Home: |Vitamins & Supplements: |By Condition: |Cholesterol Care
Ellen Kamhi tells us that the word “cholesterol” has a negative connotation in modern culture. However, this important fatty substance, produced naturally by the liver, is an essential component of every cell membrane in the body, and is used by the body for synthesizing pregnenolone, the precursor of all endogenous steroid hormones.
During chronic stress, the body shunts an increased fraction of pregnenolone toward the production of cortisol. As pregnenolone levels decrease, the liver manufactures more cholesterol trying to meet the demand for pregnenolone, and so raises cholesterol levels in the blood.
As a result, the indiscriminate reduction of blood cholesterol levels without a holistic understanding of why they may be elevated can be detrimental to hormonal balance and health.
The blood contains cholesterol in several different forms, including low-density-lipoprotein (LDL) or “bad” cholesterol and high-density- lipoprotein (HDL) or “good” cholesterol.
Conventional recommendations for cardiovascular health include an HDL cholesterol level above 60 mg/dL, since every percent increase in this form of cholesterol is accompanied by a corresponding decrease of 3 to 4% in heart attack risk. LDL cholesterol should be kept below 100 mg/dL, and the total blood cholesterol level should be no higher than 200 mg/dL, since a total cholesterol above 240 mg/dL increases the overall risk of coronary heart disease (CHD).
Treatment for high LDL or total cholesterol or both, includes recommending a healthy diet and regular exercise, often accompanied by a prescription for a statin drug that interferes with the endogenous hepatic synthesis of cholesterol. Statin drugs may also be effective in protecting against coronary heart disease through non-lipid-related mechanisms of action, which go under the general allopathic rubric of "pleiotropic effects".
Statin drugs may have undesirable effects, including liver damage and the depletion of certain essential nutrients, such as coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), an essential factor in oxidative metabolism, which may be linked to muscle debilities among some users of statin drugs.
Statin drugs do not increase “good” or HDL-cholesterol, nor address other risk factors for heart disease that may in fact be more important than an elevated cholesterol level, and which include a low antioxidant status; increased blood levels of the amino acid homocysteine, recently identified as an independent risk factor for CHD ; low levels of essential fatty acids (EFAs), consumption of trans hydrogenated fats; mineral and flavonoid deficiencies; smoking; inactivity; obesity; the effects of infectious agents ; and Type “A” behavior, with its sense of urgency, impatience, and competitiveness.
Various natural agents can help reduce undesirable levels of blood cholesterol. They may be used along with a healthy diet, exercise, and a stress-reduction program.
In many cases these supplements have multiple mechanisms of action that support overall cardiovascular health, in addition to reducing cholesterol levels. These mechanisms of action include decreasing the oxidation of LDL-cholesterol—an important factor in atherosclerosis, and decreasing platelet aggregation, endothelial damage, and smooth-muscle-cell proliferation.
Although natural cholesterol-lowering agents may not be free of adverse effects, the incidence and severity of these are usually substantially lower than with pharmaceutical agents.
Among the many dietary supplements that can be useful for cholesterol control are Omega 3 fatty acids, Policosanol, Niacin, Red Yeast Rice & Co Q10. Other supplements to consider are garlic, additional fiber, Vitamin D3 & Vitamin B Complex
Dr Mercola on Cholesterol
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Cholesterol Care
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