What Causes High Cholesterol?

Someting to remember even if you eat healthy.  Cholesterol is also made in several different organs in our bodies. If even one of these five main areas of cholesterol production are out of wack, as through illness, then you may have another cause of high cholesterol in you.

The body itself, as through genetics, can cause high cholesterol, as the body makes cholesterol of it's own accord.

Certain fats in our diet - the saturated fats, normally found in meat - can increase the cholesterol production in our body.

There are many causes of high cholesterol, and dietary cholesterol and dietary saturated fats are leading causes of high cholesterol.

The genetic causes of high cholesterol can be mitigated against to some extent by following a low cholesterol diet, however, even with a cholesterol lowering diet, the genes causing high cholesterol can still produce too much cholesterol, and so continue to cause high cholesterol.

Australia New Zealand Food Standards

Food Standards Australia New Zealand’s (FSANZ) dietary modelling has found that Australians obtain on average 0.5 per cent of their daily kilojoules from TFAs and New Zealanders on average 0.6 per cent. This is well below the WHO recommendation. It is also below the levels in many other countries. 

It is not mandatory to declare TFAs on the label, although manufacturers can provide this information voluntarily. However, TFAs must be declared on a food label if the manufacturer makes a nutrition claim about cholesterol or saturated, trans, polyunsaturated, monounsaturated, omega-3, omega-6 or omega-9 fatty acids. Read more...

In 2005, CHOICE (Australia) tested more than 50 processed foods and found many contained trans fats at unacceptably high levels and while some fast-food chains have reduced their levels of trans fats, and some of the foods tested previously have eliminated trans fats altogether, others now apparently contain even more than before. Read more...

Some brands of margarine, for example, state the serving size as 1 tsp. This is very little margarine, barely enough to spread on one slice of bread. If you eat two or more slices of bread spread with margarine, chances are that you will be taking 4 or 5 or more servings of margarine.

Trans Fats & Trans Fatty Acid

Health experts will fight for the mandatory labeling of food products containing the artery-clogging fats (trans fats) at the Review of Food Labeling and Policy appointed by the Australia and New Zealand Food Regulation Ministerial Council and by the Council of Australian Governments. Read more...

Under the current rules of Australia, processed foods containing trans fats are seldom identified. As many as 6000 Australians die every year from diseases which are linked to eating too much trans fats.

Countries such as Switzerland and Denmark have banned trans fats and US has mandatory food labeling.

Trans fats are made by heating liquid vegetable oils in the presence of the gas hydrogen, a process called, unsurprisingly, hydrogenation. The hydrogenation increases the shelf life and flavor of the food so the food industry use it.

It is now mandatory to put the amount of trans fats on the food label in many countries like USA and Australia. Other countries like India has no regulation on trans fats so it is being used freely in many food products. The trans fatty acids are so dangerous to the health that the governments should actually ban the use of trans fats in foods. Read more...

Trans fats are found naturally in dairy products, lamb, beef and mutton. They are also found in many packed foods which use hydrogenated vegetable fats. You can find it in many snacks, viz. cookies, cakes, fried foods, microwave popcorn, margarine, etc. Always look for the words shortening, partially hydrogenated vegetable oil or hydrogenated vegetable oil on the food label, these are nothing but trans fats.

Trans fats are worse for cholesterol levels than saturated fats because they not only raise LDL (lethal) cholesterol but also lower HDL (healthy) cholesterol - a real double whammy. Saturated Fats - Just Plain Bad. Learn more...

Nutrition Fact Labels: True or False

Nutrition facts labels in the US have, since 1 January 2006, been required by the US Food and Drug Adminisration to state the content of trans fats.

Under FDA regulations, "if the serving contains less than 0.5 gram (of trans fat), the content, when declared, shall be expressed as zero."

Canadian legislation is more stringent on this, and allows the trans fat content to be stated as zero only when it is less than 0.2 grams per serving.

Thus, when foods contain as much as 0.4 grams trans fat – in fact, as much as 0.499 grams of trans fats – they shall / must be shown in US nutrition facts labels as having zero trans fats. If you eat, say, five servings of such foods a day, you may end up consuming more than 2 grams of trans fats. Even though 2 grams may not sound like a lot, it is enough to significantly increase your risks of heart disease, obesity, diabetes and other degenerative diseases.

So apart from nutrition facts labels, it is also important to check the ingredients lists. If the lists include words like "shortening" or "partially hydrogenated" it means that the products contain trans fats. Read more...

Currently, Australia's food labeling laws do not require trans fats to be shown separately from the total fat content. However, margarine in Australia has been free of trans fat since 1996. Australia has chosen to define trans fats strictly as any fat containing a trans bond. Read more...

Denmark became the first country to introduce laws strictly regulating the sale of many foods containing trans fats in March 2003, a move which effectively bans partially hydrogenated oils.

Switzerland followed Denmark's trans fats ban, and implemented its own beginning in April 2008.

On request the European Food Safety Authority produced a scientific opinion on trans fatty acids.

Sainsbury's became the first UK major retailer to ban all trans fat from all their own brand foods. On 13 December 2007, the Food Standards Agency (UK) issued news releases stating that voluntary measures to reduce trans fats in food had already resulted in safe levels of consumer intake.

There are four kinds of fats: monounsaturated fat, polyunsaturated fat, saturated fat, and trans fat. Monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fat are the "good" fats. It is generally accepted that consumption of saturated fat should be kept low, especially for adults. Trans fat (which means trans fatty acids) is the worst kind of fat, far worse than saturated fat. Read more...

WHO recommendations

The World Health Organisation or WHO recommendation is that intake of trans fat should not exceed 1 percent of the total colories, and that saturated fats should not exceed 10 percent of total calories.

The WHO recommendation is not a number based on any scientific studies because, as far as modern scientific research has shown, the safe level of trans fat is ZERO.

Assuming an average person consumes 2,000 calories per day, 1 percent translates to 20 calories, which will come from about 2 grams of trans fats. This might not seem much. But a serving of McDonalds french fries and fried chicked nuggets in the US contains about 10 grams of trans fats. (The figure varies. In Denmark, which banned trans fats in 2003, the same meal contains only about 0.3 grams of trans fats.)

Very small amounts are enough to significantly increase a person's risk of heart disease, diabetes, obesity and other health problems.

Research has shown that saturated fats – even though they are thought to cause heart disease – are necessary and beneficial for health. And so, in order to keep healthy, we should ensure that about 10 percent of our calorie intake consists of saturated fats. Read more...

Benefits of Saturated Fats

The many health benefits of saturated fats have largely been ignored in recent decades, as scientists, health experts and health autohorities focus mainly on their supposed dangers. In the process, many people forget that saturated fats are actually necessary for health highly beneficial in many ways.

The people of Okinawa, an island in Southern Japan, are well known for their longevity and excellent health – to the extent that books have been written about the Okinawa diet. The main cooking oil used by the people of Okinawa is pork lard.

Well known for their love of good food, the French also have low rates of heart disease and other degenerative diseases compared with, say, the Americans. The French diet contains lots of saturated fats in the form of butter, cheese, cream. eggs, meats and liver, including pates.

In general, people of the Mediterranean countries consume quite large amounts of saturated fats – and enjoy good health.

Saturated fats are commonly regarded as harmful for the heart, yet the heart is probably the one organ that benefits most from saturated fats. Read more... 

cooking oils: canola oil and olive oil

Most cooking oils are made up primarily of unsaturated fats. When it comes to choosing cooking oils, each type of cooking oil varies in its ratio of monounsaturated to polyunsaturated fats. Two oils stand out for their high levels of monounsaturated fats: canola oil and olive oil. Other than nonstick cooking spray, these two oils should be in your pantry.

At the end of the day, a good fat is still a fat in terms of calories. Any labels on cooking oil that describe the oil as "light," are referring to the taste or color, not the fat or calorie content. All oils are 100 percent fat and are worth around 120 calories per tablespoon.

Monounsaturated fats help lower LDL (bad) cholesterol while also boosting HDL (good) cholesterol.

Polyunsaturated fats are also thought to help lower total and bad cholesterol. But let's not ignore polyunsaturated fats. These are often a good source of omega-3 fatty acids, found mostly in cold-water fish, nuts, oils and seeds, and also in dark leafy greens, flaxseed oils and some vegetable oils. One kind of omega-3 fatty acid is an "essential fatty acid," which cannot be manufactured by our bodies, so eating these foods is the only way to get them. Omega-3 fatty acids are thought to lower blood pressure, combat LDL (bad) cholesterol, fight inflammation and protect the brain and nervous system.

Can I Eat Cheese

Cheese is a wonderful source of protein, calcium and phosphorus, but it's also a major source of saturated fat.

Regular cheddar cheese has about 9 grams of fat per ounce, 6 grams of which are saturated.

Many cheeses are naturally lower in fat than others. These include part-skim mozzarella, string cheeses, farmers cheese, and Neufchâtel. Goat cheese is lower in fat and has fewer calories than cow's milk cheese.

Omega-3 fatty acids

Omega-3 fatty acids are polyunsaturated fats found naturally in oily fish, nuts, seeds, and leafy green vegetables. Omega-3 fatty acids are often classed as "essential fatty acids," meaning that they are necessary for our health and that our bodies are unable to produce them.

In fact, the body is unable to manufacture one kind of omega-3 fatty acid known as alpha linolenic acid (LNA or ALA), but it can make the other types, eicosapentaeonic acid (EPA) and docoshexaeonic acid (DHA), by converting LNA, though only a small percentage of LNA is able to be converted. That’s why it’s important for us to include foods containing omega-3 fatty acids in our diet, even if we’re trying to eat low fat.

Unsaturated fats

Monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats are two types of unsaturated fatty acids. They are derived from vegetables and plants.

Monounsaturated fats are liquid at room temperature but begin to solidify at cold temperatures. This type of fat is preferable to other types of fat and can be found in olives, olive oil, nuts, peanut oil, canola oil and avocados. Some studies have shown that these kinds of fats can actually lower LDL (bad) cholesterol and maintain HDL (good) cholesterol.

Polyunsaturated fats are also liquid at room temperature. These are found in safflower, sesame, corn, cottonseed and soybean oils. This type of fat has also been shown to reduce levels of LDL cholesterol, but too much can also lower your HDL cholesterol.

Eating low fat food doesn’t mean we should give up fat entirely.  Fat provides linoleic acid, an essential fatty acid for growth, healthy skin and metabolism. It also helps absorb fat-soluble vitamins (A,D,E and K).

Saturated fats, Trans Fats, Hydrogenated Fats

Saturated fats are derived from animal products such as meat, dairy and eggs. But they are also found in some plant-based sources such as coconut, palm and palm kernel oils. These fats are solid at room temperature. Saturated fats directly raise total and LDL (bad) cholesterol levels. Many products on the shelf have saturated fats: READ THE LABELS!, and consider!

Trans fats are actually unsaturated fats, but they can raise total and LDL (bad) cholesterol levels while also lowering HDL (good) cholesterol levels. Trans fats are used to extend the shelf life of processed foods, typically cookies, cakes, fries and donuts.

Any item that contains “hydrogenated oil” or “partially hydrogenated oil” likely contains trans fats.

Hydrogenation is the chemical process that changes liquid oils into solid fats.

The heart is, after all, a muscle

Exercise is one the most important things you can do to strengthen the heart after a heart attack. The heart is, after all, a muscle, and cardiovascular exercise such as cycling, jogging, tennis or even walking briskly will help your heart regain strength.Read more: How to Strengthen the Heart After a Heart Attack | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_2048171_strengthen-heart-after-heart-attack.html#ixzz1XpEY7dSg

Cholesterol what's it good for

Do you know that your body manufactures cholesterol whether you have it in your diet or not?

This is done in your liver.

If you are told to go on a low-fat diet (which means a low cholesterol diet) for a condition of obesity or heart disease or other associated disease states, you should know that as fast as you eliminate animal fats from your diet you ought to add vegetable fats (that is vegetable oils), or you will be storing up more trouble than you had in the first place.

Cholesterol performs several important functions in the body. Perhaps the most important of these is its role in forming and maintaining cell walls and structures. Cells also need cholesterol to help them adjust to changes in temperature, and it's used by nerve cells for insulation.

Additionally, cholesterol is essential for synthesizing a number of critical hormones, including the sex hormones testosterone, progesterone and estrogen.

Bile, a fluid produced by the liver, plays a vital role in the processing and digestion of fats. To make bile, the liver uses cholesterol. Your body also needs cholesterol to make vitamin D; in the presence of sunlight, cholesterol is converted into vitamin D.

More specifically, cholesterol that's packaged by the liver into lipoproteins are dense with proteins and have less fat. These high-density lipoproteins, or HDL, are the "good" cholesterol. What's good about HDL is the way it seems to remove plaques of LDL inside arteries, "cleaning" the arteries as it moves through the bloodstream.