The Dangers of Low Cholesterol
Sunshine sharing

Recognizing that heart disease is a leading cause of death, many people are anxious to take steps to prevent it. Unfortunately, they're being led to believe that lowering their cholesterol will help. This newsletter clears up the misinformation about cholesterol, saturated fat and heart disease and provides tips for prevention that actually work.

Cholesterol and Heart Diseases
After all this you may wonder, what is the connection between cholesterol and heart disease? Well, it is true that cholesterol is a factor in the build-up of arterial plaque, but cholesterol, by itself does not cause arterial plaque to form. In order to make cholesterol stick to the arteries, it has to become oxidized. In other words, it has to suffer free radical damage.

Oxidized cholesterol is not found in natural foods like butter, eggs and red meat. However, when eggs, milk and butter are processed and turned into powdered eggs, milk, cheese and so forth the cholesterol oxidizes.Thus, oxidized cholesterol is only found in processed foods, such as cake mixes. Cholesterol can also become oxidized due to a lack of antioxidant nutrients or environmental toxins. Cigarettes, for example, are loaded with toxic chemicals, which is why smokers have a higher risk for cardiovascular disease.

Once cholesterol is oxidized and becomes sticky it can attach to damaged areas of the endothelium lining of the arteries. This triggers an immune reaction, which can become a chronic inflammatory "fire" in the lining of your arteries. This is where the arterial plaque that causes heart disease comes from.

The major thing to remember here is that it doesn't matter if your cholesterol levels are high or low. What matters is avoiding oxidized cholesterol, preventing body cholesterol from becoming oxidized and preventing arterial damage from toxins and infection.

Problems with statins
Roughly $15 billion of statin drugs (used to lower cholesterol) are sold annually and are taken by people who want to reduce their risk of heart disease. Some studies suggest that statin drugs provide a slight reduction in the risk of heart disease. However, before taking them, there are a few things you should know. First, statins can have horrible side effects.They can contribute to memory loss, peripheral neuropathy and liver damage. They can decrease sex drive and even cause infertility. Side effects include upset stomach, headache, fatigue, skin rash, difficulty concentrating, erectile dysfunction, difficulty sleeping and nightmares.
Statins block the ability of the liver to manufacture cholesterol. Unfortunately, the pathway they block is the same one that produces Coenzyme Q10, a powerful antioxidant that helps prevent cardiovascular inflammation and is involved in energy production.
Worst of all, statins increase your risk of dying from other causes, such as cancer. So, they don't improve quality of life or life span in most people.
Secondly,research also suggests that their benefit is not because of their cholesterol-reducing action, but rather an anti-inflammatory action. And, there are much safer ways to reduce inflammation than statins, so it makes little sense for most people to use them. If a person is going to stay on a statin drug, however,it is wise for them to take Co-QI0 daily to reduce side effects.
An alternative to statins is Red Yeast Rice, which is the natural source for the cholesterol-lowering compounds found in statin drugs. However, Co-Q10 should also be taken with the Red Yeast Rice because it blocks the same metabolic pathways in the liver as statins drugs.

If you must reduce cholesterol
The most natural way to reduce cholesterol is to increase your consumption of good fats (like butter, olive oil and coconut oil) and fiber. Remember that most of the cholesterol in your body is used to make bile to digest fats. Adding fiber to the diet causes the cholesterol in the bile to be bound and removed from the body.

Loclo and Nature's Three are both fiber supplements that have been formulated to help reduce cholesterol. You could also try Fat Grabbers, which are capsules containing fiber that binds to bile salts.

Garlic is also useful for improving cholesterol levels. A University of Pennsylvania study found that garlic extract lowered participants' total cholesterol levels by 7% and decreased their LDL levels by 10%. More importantly, research shows it helps lower blood pressure and can help to prevent, and possibly even reverse arteriosclerosis. Garlic also fights the infections that can damage arteries, creating areas where cholesterol can stick. Besides including garlic in your diet by eating it in your foods, you can also take High Potency Garlic tablets.

In the form of nicotinic acid, niacin can increase your level of HDL cholesterol by 25 to 35 percent (more than any drug), while lowering LDL cholesterol. So, if the fiber isn't lowering the cholesterol fast enough take one niacin tablet once or twice a day.

Other options include Cholester-Reg II, which contains a variety of nutritional substances that may be helpful in lowering cholesterol and improving circulatory health. Many people have also found Guggul Lipids helpful for reducing cholesterol.

The Dangers Of Low Cholesterol
Before we discuss practical ways to reduce one's risk of heart disease,we do want to warn people about the dangers of low cholesterol, since it is a problem that is seldom addressed in modern medicine. Low cholesterol is associated with an increased risk of cancer, stroke, suicide, and death from coronary heart disease. Low cholesterol is also associated with infertility, erectile dysfunction, increased risk of infection, and reduced protection from neurotoxins, mercury and heavy metals.

The most critical problem is that the research shows that lowering your cholesterol does not decrease your risk of heart disease, but it does double your risk of dying from a heart attack if you have one. In fact, there is evidence that suggests that if you do have a heart attack you are more likely to survive it if your cholesterol is higher.

Real Prevention
Of course, the only reason we're discussing cholesterol is because of its supposed link to cardiovascular disease. If that's your goal, stop focusing on cholesterol and start focusing on reducing inflammation and oxidative stress in your body. This is the real key to avoiding heart disease.

A healthy diet is the place to begin. Start by eating a lot of vegetables, especially green leafy vegetables like kale, mustard and collard greens, spinach, Swiss chard, bok choy and,dark green leaf or romaine lettuce. It's also good to include some antioxidant-rich fruits, such as blueberries and other berries, pomegranates and apples. You may want to supplement with Thai-Go, a beverage rich in natural antioxidants.

Do an oil change by dropping margarine, shortening and processed vegetable oils from your diet. Use olive oil, coconut oil and butter instead. Supplementing your diet with Super Omega-3 EPA and the fat-soluble vitamin D3 and vitamin K2 will also be helpful, as these nutrients reduce cardiovascular inflammation. They can also inhibit the oxidation of cholesterol. Krill Oil with K-2 also contains omega-3 fatty acids.

Finally, severely reduce or eliminate all refined carbohydrates from your diet. While eating cholesterol-rich foods like butter and eggs and consuming naturally occurring saturated fats has NOT been correlated with increased risk of heart disease,high insulin levels have been demonstrated to be a major risk factor. Simple carbohydrates, like refined sugar, corn syrup and white flour spike insulin levels, increasing insulin resistance, which increases inflammation, contributes to high blood pressure and dramatically increases your risk of heart disease. So, if you really want to reduce your risk of heart disease (and be more healthy overall), say no to sugar and say yes to good fats and complex carbohydrates.

Another step you can take to reduce your risk of heart disease is to avoid environmental toxins as much as possible. Chlorine, bromides, solvents and other chemicals will not only increase inflammation in your body, they may cause cholesterol to oxidize. Since you can't avoid all toxins, it also helps to do a periodic cleanse such as CleanStart or the Tiao He Cleanse.

Exercise reduces your risk of cardiovascular disease and helps balance your blood sugar levels at the same time. Stress is also a big factor in heart disease because stress contributes to chronic inflammation. So, learn some good stress management skills. If you're under a lot of stress, consider taking some adaptogens like Nervous Fatigue Formula or Eleuthero Root.