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(NaturalNews) When the human blood cholesterol level is higher than that which can be used by the human body, the surplus cholesterol may eventually cause strokes, and or cardiovascular distress. Medications, such as statins, prescribed to lower the blood cholesterol are themselves known to affect our bodies negatively in the long term. A healthy liver manufactures most of our daily essential cholesterol requirements. Additional cholesterol in the foods we eat is absorbed in the intestines and elevates the blood cholesterol.

According to the American Heart Association (AHA), in order to avoid having excessive blood cholesterol, most of us should limit our daily cholesterol intake from foods to 300 mg. In the event we cannot stay within the 300 mg limit, there are foods and natural supplements that can significantly lower blood cholesterol.

The AHA also recommends healthy people over the age of 2 keep their consumption of fat calories below 25 to 35% of their daily calories and saturated fat calories below 7% of their daily calories. Also naturally occurring trans fat should be less than 1% of their daily calories. For example, a person with a daily calorie count of 2,000 would limit fats to 500 to 700 calories (55.5-77.8 grams) and limit saturated fats to 140 calories (15.6 grams). Naturally occurring Trans fat would be limited to 20 calories (2.22 grams), or in the best case, eliminated altogether. There is a table of high-fat foods where the serving size limits are calculated according to your daily calories. The calculator gives your daily calorie needs based on your age, gender, height, weight, and activity level. It also provides your daily fat limits, and water requirements. To use this calculator please visit jmyarlott.com (http://jmyarlott.com/food/cholesterol) .

Excess cholesterol can only be removed through feces in the form of bile acids. This removal is facilitated with the addition of fiber and water in the diet. If fiber is absent, up to 94% of the cholesterol and bile acids are reabsorbed in the intestines and recycled. Several sources recommend at least 20-30 grams of fiber from foods per day. Soluble fiber may be better than insoluble fiber because it is readily digested; however, both types are helpful. Water is needed in the removal of fiber. The recommended amount of water is 1 ml per calorie in the daily diet. Alkaline water is preferred. For a personalized list of foods with high fiber and serving sizes that would meet your minimum requirements, please visit jmyarlott.com (http://jmyarlott.com/food/cholesterol) .

There are supplements on the market that can help lower cholesterol. For example: Cholestoff (http://jmyarlott.com/Food/health/Ch...) , Guggul, niacin, garlic and policosanol (http://emedicinal.com/articles/alte...) . Niacin can cause flushing and other discomforts therefore may be replaced with inositol hexanicotinate, a chemically equivalent substance with fewer side effects. Also consider Lipidshield (http://lipidshield.com) and Advanced Cholesterol Formula (https://secure.advancedbionutritionals.com/ab12108/index.html?c=ABWA08) .

According to eHealthMD (http://www.ehealthmd.com/library/lo...) , being physically active can help lower your cholesterol level, whether it involves everyday activities like cleaning or gardening or a structured exercise program. The calorie calculator gives the daily calorie requirements for basal metabolism and physical activity. More physical activity = more calories = higher limits on fats and the amount of water you need

There are several ways to win the cholesterol battle. Progress is made a little here and a little there. Several of the natural solutions and diet controls suggested here each could give as much cholesterol reduction as a single statin drug might provide, without the potential harmful side effects.

Recent articles have been published indicating that high cholesterol and saturated fat diets do not result in heart failure. According to those sources, diets high in dietary sugar and/or refined carbohydrates increase the risk of heart attacks and strokes. While this is an important discovery, it does not necessarily negate the recommendations as to low cholesterol diets in this article. Yes, some of the foods in our lists do contain sugar and refined carbohydrates; however the quantities may or may not be significant.

The glycemic index (GI) is a value from 0-100 for refined carbohydrates. Foods with carbohydrates that are low in GI are recommended in favor of foods with a higher GI. There is a website published by the University of Sydney (http://www.glycemicindex.com/) that has a database of foods with GI and serving sizes. It states that GI values of 55 and below are considered low and 56-69 are medium and above 69 are high.

"The GI value of a food is determined by feeding 10 or more healthy people a portion of the food containing 50 grams of digestible (available) carbohydrate and then measuring the effect on their blood glucose levels over the next two hours. For each person, the area under their two-hour blood glucose response (glucose AUC) for this food is then measured. On another occasion, the same 10 people consume an equal-carbohydrate portion of glucose sugar (the reference food) and their two-hour blood glucose response is also measured. A GI value for the test food is then calculated for each person by dividing their glucose AUC for the test food by their glucose AUC for the reference food. The final GI value for the test food is the average GI value for the 10 people, with the result then multiplied by 100, to turn it into a percentage."

The University of Sidney website lists the following recommendations for switching to a lower glycemic diet:

* Eat breakfast cereals made from oats, barley, and bran.

* Use breads with whole grains, stone-ground flour and sour dough.

* Reduce the amount of potatoes you eat.

* Enjoy all other types of fruits and vegetables.

* Use Basmati or Doongara rice.

* Enjoy pasta, noodles, and quinoa.

* Eat plenty of salad vegetables with a vinaigrette dressing.

Note the absence of animal products which contain fat and cholesterol. It may be that these recommendations are complimentary to the low fat and low cholesterol diets recommended by the AHA.

References:

Dietary Guidelines From the American Heart Association (http://dwb.unl.edu/teacher/nsf/c11/...)

The Blaylock Wellness Report February 2008 Edited by Russell L. Blaylock, M.D.

Alternative Cholesterol Treatments by Dr, Gordon Chang (http://emedicinal.com/articles/alte...)

Rice bran Oil is Shown to Drastically, Safely Reduce Cholesterol (http://www.naturalnews.com/007799.html)

Low Cholesterol Diet by Jackson Siegelbaum Gastroenterology (http://gicare.com/pated/edtot24.htm)

Cholesterol (http://innvista.com/health/nutritio...)

Know Your Fats (http:/americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=532)

List of Foods (with High Phytosterol)That Help Lower Serum Cholesterol (http://www.dietaryfiberfood.com/cho...)

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