Cholesterol is a true fear of every day’s diet thanks to a wide range of educational programs and advertisements. Cholesterol is the most common type of fat in humans and animals, and is found in a wide variety of food including animal meat and artificial fat. Cholesterol is usually feared owing to its role in many diseases including heart attacks, strokes, and problems in your blood vessel. Cholesterol does that through narrowing of the blood vessels. It deposits under their outer layer and narrows their “caliber”. This narrowing causes blood to flow more slowly to some tissues and organs and then shutting them down completely afterwards.
Heart attacks and strokes are generally considered to be the leading causes of mortality worldwide,
Is all Cholesterol bad?
Cholesterol is needed for many functions in the body and is formed inside the body or taken from outside sources through food. It is found under the skin and makes up a layer called subcutaneous layer. This layer is exposed to sunlight and produces a vitamin called vitamin D. Vitamin D is needed to make your bones hard through calcium. In addition, this layer protects your body from losing heat and keeps your internal temperature stable. Cholesterol also helps you maintain a supply of energy while fasting. There are different kinds of cholesterol in the body, and the most common ones are the low-density lipoproteins or “LDL” and high-density lipoproteins or “HDL”.
High density lipoprotein is considered a “good” cholesterol and the low density one is seen as the “bad “cholesterol. This is because the low density lipoprotein is the one which is deposited in blood vessels causing the disease known as atherosclerosis and blockage of such blood vessels, while the high density one helps reduce the level of the bad cholesterol.
Foods to lower Cholesterol
Food is the main source of cholesterol in most people, and the artery-clogging disease can be easily avoided with good control of diet and regular exercise. There is no food that absolutely reduce cholesterol, but certain foods can help your cholesterol level go down including:
1) Whole Grains
Most grains sold and baked into white bread have their outer layer removed, and it is in that layer that most vitamins and fibers are found. Grains with their outer layer preserved are known as whole grains and are the healthiest to be consumed. Fibers found in the outer layer help reduce the absorption of cholesterol in food in your guts.
Slowing the absorption of cholesterol allows for more of it to be excreted outside of the body instead of into your bloodstream. Whole grains can be found in brown bread and rice, quinoa, and barley. Be sure to check that the bread you consume and buy from your local bakery or supermarket has enough whole grains.