Monday, January 31, 2011

What Makes Our Blood Cholesterol High?

By Aikednea Johansen


Your blood cholesterol level is affected not just by what you eat but also by how fast your body makes LDL-cholesterol and gets rid of it. In fact, your body makes all the cholesterol it needs, and it is not needed to ingest any additional cholesterol from the food you take in.

People with heart disease or those people who are at high risk for acquiring it, usually have an excessive amount of LDL-cholesterol in their blood. Many factors assist determine whether your LDL-cholesterol level is high or low. The following factors are the most significant.

Heredity. Your genes influence how high your LDL-cholesterol is by influencing how quick LDL is made and removed from the blood. One particular form of inherited high cholesterol which impacts 1 in 500 people is familial hypercholesterolemia, which often results in early heart disease. But even if you don't have a certain genetic form of high cholesterol, genes are likely involved in influencing your LDL-cholesterol level.

What you eat. 2 main nutrients in the food you eat make your LDL-cholesterol level increase: saturated fat, a type of fat found mainly in food that come from animals; and cholesterol, which comes solely from animal products. Saturated fat increases your LDL-cholesterol level more than anything else in the diet. Eating an excessive amount of saturated fat and cholesterol is the main reason for high levels of cholesterol and a high rate of heart attacks in the United States. Reducing the amount of saturated fat and cholesterol you take in is an extremely essential step in decreasing your blood cholesterol levels.

Weight. Excess weight tends to increase your LDL-cholesterol level. If you are overweight and have a high LDL-cholesterol level, losing weight might assist you to lower it. Weight loss likewise assists to reduce triglycerides and raise HDL.

Physical activity/exercise. Regular physical activity might lower LDL-cholesterol and raise HDL-cholesterol levels.

Age and gender. Prior to menopause, women generally have total cholesterol levels that are reduced than those of men the same age. As men and women get older, their blood cholesterol levels rise until around 60 to 65 years of age. In women, menopause often causes a rise in their LDL-cholesterol and a decrease in their HDL- cholesterol level, and after the age of 50, women frequently have higher total cholesterol levels than men of the same age.

Alcohol. Alcohol intake raises HDL-cholesterol but doesn't reduce LDL-cholesterol. Doctors don't know for certain whether alcohol also decreases the risk of heart disease. Drinking too much alcohol can damage the liver and heart muscle, result in high blood pressure, and increase triglycerides. Due to the risks, alcoholic drinks shouldn't be used as a way to prevent heart disease.

Stress. Stress over the long term has been shown in several studies to increase blood cholesterol levels. One way that stress may do this is by affecting your habits. For example, when several people are under stress, they console themselves by eating fatty foods. The saturated fat and cholesterol in these food bring about higher levels of blood cholesterol.






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