What Is Cholesterol?

  

Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance that is found in every cell of our bodies and in our blood.  Most of your circulating cholesterol is manufactured by your liver, although the cholesterol we consume in our diet contributes as well to the total cholesterol level.  A simple blood test can measure the "good" cholesterol (HDL) and "bad" cholesterol (LDL) in your blood.

Why Control Cholesterol?

While your body needs cholesterol, many of us have too much.  Hardening of the arteries occurs when plaque made from cholesterol, calcium, and fat builds up in the arteries surrounding the heart.  That increases the possibility of a heart attack or stroke.

People with high total cholesterol (over 200 mg/dl) have almost twice the risk of a heart attack or stroke than people with desirable levels.

The Cost of high Cholesterol....

The financial cost of high cholesterol is difficult to determine, but we do know we spend $444 billion a year on heart disease and stroke costs.  It is estimated that one out of every six dollars spent on health care is spent on cardiovascular disease, which accounts for more than one-third of all U.S. deaths.

* One third of all adults have high cholesterol and half of them do nothing to control it.
* An estimated 71 million adults have high cholesterol.
* An estimated 935,000 heart attacks occur every year.
* An estimated 795,000 strokes occur each year.
* Men still outnumber women in heart attacks, but not by much.  More women than men have strokes.

What can I do to control cholesterol?

 There is much that you can do to help control cholesterol.

1. Lifestyle:  Start by having your cholesterol checked regularly.  Make sure you are eating a healthy diet that includes plenty of fruits and vegetables, and avoid packaged, fried, and fast food.  Lose weight if you are not your ideal weight.  Exercise and avoid smoking.

2.  Sterols:  Plant sterols and stanols (2,000 mg/day) have been shown in multiple studies to help lower cholesterol levels as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol.  They appear to work by cblocking the absorption of cholesterol in the diet. (i)

3. Fiber:  Multiple studies have shown the benefit of fiber on lowering cholesterol levels in high-risk subjects. (ii)

4.  Soy:  Soy supplementation has been shown to help lower cholesterol.  Soy contains isoflavones, which are belived to be soy's main cholesterol lowering ingredients.  Just make sure you are getting a non-gmo soy because soy is one of the highest gmo foods in the market. (iii)

iBaumgartner S, Mensink RP, Plat J. Plant sterols and stanols in the treatment of dyslipidemia: new insights into targets and mechanisms related to cardiovascular risk. Curr Pharm Des. 2011;17(9):922-32. PMID:21418032.

iiEstruch R, Martínez-González MA, Corella D, et al. Effects of dietary fibre intake on risk factors for cardiovascular disease in subjects at high risk. J Epidemiol Community Health. 2009 Jul;63(7):582-8. PMID: 19289389.

iiiBakhtiary A, Yassin Z, Hanachi P, et al. Effects of soy on metabolic biomarkers of cardiovascular disease in elderly women with metabolic syndrome. Arch Iran Med. 2012 Aug;15(8):462-8. PMID: 22827780.