“Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are,” said the French philosopher. Two hundred years later, doctors agree. If you eat unhealthy, you end up unhealthy. Here we focus on just one of many dietary villains: cholesterol, and his sidekick, triglycerides. If you want to steer clear of heart and artery disease, then you must understand the unhealthy nexus between the cholesterol- (and triglyceride-) laden food you consume and cardio-vascular disease. This understanding is crucial to making an informed decision about your choice of food, because that’s going to affect your health and your life.

Medical research shows that high cholesterol food is the main cause of morbid cardio-vascular conditions resulting in strokes and heart attacks. The patient’s health is aggravated further if the morbid cardio-vascular condition is accompanied by hypertension, smoking, obesity, and hereditary factors.

The thing to understand is that when we speak of cholesterol, we are actually speaking of three different things: good cholesterol (HDL), bad cholesterol (LDL), and triglycerides. Triglycerides are not really cholesterol but are very intimately associated with regular cholesterol. Now not all these things are unhealthy or disease causing. In fact the body requires cholesterol and triglycerides too. The trick is in identifying the good ones and including them in your daily diet, and simultaneously avoiding the unhealthy ones. Fish cholesterol and triglycerides is good. Omega-3 fats found in a number of fish are recommended by physicians and nutritionists for patients suffering from diseases caused by cholesterol, because Omega-3 actually helps to reduce the level of bad cholesterol.

We grew up to a simple fact: Eggs are good for us! Then came the pronouncement: Eggs contain a lot of cholesterol! Immediately eggs were taken off the diet lists of almost every household. Now eggs are back without the yolk because research has shown that it is the yolk which contains the cholesterol and not the white. So chefs everywhere are dreaming up yolk-less egg delicacies! The point is that we often bad name a food without really understanding what about it is really harmful.

These swings in favor of or against cholesterol-containing foods confuse the man on the street. Eggs are not the main culprit in raising the level of bad cholesterol. The thing to avoid is not eggs by themselves, but to say no to the large helpings of bacon, cheese and sausages on the side. Paying attention to the way in which your food is cooked will pay off more than simply concentrating on including this and excluding that food from your diet.

Avoid foods, even cholesterol-safe ones that are deep fried. The oil or margarine that’s used to fry or cook the food will do you more harm than the food being cooked. Deep fried foods and animal products. These two should be avoided to stay healthy and free from cardio-vascular disease. Dairy products and poultry products come under animal products and must be avoided.

Even if you only select those items that are low in bad cholesterol, you may still end up with choked arteries if you are not watchful about the saturated fats that you take in. This is because a high intake of saturated fats triggers a sharp increase of LDL levels as well as triglycerides.

The moral of this brief story is that you should adopt a holistic approach to your diet rather than a exclusive approach. Have everything, but in moderation. Instead of banning specific items from the dining table, it’ll be healthier if you keep a check on how the food is prepared. Boiling, grilling and baking is preferable to frying. Increase the quantum of vegetables in your diet. Follow these steps to have a hearty meal!

To find out more about eating low cholesterol food go to www.reduce-high-cholesterol.com, a popular website designed to help you live a heart healthy life. Also find out how a cholesterol monitor can help you keep your levels where they need to be.

Tags: Cholesterol

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