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You can't live without cholesterol.
Cholesterol is fundamental for life and occurs naturally in your body. Cholesterol forms a basic part of all our cells. We all need it to help digest food and to produce hormones and Vitamin D. The fact is, cholesterol is absolutely essential to human health.
The cholesterol in your blood is called "blood cholesterol".
Most of it is produced in the body.
About 80% of the cholesterol in your blood is there because your body produced it in the liver. Only about 20% of your blood cholesterol is influenced by what you eat.
HDL "good cholesterol" in your blood is actually healthy for you.
HDL cholesterol is made in your body. You can't eat it! In order to travel through your blood, cholesterol joins with protein to form a lipoprotein. High density lipoprotein (HDL) is the so-called "good cholesterol" because it takes cholesterol back to the liver where it is removed from the body. Low density lipoprotein (LDL) or "bad cholesterol" is also made by your body. It is not good for you because it can result in fatty deposits which clog up your arteries so that your blood cannot flow properly. If your doctor orders a cholesterol test, try to find out your ratio of HDL "good cholesterol" to LDL "bad cholesterol". The higher the ratio of HDL to LDL, the better.
Your family history is the single most important risk factor influencing blood cholesterol levels.
The cholesterol in foods is called dietary cholesterol. It has little effect on most people's blood cholesterol.
Cholesterol in foods has little effect on blood cholesterol levels for most people. If you eat more cholesterol than you need, your body maintains a balance by producing less. When it comes to diet, research indicates that it is the excess fat and not dietary cholesterol that has the greatest impact on your blood cholesterol levels.
A high fat diet increases your blood cholesterol levels.
The National Institute of Nutrition and The Canadian Dietetic Association both agree that total fat intake and, in particular, saturated fat can contribute to higher blood cholesterol levels in some people. In order to reduce your blood cholesterol levels, you need to reduce the total amount of fat that you eat, especially saturated fat. (Health Canada recommends that we limit our total fat intake to no more than 30% of our daily calories.)
"Cholesterol-free" foods can be high in fat.
Foods that boast a "cholesterol-free" label can in fact be high in fat. A handful of "cholesterol-free" potato chips (28 g) contains about 10 grams of fat while three chocolate chip cookies give you about 8 grams of fat. To find out what you are really getting in a food, check the nutrition label.
Trans-fatty acids increase blood cholesterol levels.
Trans-fatty acids are the fats that form when vegetable oils are hydrogenated. Hydrogenation is the process that keeps liquid oil solid at room temperature. It is hard to tell if you are eating these fats since they are not currently listed on food labels. Hydrogenated fats are found in some margarines, shortening, french fries, doughnuts, pastries, cookies, crackers, chips and other processed foods. Trans-fatty acids act like saturated fats and can increase LDL "bad cholesterol" levels. And they can also decrease HDL "good cholesterol" levels. The best way to avoid trans-fatty acids is to limit foods containing hydrogenated oils.
Most people can best keep their blood cholesterol in a healthy range with a lower-fat, higher-fibre diet and by having an active lifestyle.
Follow these tips and you can easily eat less fat, especially saturated fat and trans-fatty acids.
Fat Tips:
- Choose lower-fat foods from each of the four food groups in Canada's Food Guide.
- Have chips, crackers, cookies, croissants, doughnuts and other baked goods and deep-fat fried foods which contain hydrogenated vegetable oils less often.
- Enjoy vegetables without adding extra fat such as butter, margarine, cream sauces or salad dressing.
- Try skim or 1% milk, low-fat yogurt, or cottage cheese and lower-fat cheeses (less than 15% Milk Fat).
- Choose leaner meat, poultry and fish. Trim excess fat from meat and remove skin from poultry. Buy canned fish packed in water instead of oil and reduced-fat deli meats, lean ham or turkey.
- Try lower-fat ways of cooking foods such as baking, broiling, microwaveing or using a non-stick frying pan. Increasing your intake of fibre is another very important dietary change for you to make. Certain types of fibre have been shown to help reduce fatty build up on artery walls and to help lower blood cholesterol levels.
Fibre Tips:
- Follow Canada's Food Guide and have 5-12 servings of grain products and 5-10 servings of vegetables and fruit each day.
- Choose a variety of whole grain breads and cereals made with wheat, oats or rye.
- Eat more vegetables such as green peas, potatoes (with skin), corn, carrots, broccoli, tomatoes and dark yellow squash.
- Enjoy a variety of fruit including apples, dries apricots, berries, pears, prunes, raisins and oranges.
- Have baked beans, lentils, chickpeas, kidney beans or pinto beans more often.
- Make meatless meals based on hearty grains, vegetables and beans, peas or lentils.
Many foods, such as eggs, that contain cholesterol can be part of a healthy diet.
Dairy products, meat and eggs all contain cholesterol, yet they are all included in Canada's Food Guideas part of a balanced and healthy diet. If you deny yourself these foods, you could miss out on some important sources of nutrients such as calcium, protein, iron, zinc and B-vitamins. The Food Guide says it's important to enjoy a variety of foods from each food group everyday, while choosing lower-fat foods more often. |
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