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Lower Stress, Lower Cholesterol

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Stress has a lot of different effects on the body. It can affect sleep patterns, eating habits, and your immune system — so there are a lot of good reasons to lower your stress levels. Here’s one more: the better you cope with stress, the better your levels of good (HDL) cholesterol will be. Recent research from Oregon State University took another look at how stress and hostility affect cholesterol. More than seven hundred men participated in a Normative Aging Study from OSU. The average age of the participants was sixty-five; they were evenly split between white-collar and blue-collar professions. … Continue reading →

Cut Cholesterol With Your Mind

More proof that mind really is stronger than matter: a recent study from Oregon State University found that keeping your cool can keep your cholesterol at a healthy level. More than seven hundred men took part in a study from Oregon State University focusing on staying calm in stressful situations. Those men who managed to stay calm when provoked kept their HDL (good) cholesterol levels steady. Some even experienced an elevation in HDL cholesterol levels! You definitely want to keep good cholesterol around. Men in the study who didn’t stay calm had lower HDL levels and higher triglycerides. Neither group … Continue reading →

Lower Your Risk of Heart Disease with a Good Meal

You like to eat, right? For many people, a good meal with friends or family is one of life’s finest pleasures. There are some meals that can help reduce your risk of heart disease — ensuring that you will be around for many meals with friends and family to come. Cut back on salt. Too much salt can put you on the path to high blood pressure. High blood pressure is key in causing heart disease, heart attack, and stroke. Check the sodium content of packaged foods like frozen dinners, canned soups, and snack foods. Limit your intake to 1500 … Continue reading →

Good Health News: U.S. Cholesterol is Normal

Finally — some good health news for America. For the first time in nearly fifty years, the average cholesterol level for adults is in the “ideal” range. Health experts say that a cholesterol level of 200 or lower is ideal, and the average American adult has a cholesterol level of 199. The percentage of adults with high cholesterol (240 and above) dropped from a high of twenty percent in the 1990s to sixteen percent. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control have been monitoring the national cholesterol level since 1960. In the very first year of the survey, the national average … Continue reading →

Cut Bad Cholesterol By Thirty Percent!

Have high cholesterol? You’re not alone. Here are five changes you can make to your diet to help cut your bad (LDL) cholesterol by a huge chunk. Reduce saturated fat to less than 7% of your total daily calories. For a 2000 calorie diet, that’s less than 15.5 grams of saturated fat per day. Control your calorie intake to help maintain a healthy weight. Decrease your daily cholesterol intake to less than 200 milligrams per day. Eat plenty of fiber. Between 20 and 30 grams per day. And make sure a good portion of that is soluble fiber — between … Continue reading →

Lower Cholesterol With Sterols and Stanols

Have you heard about sterols and stanols yet? These plant compounds are super healthy for your heart! Studies show that sterols and stanols can cut your risk of heart disease by twenty percent! Studies from around the world are proving the power of sterols and stanols. Adding just two grams of either sterols or stanols to your daily diet can cut your total cholesterol by as much as ten percent — often in just two weeks. That’s pretty amazing. A ten percent reduction in total cholesterol is what gives you that lowered risk of heart disease. How do they work? … Continue reading →

Acai

I’d never heard much about acai before a friend gave me a smoothie-maker for Christmas. Along with the smoothie-maker, I was given a big bag of frozen berries and some packets of acai to kick off my blender experiments. First things first: acai is pronounced ah-sigh-ee. It comes from Brazil and is all the rage in anti-aging these days. You might not think acai is much to look at — but these tiny, dark red and purple berries have huge health benefits. They’re full of essential fatty acids. They’re full of antioxidants — anthocyanins are antioxidants that lend those deep … Continue reading →

The Right Incentive Can Help You Fight Heart Disease

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Are you at risk for heart disease? Are you already suffering from some form of heart disease — like high blood pressure or high cholesterol? Here’s a more important question: what are you doing about your heart disease risk, and why? Are you losing weight, eating a healthy, balanced diet, and exercising regularly? Or are you just coasting along and not making any lifestyle changes in order to reduce your risk? Cardiologists report that having the right incentives for fighting heart disease are just as important (sometimes more important) than anything else. Look at my mom, for example. She has … Continue reading →

What Ten Minutes of Exercise Can Do for You

You’ve probably heard all the experts suggesting that you get thirty minutes of exercise, three or more days of the week. But what if it’s really hard to squeeze in a full thirty minutes at a time? Does that mean you should just not bother? NO! Even just ten minutes of exercise at a time can be good for you. Just ONE HOUR of walking in an entire week can cut your heart attack risk. Oh sure, you say — maybe by one or two percent. Nope! Cut your heart attack risk by as much as fifty percent by accumulating … Continue reading →

Foods that Increase Inflammation

A few weeks ago, I took a look at inflammation in the body and how it affects your appetite. What is inflammation? Basically, inflammation is when your immune system kicks into overdrive. Something sends your body into defense mode, and that’s a problem — your immune system cells stay activated when they aren’t needed. Inflammation can be a warning sign for heart disease (it can weaken artery walls in your heart) and other serious health issues! Inflammation can also trigger major medical problems. Certain foods can make things worse. On the positive side (if there is a positive side here), … Continue reading →