If you go to see a doctor to discuss the need to reduce cholesterol, chances are that they will probably just advise you to go on a course of statins. If this happens to you think very carefully before agreeing to it, because not only are these drugs something that you will be on for the rest of your life, but also they do have some pretty nasty side effects too. So before you go down the route of using statins you may want to try these three simple steps to help you reduce cholesterol naturally.
1.Exercise - We all know that we should exercise more, however when we think of exercising it brings up horror images of expensive gym memberships and killing ourselves on treadmills. Fortunately to help reduce cholesterol this does not have to be the scenario as scientists now appreciate that it is the duration of the exercise and not the intensity that is important. So, the duration needs to be approximately 30 minutes a day five times a week or so and the exercise could be anything of your choice such as brisk walking, cycling or even swimming.
2.Diet - Quite often people think that the best way to reduce cholesterol is through the food that they eat. The truth of the matter is that although food can play a part it is only a small part as your cholesterol levels are really determined by the amount that you liver produces. However, even though the food is only a small part there are some foods that you want to avoid and some you want to include which will go some way to helping you balance your cholesterol. Foods you want to include are foods which contain omega3 such as nuts and oily fish as these are known to help reduce LDL and boost HDL. The other food to include is soluble fiber as this too is known to reduce LDL. Food you want to avoid is take away food and microwave meals because these often contain hydrogenated oils which raise LDL levels: you also want to cut back on the amount of foods that you eat that contain saturated fats such as meat and dairy.
3.Nutritional Supplements-- It is also worthwhile taking nutritional supplements to help control your good and bad cholesterol levels. In particular you should be looking for nutritional supplements that contain ingredients such as policosanol (which has been found to be as effective as statins), theaflavins and phytosterols. In the main what you are looking for a nutritional supplement to do is to lower the bad cholesterol, increase good cholesterol and take any excess bad cholesterol and change it into bile salts to be excreted from the body.
Following these three step will not have a dramatic affect overnight, however given the little bit of time they will help to reduce your cholesterol levels. So why not give them a go before opting to go on medication for the rest of your life?
1.Exercise - We all know that we should exercise more, however when we think of exercising it brings up horror images of expensive gym memberships and killing ourselves on treadmills. Fortunately to help reduce cholesterol this does not have to be the scenario as scientists now appreciate that it is the duration of the exercise and not the intensity that is important. So, the duration needs to be approximately 30 minutes a day five times a week or so and the exercise could be anything of your choice such as brisk walking, cycling or even swimming.
2.Diet - Quite often people think that the best way to reduce cholesterol is through the food that they eat. The truth of the matter is that although food can play a part it is only a small part as your cholesterol levels are really determined by the amount that you liver produces. However, even though the food is only a small part there are some foods that you want to avoid and some you want to include which will go some way to helping you balance your cholesterol. Foods you want to include are foods which contain omega3 such as nuts and oily fish as these are known to help reduce LDL and boost HDL. The other food to include is soluble fiber as this too is known to reduce LDL. Food you want to avoid is take away food and microwave meals because these often contain hydrogenated oils which raise LDL levels: you also want to cut back on the amount of foods that you eat that contain saturated fats such as meat and dairy.
3.Nutritional Supplements-- It is also worthwhile taking nutritional supplements to help control your good and bad cholesterol levels. In particular you should be looking for nutritional supplements that contain ingredients such as policosanol (which has been found to be as effective as statins), theaflavins and phytosterols. In the main what you are looking for a nutritional supplement to do is to lower the bad cholesterol, increase good cholesterol and take any excess bad cholesterol and change it into bile salts to be excreted from the body.
Following these three step will not have a dramatic affect overnight, however given the little bit of time they will help to reduce your cholesterol levels. So why not give them a go before opting to go on medication for the rest of your life?
About the Author:
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