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Cholesterol
Cholesterolisatypeoffatthatispartofallanimalcells.Itisessentialformanyofthebodys metabolicprocesses,includinghormoneandbileproduction,andtohelpthebodyusevitaminD. However,theresnoneedtoeatfoodshighincholesterol.Thebodyisverygoodatmakingitsown cholesterolyoudontneedtohelpitalong.Infact,toomuchcholesterolinyourdietcanleadto heartdisease. Cholesterol is essential Cholesterolisproducedbytheliverandalsomadebymostcellsinthebody.Itiscarriedaroundin thebloodbylittlecourierscalledlipoproteins.Weneedbloodcholesterolbecausethebodyusesit to: Buildthestructureofcellmembranes Makehormoneslikeoestrogen,testosteroneandadrenalhormones Helpyourmetabolismworkefficiently;forexample,cholesterolisessentialforyourbody toproducevitaminD Producebileacids,whichhelpthebodydigestfatandabsorbimportantnutrients.
Two important ways of transporting cholesterol Cholesterolisawhite,insolubleandwaxysubstance.Itiscarriedaroundthebodybytwokey transportsystemsintheblood: Low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterolcarriesmostofthecholesterolthatis deliveredtocells.Itiscalledthebadcholesterolwhenitslevelinthebloodstreamishigh becausethatitcanclogupyourarteries. High density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesteroliscalledthegoodcholesterolbecauseit helpsremoveexcesscholesteroloutofthecells,includingcellsinthearteries.
Safe blood cholesterol levels Healthauthoritiesrecommendthatcholesterollevelsshouldbenohigherthan5.5mmolsperlitreif therearenootherriskfactorspresent.Ifthereareothercardiovascularriskfactorsorpre-existing cardiovascular(heart)disease,thentheaimfortheLDLlevelswouldbelessthan2.5mmol/L. ApproximatelyhalfofalladultAustralianshaveabloodcholesterollevelabove5mmolsperlitre. ThismakeshighbloodcholesterolamajorhealthconcerninAustralia. Effects of high cholesterol levels Theliveristhemainprocessingcentreforcholesterolanddietaryfat.Whenweeatanimalfats,the livertransportsthefat,togetherwithcholesterolintheformoflipoproteins,intoourbloodstream. ToomuchcholesterolcirculatingwithinLDLinourbloodstreamleadstofattydepositsthatdevelop inthearteries.Thiscausesthevesselstonarrowandtheycaneventuallybecomeblocked.This canleadtoheartdiseaseandstroke. You do not need cholesterol in your diet Youdontneedtoeatfoodsthatcontaincholesterol.Yourbodycanproduceallthecholesterolit needs.Highcholesterolfoodsareoftenfoodsthatarealsohighinsaturatedfats.Thesefoods shouldbelimitedinahealthydiet. Foods that contain cholesterol Thecholesterolinyourdietcomesmainlyfromeggsandfromanimalproductsthatarerichinfat suchasmeatsandfullfatdairyfoods.Allfoodsfromanimalscontainsomecholesterol.Foodsfrom plantsdonotcontaincholesterol. How to avoid saturated fats Thebestwaytomaintainhealthylevelsofcholesterolinyourdietistolimitfoodshighinsaturated fats.Trytoavoid:
Cholesterol
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Dietary tips Themostimportantthingyoucandotoreduceyourcholesterollevelistomaintainahealthy lifestyle. Youshouldtryto: Limittheamountofcholesterol-richfoodsyoueat. Increasetheamountandvarietyoffreshfruit,vegetablesandwholegrainfoodsyouhave eachday. Chooseloworreducedfatmilk,yoghurtandotherdairyproductsorhaveaddedcalcium soydrinks. Chooseleanmeat(meattrimmedoffatorlabelledasheartsmart). Limitfattymeats,includingsausagesandsalami,andchooseleanersandwichmeatslike turkeybreastorcookedleanchicken. Havefish(freshorcanned)atleasttwiceaweek. Replacebutteranddairyblendswithpolyunsaturatedmargarines. Includefoodsinyourdietthatarerichinsolublefibreandhealthyfats,suchasnuts, legumesandseeds. Limitcheeseandicecreamtotwiceaweek.
Otherstoragefatsthataretransportedinbloodlipoproteinsincludetriglycerides.Whenpresentin highconcentrationsintheblood,thisfatisalsoariskforheartattack.Somefoodswillaffectthe cholesterollevel,somethetriglyceridelevelandsomewillaffectboth. Lifestyle tips Changingsomeofyourlifestylehabitsmayalsohelptoreduceyourcholesterolandtriglyceride levels.Suggestionsinclude: Ceasealcoholconsumptionorreduceyouralcoholintaketonomorethanoneortwodrinks aday.Avoidbingedrinking.Thiswilltohelploweryourtriglyceridelevels. Dontsmoke.SmokingincreasestheabilityofLDLcholesteroltogetintoarterycellsand causedamage. Exerciseregularly(forexample,atleast30minutesofbriskwalkingdaily).Exercise increasestheHDLlevels,whilereducingLDLandtriglyceridelevelsinthebody. Loseanyexcessbodyfat.Beingoverweightmaycontributetoraisedbloodtriglycerideand LDLlevels. Controlyourbloodsugarlevelsifyouhavediabetes.Highbloodsugarsarelinkedtoan increasedriskofatherosclerosis.
Dont cut out all dairy foods Somepeoplebelievethatcuttingoutdairyfoodsaltogetheristhesafestoption,butthisisnttrue. Dairyfoodsareanimportantpartofthedailydietandcontributemanyessentialnutrients, especiallycalcium.Youshouldswitchtolowfattypes,whichwillreducetheriskfromsaturated fats. You dont need to avoid eggs and seafood Somefoodsarehighincholesterolbutarefinetoeatinmoderation,aslongasyouroveralldietis lowinsaturatedfats.Forexample: Egg yolksasingleeggyolkcontains200250mgofcholesterol,whichisalmostthe uppermostrecommendeddailyintake(300mg).However,reducingeggintakeisprobably notimportantforhealthypeoplewithnormalbloodcholesterollevels. Seafoodprawnsandseafoodcontainsomecholesterolbuttheyarelowinsaturatedfat andalsocontainhealthyomega-3fattyacids.Seafoodisahealthyfoodandshouldnotbe avoidedjustbecauseitcontainscholesterol.However,avoidfriedandbatteredseafood.
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Foods that may lower cholesterol levels ThemostpowerfulfoodforloweringLDLcholesterolispolyunsaturatedoil(sunflower,safflower, canola).SomestudieshavesuggestedthateatingoatsandlegumesmaylowerLDLcholesterol. Foodcomponentslikesaponins(foundinchickpeas,alfalfasproutsandotherfoods)andsulphur compounds(likeallicinfoundingarlicandonions)mayalsohaveapositiveeffectinlowering cholesterollevels. Plant sterols can lower cholesterol levels Plantsterolsarefoundnaturallyinplantfoodsincludingsunflowerandcanolaseeds,vegetableoils and(insmalleramounts)innuts,legumes,cereals,fruitandvegetables.Somemargarinehas concentratedplantsterolsaddedtoit.MargarinesenrichedwithplantsterolsmayhelplowerLDL cholesterol. Medication may be needed Forsomepeopledietandlifestylechangesarenotenough.Highbloodcholesterollevelsoftenhave ageneticcomponent.Somepeopleinheritalteredgenesthatcausehighcholesterolandthiscan usuallynotbechangedsufficientlybylifestyleordiet. IfyouareatriskofcoronaryheartdiseaseandyourLDLcholesterolleveldoesntdropafter scrupulousattentiontodiet,yourdoctormayrecommendmedicationstoforceyourLDLlevels down.However,dietandexercisewillstillbeimportant,evenifyouaretakingmedication.Your doctormayalsoreferyoutoaspecialistwhotreatscardiovasculardisease. Where to get help Yourdoctor AnAccreditedPractisingDietitian,contacttheDietitiansAssociationofAustralia NationalHeartFoundationHeartLineTel.1300362787 Cardiovascularspecialist(yourdoctorcanreferyou)
Things to remember
This page has been produced in consultation with, and approved by:
BakerIDIHeartandDiabetesInstitute
Cholesterol
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