Cholesterol - What is it?
Cholesterol…
It is such a common word yet brings many effects to our health. It is just not health it is taking away yet our heart too is in total danger. The word cholesterol is scientifically known as a soft, fat-like and waxy substance found in our bloodstream and all body’s cells. However, the good news is everyone has cholesterol. It might sound like trouble to you but this good news show it is definitely normal to have cholesterol.
Cholesterol is one of the most important elements of a healthy body. Funny as it may sound since cholesterol is not a very healthy word is used for producing cell membranes and certain hormones. On top of that, it also serves other needed bodily function which would help the body to function well. It is truly amazing how cholesterol brings prosperity to the body. Even though cholesterol is important to the body, too much of this substance might just kill more than anything in the world. A great excess of cholesterol in the blood is a major risk for one of the most important organ in our body: our heart. A few diseases you might face due to the high intake of cholesterol are coronary heart diseases which sooner or later would lead to heart attack and stroke.
The medical term for high levels or intake of cholesterol in the bloodstream is “Hypercholesterolemia”.
Cholesterol originally comes from two different sources, which are your body and also the type of food you eat everyday. 75% of the blood cholesterol is made from your liver and other cells in your body. The remaining 25% are from the food you eat everyday. There are also two types of cholesterol in your bloodstream. One is known as “Low-density lipoprotein” (LDL) and the other is known as “High-density lipoprotein” (HDL).
Low density lipoprotein or in short LDL is bad cholesterol. When too much of LDL cholesterol circulates in your bloodstream, it slowly build up inside the inner walls of the arteries which link to the heart and the brain. With other substances altogether, it forms plaque which is generally known as a thick, hard deposit that creates a possibility to narrow the arteries and make them less flexible. This unwanted condition is known as atherosclerosis. As time passes by if a clot forms, it would naturally block a narrowed artery and eventually that person would suffer facing a deadly heart attack or stroke. LDL is usually inherited by eating too much of saturated fats, Trans fats and dietary cholesterol. Sometimes, it is even inherited by their ancestors’ genes, which can’t be help.
On the other hand, High-density lipoprotein or in short HDL is good cholesterol. This cholesterol helps to protect our body against heart attack. However, a low level of HDL, which is less than 40mg/dL, increases the risk of heart diseases. By medical researchers, HDL tends to carry cholesterol away from the arteries and to the liver. On the other hand, some other medical experts tend to believe that HDL removes excess cholesterol from arterial plague, decreasing its speed in building up in the bloodstream. Whatever the fact is, we all know that HDL helps to decrease the bad cholesterol level in our bloodstream.
This is exactly where broken hearts start. They start from cholesterol. From the good ones that transformed into the bad ones when the intake of saturated fats and so on increases in the bloodstream. To mend those broken hearts is never too late. All you need to do is start from today. Instead of saturated fats, take in unsaturated fats, which are plant fats. Start living a healthy lifestyle. Eat more vegetables and fruits than meat. Exercise more and drink plenty of plain water. Sleep well everyday at least 8 hours a day.
This basic lifestyle would improve your health and lower down your cholesterol level. Your heart would thank you for this someday. If you don’t love your heart, who would? Love your heart, fight against cholesterol! Life happens only once to each human being on earth so cherish on what you have and make the best out of it everyday.