Take Heart on Cholesterol.
Cholesterol can be both good & bad, so it's important to learn
what cholesterol is, how it affects your health and how to
manage your blood cholesterol levels. Understanding cholesterol
will help you take better care of your heart, so you can lead a
healthier life and reduce your risks of heart attack and stroke.
What is cholesterol?
Cholesterol is a soft, white, waxy substance found in the
bloodstream and in all the body's cells. Despite its reputation,
cholesterol is essential to life! The body needs cholesterol for
digesting dietary fats, making hormones, building cell walls,
and other important processes.
However, our liver makes all the cholesterol our body needs.
Consuming fatty foods can lead to a high level of cholesterol in
the blood which is easily deposited in the arteries and
narrowing the diameter and impeding blood flow to the heart and
other organs, creating a major risk factor for coronary heart
disease.
Cardiovascular disease is still Australia's greatest health
problem affecting over 3.6 million Australians. One Australian
dies every 10 minutes of heart disease, stroke or blood vessel
disease. According to the National Heart Foundation more than 6
million adults aged 25 and over have high cholesterol levels.
Certain risk factors increase your risk of developing heart
disease - factors such as being over weight, smoking, excessive
alcohol intake, diabetes, insufficient physical activity and
high blood pressure.
What can we do to improve our heart and overall health?
The good news is that cholesterol can be brought under control
by lifestyle changes - such as diet, losing weight, and an
exercise program.
* Achieve and maintain a healthy body weight - The more you
weigh, the more your body stores fat and cholesterol.
* Eat more fruit & vegetables. Include soy products into your
diet. Eat more seafood (omega 3 fats are very healthy and good
for your heart). Choose wholegrain breads and cereals.
* Be more active - walk for 20 minutes a day
* Dairy products are a good source of calcium, while meat, fish
and poultry are a good source of iron. Ensure you choose low fat
dairy products and lean meat cuts.
* Avoid take-away foods high in fat.
(Some risk factors, eg heredity, cannot be controlled & need
medication to manage.)
As we cut down our intake on foods with saturated fats, some
gaps appear in our nutritional intake, resulting in the need to
add high quality nutritional supplements to our diets. Also,
cutting back on our red meat intake can lead to a diet deficient
in protein. Including some soy protein in our diets will help
protect against heart disease as well as help to maintain
healthy protein consumption.
If you need to lose some weight, look for a program that has
adequate daily protein without the high calories and saturated
fats associated with animal products. Ongoing personal support
from a coach will help you achieve your goals and helps to keep
you on track.
If you need to add some more exercise into your day - try simple
things like using the stairs, parking further from the
supermarket and walking to the local shop for your daily
newspaper. Key point here is to add more activity into your day
and not put yourself under the pressure of a formal exercise
program at a gym. If you need or want something more formal,
then by all means, join a gym or a sporting team. You could take
up golf, get together with a couple of friends and go for a 20
minute walk a couple of times a week - great time to catch up
and get more active! Find something that interests YOU. Make
exercise fun!
And finally, make a commitment to yourself to improve your
health. After all that is what truly dictates the quality of
life we experience. Without our health, we are consumed with
doctors visits, medications and restrictions. Take control, take
heart, and live a full and healthy life.
About the author:
Dee Britton is a Health & Wellness Coach specialising in weight
management & nutrition. Personal support, recipes, hints & tips,
newsletters + lots more to help you reach your goal weight.
Online health profile & free weight loss consultation at
http://www.weightloss-2day.net
