Cholesterol: the silent assassin

Learn how to reduce your bad cholesterol levels.

Not all cholesterol is bad, but the one that has negative effects on the human body tends to be lethal. Low density cholesterol has more of a tendency to accumulate on the walls of the capillaries and thereby block the passage of blood, which may result in a stroke or heart attack. At the same time, the platelets try to eliminate cholesterol, “ingesting it” and transforming it into toxins that pollute the body.

For some people, high cholesterol levels are genetic and only treatable with medication, but most of the population is able to control it if through less drastic measures. One of the steps to keep cholesterol monitored is a frequent blood test, once or twice a year, and consultation with a doctor to help you understand what’s most suitable to your lifestyle in order to low cholesterol levels in the blood. But there are other things you can do to keep the problem away from your well-being.

Changing diet is one of the most effective ways to reduce the presence of cholesterol in blood vessels. For example, eating fiber and vegetables in spite of red meat is a safe choice. Moreover, results are evident when all kinds of fat and sugar are reduced. But there is an exception, a saving fat: omega-3, which is present in fish such as salmon or mackerel, among others.

In fact, a regulated and balanced diet is half way to take care of this problem. The same about exercise: practicing sports two or three times per week reduces the risk of heart attack and other coronary disease by 25 per cent.

Although cholesterol is a worrying factor, it is also a fact that we are much better while we are now a more conscious civilization than, for example, 50 years ago. At that time, more than 33 percent of the population had very high cholesterol levels; today, the value drops to 16 percent. Perhaps soon we can eradicate the problem. Hope remains – as should good habits.