. keep a journal of what you do – the changes you make to your lifestyle and the results you achieve. If you begin to struggle to stay on target, read back over what you have done – use the account of what you have done, and where you have come from and be proud of it. This will motivate you to stay on track.

Finally, learn as much as you can about cholesterol, about your health in general, and about how maintaining a healthy lifestyle not only brings you great benefits now – but will continue to do so into the future – into that longer lifetime you will surely enjoy as a result of your efforts now to take charge of your health – and your life.

Everybody wants to live a healthy life by having a healthy body. That is why when when hear the word cholesterol we all think are the oily and fatty foods which means bad cholesterol. But there is other cholesterol that our body also needed – the good cholestrol.

Cholesterol can’t dissolve in the blood. It has to be transported to and from the cells by carriers called lipoproteins. There are two types of lipids, Low-density lipoprotein, or LDL, is known as “bad” cholesterol and High-density lipoprotein, or HDL, is known as “good” cholesterol.

High-density lipoprotein, or HDL, is known as “good” cholesterol. About one-fourth to one-third of blood cholesterol is carried by high-density lipoprotein (HDL). HDL cholesterol is known as “good” cholesterol, because high levels of HDL seem to protect against heart attack. Low levels of HDL (less than 40 mg/dL) also increase the risk of heart disease. Medical experts think that HDL tends to carry cholesterol away from the arteries and back to the liver, where it’s passed from the body. Some experts believe that HDL removes excess cholesterol from arterial plaque, slowing its buildup.

Although most research focus on LDLs, some information is available that can help you pull your diet in order to boost the HDL as well. One way is by choosing the right types of fat for your diet, your body need some fats also. Look into the two other types of fats: monounsaturated and polyunsaturated. You’ll find these in olive or canola oils, as well as some types of fish and nuts. Avocados are also a good source of monounsaturated fats, too. Eating more foods that are high in Omega-3 fatty acids can also help your HDL to LDL ratio improve. These fatty acids can be found in a wide-range of popular fish, including tuna and salmon. Other “good” cholesterol foods include fish oil, soybean products, and leafy green vegetables.

Other ways to increase HDL levels is to engage into regular aerobic exercise. Lose weight, obesity results not only in increased LDL cholesterol, but also in reduced HDL cholesterol. Give up your nicotine cravings and lessen alcohol intake.

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