Fwd: Weekly fitness tip - Keep your cholesterol levels in check

[Sharad Puranik]

Keep your cholesterol levels in check

(By Lisa Sarah John, Courtesy Bangalore Times, Dec 10, 2007)

Cholesterol is a substance produced in all animals and humans, that helps the production of cell membrane and hormones. It also helps digestion. Although cholesterol is produced in the body, about 15-20 per cent is brought in from the food you eat. Cholesterol attaches itself to a protein in the blood to travel to the cells. This combination is known as lipoprotein. Of the many lipoproteins two are most important — LDL and HDL.

HDL — high density lipoprotein — is the happy cholesterol. HDL is very good for the body, since it carries cholesterol away from the heart. LDL — low density lipoprotein — is the sad cholesterol, simply because it carries cholesterol towards the heart.

If we want to stay healthy, we need to make sure that the total cholesterol in the blood is less than 200mg/dl. We also need to see that LDL is below 100mg/dl. On the other hand, we must ensure that HDL is above 40mg/dl.

Usually, cholesterol problems or heart diseases is a genetic disorder. But it can also be acquired by just overeating food rich in fat like deep-fried dishes, ghee, Indian sweets, rich bakery food, cheese, paneer and non-vegetarian food. Obesity leads to heart disease and lack of physical exercise and sedentary jobs with long working hours and high stress definitely leads to sad cholesterol values.

To tackle this in a positive way I would advice all men and women who are 25 years and above to do a blood test
and determine what their happy cholesterol value is. The minimum range is 35-45mg/dl. And to raise this value, we need to —

Be active throughout the day. Use the stairs and walk while you talk on your phone. Take out 25-30 mins for a brisk walk every day. Eat more fibre like raw veggies in the form of salads, with lunch as well as dinner. Eat two fresh fruits daily (not juices) and eat whole cereals at dinner in the form of atta (whole wheat flour rotis) or bread for dinner.

You can take drugs to reduce the total cholesterol and lower the LDL levels in the blood but there is no short cut and no easy way out to build good HDL. You simply have to work hard. The good news, however, is that if you regularly exercise and eat fibre-rich food, we can raise the value from 45mg/dl to 55 and then even to 65mg/dl.

And those with a family history of heart diseases, can detect if they are carrying the heart disease genes when they do a blood test and find that the HDL value is only in the 30-40 range. They can then take precautions and be cautious about their diet, regular with their exercise and prevent the development of the disease.

 

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