What Everyone Ought to Know

postitDo you know your cholesterol numbers?

You get the report from the doctor, and you look at the numbers. Do you have any idea what they mean? They should speak to you. Some of them ought to shout at you to do something differently, or you will end up dying twelve years earlier than your time. And there is one of those numbers that tells you, that with every mouthful of certain foods, you are laying another brick in building plaque in your arteries — somewhere in your body. Here are thoughts about the three basic numbers. The first number will be your Total Cholesterol number. For simplicity sake, we will state it should be below 200. The total number is comprised of both good as well as bad cholesterol, but the great majority of the number represents the bad. That is why a high Total Cholesterol number means you obviously have too much bad cholesterol in your system.

On your report, you will see LDL Cholesterol, which stands for low-density lipoprotein. You can remember the “L” in LDL as standing for “lethal”, because that is exactly what it is. LDL is the bad. This is the one that causes the damage to every artery you have. This is the number you have to get lower at all cost. Your LDL cholesterol should be 99 or below. Think of the LDL cholesterol particles floating around in your blood stream as little splinters that get into the walls of your arteries. Those splinters cause a similar inflammatory reaction as a splinter that gets under the skin of your finger. Once the splinter enters, there is a pouring in of fluid, and an army of special cells that attack the foreign body. The arterial wall becomes a battleground. There are certain foods that cause the LDL particles to increase in number. It is imperative you must develop a lifestyle of eating that avoids those lethal foods.

The good is the HDL cholesterol. The “H” stands for “hero”. There are not as many HDL cholesterol particles in your bloodstream, but they are very protective of your arteries. Think of the HDL as policemen riding around in their police car. They pull up to where some LDL cholesterol splinters have gotten into the wall of an artery, and the HDL pulls them into their patrol car and transports them off to the liver, where they are disposed of. You want your HDL cholesterol to be at least 35. The higher; the better.

The primary cause of an elevated LETHAL LDL cholesterol number is due to the foods you eat. Do you have any idea, which six food types contain the most fats that cause your LDL cholesterol to increase?

The primary factors that can elevate the HERO HDL cholesterol number are exercise and weight loss.  Do you have any idea, how much exercise and weight loss is required to increase your HDL cholesterol?

Learn more about living younger longer, by reading Prescription for Life today.

 

 

 

 

 

“Know” photo courtesy of Stuart Miles at freedigitalphotos.net