Cholesterol is a lipid substance, which in reasonable quantities is useful to the body and essential to our health. It's used for the synthesis of sex hormones, for the formation of vitamin D in the skin surface and for building blocks of cell membranes. It comes from 2 sources: a) from the liver that produces enough quantity to meet the needs of our body, b) from the foods we eat (especially eggs and food of animal origin).
This lipid substance becomes dangerous when it exceeds the normal levels and gets produced at a much higher amount than you need. In this case, it can have severe consequences: it can lead to heart attacks and strokes because it clogs the arteries.
Cholesterol is divided into low density lipoprotein (LDL) and high density lipoprotein (HDL). LDL is called "bad", because it transports cholesterol from the liver and deposits it in the walls of the arteries. LDL causes plague which prevents the flow of blood through the arteries and can lead to vascular diseases.
On the contrary, HDL is called "good" because it removes the plague and reduces the risk for cardiovascular disease.
Cholesterol
Here are a few things you need to do in order to reduce your LDL levels:
Consume fish oil every day: it contains omega 3 fatty acids that can have a positive effect on blood circulation and on the health of the heart. Fish oil consumption is believed to be the cause behind the extremely low incidence of heart disease in Eskimos.
Reduce or eliminate the consumption of foods that increase LDL levels. Try to eat less than 2 eggs per week, avoid eating fried potatoes, popcorn, potato chips, sweets, poultry with skin, bacon, high fat milk and cheese, pizza, cheeseburgers and butter.
Eat lots of fruits and vegetables because of the fibre they contain. Use olive oil because it reduces LDL levels. Alcohol in moderation can also be helpful because it increases HDL levels.
You need to reduce your daily cholesterol intake to no more than 300mg. For example, the yolk of an egg contains about 230 mg, but the white of an egg contains no fat or cholesterol and is a very good source of protein. If you want to follow a recipe that contains eggs, you can replace the egg yolk with 2 whites.
Increase the consumption of monounsaturated fatty acids, which are contained in olives and nuts such as almonds, peanuts, hazelnuts and walnuts. Monounsaturated fats are extremely helpful because they can reduce LDL and increase HDL.
Additionally there is one more thing you can do: as unbelievable as it may sound it has been found that deep breathing can significantly reduce your cholesterol levels!
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