Herald Article #7, Cholesterol

What Is Cholesterol, and Why Do You Need It? Cholesterol has been unfairly blamed for just about every case of heart disease for the last 20 years, when in reality, you need cholesterol in order to be healthy; That's right, you do need cholesterol. It is a vital component of every cell membrane on Earth. In other words, there is no life on Earth that can live without cholesterol. We would not be here without it. You are probably aware that there are many myths that portray fat and cholesterol as one of the worst foods you can consume. These myths are actually harming your health. Here are a few of the many vital functions of cholesterol? It builds and maintains cell membranes (outer layer), it prevents crystallization of hydrocarbons in the membrane It is essential for determining which molecules can pass into the cell and which cannot (cell membrane permeability) It is involved in the production of sex hormones (androgens and estrogens) It is essential for the production of hormones released by the adrenal glands (cortisol, corticosterone, aldosterone, and others) It aids in the production of bile It converts sunshine to vitamin D It is important for the metabolism of fat soluble vitamins, including vitamins A, D, E, and K It insulates nerve fibers So where does it come from? Foods you consume containing cholesterol such as the much maligned egg and healthy saturated fats only contribute a mere 20-25%, whereas your liver manufactures 75 -80% of your body’s cholesterol. Inflammation and Diet are the two main factors that stimulate the liver to produce cholesterol. Inflammation is your bodies natural response to invaders and the perception of a threat. If you get a cut for instance, the process of inflammation is what allows you to heal. Blood vessels constrict to keep you from bleeding to death. Blood becomes thicker so it can clot. The immune system sends cells and chemicals to fight viruses, bacteria and other "bad guys" that could infect the area. Cells multiply to repair the damage. Ultimately, the cut is healed and a protective scar may form over the area. If your arteries are damaged (say from stress or high blood sugar levels or high blood pressure), a very similar process occurs inside of your body, except that a "scar" in your artery is known as plaque. This plaque, along with the thickening of your blood and constricting of your blood vessels that normally occur during the inflammatory process, can indeed increase your risk of high blood pressure and heart attacks. Cholesterol comes in because it is necessary to replace your damaged cells. Remember that no cell can form without it. So if you have a bunch of damaged cells that need to be replaced, your liver will be notified to make more cholesterol and release it into your bloodstream. This is a deliberate process that takes place in order for your body to produce new, healthy cells. It is also possible, and quite common, for damage to occur in your body on a regular basis. In this case, you will be in a dangerous state of chronic inflammation . Eating the Standard American Diet (high in processed carbohydrates from grains) results in elevated blood sugar levels which are inflammatory to the body and the natural response is for the liver to convert this excess blood sugar first into triglycerides and then into cholesterol. Cholesterol levels reflect chronic inflammation in your body; the more inflammation you have, the higher your total cholesterol tends to be. Your body makes cholesterol to "patch up damages" from this ongoing inflammation. Even conventional medicine is warming up to the idea that chronic inflammation can trigger heart attacks. In the eyes of conventional medicine, when they see increased cholesterol circulating in your bloodstream, they conclude that it -- not the underlying damage to your arteries -- is the cause of heart attacks. Experts in lipid biochemistry, have gone so far as to call high cholesterol "an invented disease, a 'problem' that emerged when health professionals learned how to measure cholesterol levels in the blood." And this explanation is spot on. If you have increased levels of cholesterol, it is at least in part because of increased inflammation in your body. The cholesterol is there to do a job: help your body to heal and repair. The Dangers of Cholesterol lowering drugs. As with most drugs they are about inhibiting normal physiology in the body. Along with the Cholesterol’s inhibition comes the inhibition of Glutathione (one of the largest antioxidants in the body, esp for the brain) and Coenzyme Q10 (a major part of energy production in muscles, esp in the heart). Statin drugs have also been linked to: An increased risk of polyneuropathy (nerve damage that causes pain in the hands and feet and trouble walking) Dizziness Cognitive impairment, including memory loss A potential increased risk of cancer Decreased function of the immune system Depression Liver problems, including a potential increase in liver enzymes (so people taking statins must be regularly monitored for normal liver function) Who Decided What Cholesterol Levels Are Healthy or Harmful? Eight of the nine doctors on the panel that developed the new cholesterol guidelines had been making money from the drug companies that manufacture statin cholesterol-lowering drugs. Coincidence? The standard recommendation to get to that level almost always includes one or more cholesterol lowering drugs with never a mention of how to lower inflammation without drugs. How to Lower Inflammation, and Thereby Your Risk of Heart Disease, Naturally There is a major misconception that you must avoid foods like eggs and saturated fat to protect your heart. While it's true that fats from animal sources contain cholesterol, I've explained earlier in this article why this should not scare you. This misguided principle is based on the "lipid hypothesis" -- developed in the 1950s by nutrition pioneer Ancel Keys -- that linked dietary fat to coronary heart disease. The nutrition community of that time completely accepted the hypothesis, and encouraged the public to cut out butter, red meat, animal fats, eggs, dairy and other "artery-clogging" fats from their diets -- a radical change at that time. What you may not know is that when Keys published his analysis that claimed to prove the link between dietary fats and coronary heart disease, he selectively analyzed information from only six countries to prove his correlation, rather than comparing all the data available at the time -- from 22 countries. As a result of this "cherry-picked" data, government health organizations began bombarding the public with advice that has contributed to the diabetes and obesity epidemics going on today: eat a low-fat diet(high carb) diet. Not surprisingly, numerous studies have actually shown that Keys' theory was wrong and saturated fats are healthy. Of course, as Americans cut out nutritious animal fats from their diets, they were left hungry. So they began eating more processed grains, more vegetable oils, and more high-fructose corn syrup, all of which are nutritional disasters. It is this latter type of diet that will lead to increased inflammation, and therefore cholesterol, in your body. So don't let anyone scare you away from saturated fat anymore. How to Lower Your Cholesterol Naturally... Eat a plant based diet (with lots of cruciferous veggies). Make sure you're getting plenty of high-quality, animal-based omega3-fats. 1,000mg of combined EPA & DHA. Reduce, with the plan of eliminating, grains and sugars in your daily diet. It is especially important to eliminate dangerous sugars such as fructose. If your HDL/Cholesterol ratio is abnormal and needs to be improved it would also serve you well to virtually eliminate fruits from your diet, as that it also a source of fructose. Once your cholesterol improves you can gradually reintroduce it to levels that don't raise your cholesterol. Eat healthy, preferably raw, fats. This includes: Olives (not the canned black ones), and olive oil, Coconut and coconut oil, Avocados, Raw nuts, Seeds, Eggs (lightly cooked with yolks intact or raw), and Organic, grass-fed meats. Exercise, When you exercise you increase your circulation and the blood flow throughout your body. The components of your immune system are also better circulated, which means your immune system has a better chance of fighting an illness before it has the opportunity to spread. Eat a condiment size serving of a fermented food daily Avoid smoking and drinking excessive amounts of alcohol. Address your emotional challenges. So there you have it; the reasons why high cholesterol is a worry that the majority of you simply do not need to have, along with a simple plan to optimize yours.