Welcome to my site. My name is Alan and I would like to thank you for visiting. I'm sure you will find all the right alternative, viable answers to your cholesterol problems on this page.
What is this cholesterol? Please explain simply and in few words...
Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance (a lipid) produced by the liver with a minimal amount coming from your diet. It is needed by your body to complete multiple functions such as building and maintaining cell membranes, balancing your hormones and manufacturing vitamin D.
Another lipid,triglyceride is important in building cell structure too. It is also used in making hormones and producing energy.
So, when is cholesterol bad?
Medical experts agree that when your blood cholesterol levels become too high it can cause serious problems for your body. Cholesterol levels have to be balanced. If you have too high a level in your system you at risk of suffering a heart attack or stroke.
Conversely, if you have too low a level in your system your vital hormone and cell functions may be gravely compromised. It is crucial therefore that a balance between these points is reached and maintained to preserve health.
High blood levels of LDL cholesterol means that you have an excess of fatty cholesterol deposits in your system. This is a major risk factor in the development of heart disease. It can contribute to hardening and narrowing of the arteries (atherosclerosis), causing chest pain (angina), cardiovascular disease and, if the vessel is blocked, a heart attack.
High cholesterol also increases the risk of other conditions such as stroke (if the blood supply to part of the brain is reduced) and peripheral vascular disease (narrowed blood vessels in the limbs) leading to pain in the extremities, ulcers and possible infection.
But be aware…too little cholesterol is also dangerous…
We know that too much cholesterol can seriously damage your health, but just as importantly you need to be aware that too little cholesterol is just as damaging.
Cholesterol levels below 190 for men and below 178 for women have been shown to increase the risk of having a stroke.
It has been proven that low cholesterol levels can also result in a reduction of serotonin production – a major factor in mood disorders - with a serious link being found between too little cholesterol and cases of depression and even suicide.
Plus, dangerously low cholesterol has been associated with an increase in mortality rates in cancer patients, senility and impotency.
So you see the emphasis must be placed on cholesterol BALANCE and not cholesterol ELIMINATION.
The difference between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ cholesterol types
Cholesterol is primarily composed of two forms, LDL (Low Density Lipoprotein) and HDL (High Density Lipoprotein).
LDLs (Low Density Lipoproteins)
These are known as the ‘bad’ or form of cholesterol. They attach to the walls of your arteries and create 'plaque'. This plaque accumulates over time and creates a blockage in your arteries causing a heart attack, or in your brain capillaries, starving your brain of oxygen and causing a stroke.
To achieve good health your LDL cholesterol needs to be at a reasonable level, but more importantly not oxidized. This is difficult to measure. LDL is usually calculated using a formula based on levels of HDL and triglycerides and can sometimes therefore be misleading.
HDLs (High Density Lipoproteins)
These are known as the ‘good' form of cholesterol. HDL cholesterol travels in your bloodstream picking up excess LDL cholesterol and transporting it back to your liver for reprocessing and excretion.
To achieve good health and ensure adequate ‘cleaning’ of ‘bad’ LDL cholesterol from your system, your HDL level needs to be as high as possible.
Because of this important relationship between your LDL and your HDL cholesterol, the most significant figures to examine when looking at your cholesterol test results is not your total cholesterol, but rather the ratio between your LDL and HDL cholesterol levels.
You want your LDL level to be reasonably low to prevent cholesterol building up in the arteries, and you want your HDL level to be as high as possible to ensure adequate ‘cleaning’ of LDL cholesterol from your bloodstream.
The main causes of high cholesterol are:
- Obesity, smoking and excessive alcohol intake
- Lack of exercise
- Hormonal imbalances
- Discrepancies in naturally produced body chemicals and their function
- Genetics - Familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH) is where inherited cholesterol levels are very high.
- Familial Combined Hyperlipidaemia (FCH), where triglyceride levels are very high too.
Other common causes…
Health conditions such as diabetes, kidney and liver diseases. An under-active thyroid gland may also add to the problem.
Hydrogenated oils (unsaturated fats hardened to make them more solid) often found in margarines and cooking oils (especially those used to cook ‘fast foods’) raise cholesterol levels considerably. The hydrogenation process changes fatty acids into trans-fatty acids, and these cause a significant increase in LDLs and a noticeable loss of HDLs.
Medicines such as beta-blockers, steroids or thiazides (a type of diuretic) also cause side effects that may include increased cholesterol.
Diagnosis
The best way to find out whether you have high cholesterol or significant imbalances is to visit your doctor, naturopathic practitioner, homeopath, or alternative health care provider.
Your cholesterol level can be measured easily with a quick, simple and most importantly painless blood sample.
If you are aged 20 or older you should have your cholesterol measured at least once every 5 years.
Conventional Treatments
Statin drugs have been used for some years to treat high cholesterol. The use of these drugs has been accelerated thanks to massive advertising and the downward adjustment of recommended safe cholesterol levels. Patients are normally advised to take these drugs for the rest of their lives, making statins the most profitable group of drugs ever developed.
By inhibiting the proper production of certain enzymes, statin drugs prevent the liver from manufacturing its full ‘quota’ of natural body cholesterol. Consequently, depletion of the necessary enzymeCoQ10 in the body by users of statin drugs can set the stage for some serious long-term health problems.
In 1990 studies began into the actual safety of statin drugs. These studies discovered many more adverse and potentially dangerous side effects which statins are now widely known to produce.
These side effects include nausea, upset stomach, diarrhea, constipation, muscle aching, headache, dizziness, rashes, sleep disturbances, depression, irritability, tingling and numbness, swelling, shortness of breath blurred vision and weight gain.
More serious side effects also include elevated liver enzymes and myopathy (muscle pain and tenderness).
Along with the mentioned stomach, lung and liver problems, the following side effects have also been associated with statin drug use:
- Severe muscle weakness and pain, even at low doses.
- Cognitive impairment and memory loss
- Increased risk of heart failure
- Impotence
- Birth defects
- In further studies cancer has also been found.
Some statin drugs have been removed from the market place after multiple reported deaths, the most notable one being Baycol.
This all leads to one question….is the use of statin drugs to lower cholesterol outweighed by their interference with your long-term health?
NB: If you do choose to either start taking a statin prescribed by your physician, or if you are already on one and you are not comfortable about attempting to phase it out, please ensure that you take a well formulated and balanced supplementary CoQ10 product such as Xtend-Life Cardio-Klenz which not only contains a natural form of CoQ10 but also many other natural herbal, vitamin and mineral nutrients that will benefit your cardiovascular system and help clean your arteries as well as helping lower your LDL cholesterol while raising your HDL.
Natural Treatments
There are 6 objectives for "balancing cholesterol naturally" and they are as follows:
1/. Reduce the production of cholesterol in the body.
2/. Reduce the absorption of cholesterol in the gastrointestinal tract.
3/. Decrease circulating blood fats and dissolve cholesterol particles.
4/. Increase the excretion of cholesterol carrying bile acid.
5/. Lower the oxidation of the cholesterol.
6/. Lessen the intake of foods high in cholesterol.(*)
(*) NOTE: It is advisable to take care with point 6. You don’t want to deprive your body of healthy nutrients like organic eggs just because they contain cholesterol. Remember: Only 20% of cholesterol is produced through your diet. Even if you cut your dietary intake by 50% it is only going to have an overall impact of 10%!
For most people it is possible to achieve 5 of these 6 objectives by ingesting from the following list of natural ingredients that scientists worldwide agree will help lower cholesterol, but will not produce the negative side effects of statins:
Policosanol - A substance extracted from sugar, rice bran and beeswax that significantly reduces the production of low-density (LDL) cholesterol as well as increasing high-density (HDL) cholesterol – hence normalizing (or balancing) cholesterol levels - via the alcohols it contains.
These alcohols inhibit cholesterol synthesis, acting on cholesterol metabolism in the liver and inhibit LDL oxidation.
Policosanol also helps to remove plaque from the arteries. It has been found in many clinical studies to be as effective as a statin drug, without the side effects.
An additional benefit is that Policosanol does not directly inhibit HMG-CoA reductase, therefore not (consequently) destroying the essential enzyme CoQ10, which is a major downfall of statin drugs.
Theaflavins (bioflavanoids) - Produced when green tea ferments, they scavenge radicals to produce antioxidative effects.
Theaflavins not only lower LDL cholesterol but also raise HDL cholesterol at the same time.
Lecithin - A natural phospholipid, an emulsifying agent that dissolves cholesterol, inhibits its absorption into the gastrointestinal tract and reduces oxidation. It does this by forming a protective barrier around cells and by regulating the homeostasis of cholesterol (the balance of LDL and HDL levels) by controlling a balanced exchange of lipids to reduce cholesterol synthesis. (Whew, that's heavy going isn't it?)
Lecithin increases cholesterol oxidation into bile salts, thus helping it to be excreted more easily.
Phytosterols - A plant sterol with a similar chemical structure to cholesterol. It reduces the absorption of cholesterol in the gastrointestinal tract by competing for the same space in cellulose molecules.
Rice Bran oil, Oryzanol - The outer grain hull of the rice containing fiber, lipids and amino acids along with beta-sitostrol and phytosterols that reduce cholesterol absorption and increase bile acid secretion. It is able to inhibit cholesterol absorption by converting cholesterol to bile acids and subsequently increasing bile acid excretion.
D-Limonene - A non-toxic component of the oil extracted from citrus rind. It is a natural solvent that builds up in the liver, inhibits HMG-Co-enzyme A and helps to dissolve cholesterol gallstones. D-Limonene is also known to help acute sinusitis and chronic bronchitis.
All of the above ingredients are important and most are available to you on the world market, yet none of them will individually address all the multiple causes of high cholesterol.
If they are combined synergistically, along with co-factors and trace elements, then you have the best possible chance of resolving and rebalancing your problem naturally, with no negative side effects.
So, is there an effective answer to all of this?
Oh, I'll bet you're wondering now, is there really an effective, yet safe product freely available without a prescription that is formulated around all these natural ingredients - and which presents no harmful side effects at all?
Well here's some great news. Scientists at a cutting edge yet highly caring "clean and green" New Zealand company called Xtend-Life have addressed these needs with the net result of a carefully formulated, proven formula that is achieving outstanding success with the majority of users. What's more, there are no harmful side effects!
It is called Xtend-Life Cholest-Natural. You can check out all the exciting details here...
Options
* Add Xtend-Life's Omega 3 DHA/fish oil capsules to your daily cholesterol lowering regimen to assist with balancing your cholesterol. They also help to reduce your triglycerides and are very beneficial towards a better overall good health.
* If your cholesterol levels are elevated but not dangerously so you may wish to try out the Xtend-Life Total Balance Supplement capsules with the Omega 3 DHA/Fish oil. Total Balance supplements do include their own cholesterol lowering properties, but it will take longer for best results. However, they will greatly benefit your general health and help prevent the degeneration of organs.
* Yet another option is to use Xtend-Life Cardio-Klenz supplement in conjunction with the Omega 3 and Cholest-Natural. This is a particularly desirable option and is strongly recommended if you are already on a statin drug and wish to stay on it. You may even have other cardiovascular issues to contend with.
Thank you so much for spending your time here - I hope I have helped you to discover the very best, safe and natural solution to those unwanted cholesterol problems.
This company can be trusted to provide the world's best natural supplements for balancing cholesterol levels, an extremely quick and efficient delivery service around the world and a follow up advisory desk, second-to-none.
Oh, and did I mention they also have a no nonsense money back guarantee in the unlikely event of your dissatisfaction.
All the very best
Alan Wheeler
