Good Cholesterol

Question: Good cholesterol? Can anyone tell me what is an ideal cholesterol for a middle aged woman? thanks.

Answer: Dyslipidemia is elevation of plasma cholesterol and/or TGs or a low HDL level that contributes to the development of atherosclerosis. Causes may be primary (genetic) or secondary. Diagnosis is by measuring plasma levels of total cholesterol, TGs, and individual lipoproteins. Treatment is dietary changes, exercise, and lipid-lowering drugs. Cholesterol -Get your LDL (bad cholesterol) levels checked at least once a year. (Target: Below 100 mg/dL). Triglycerides. (Target: Less than 150 mg/dL) Serum Cholesterol (Target: Less than 200 mg/dL) HDL (good cholesterol) (Target: More than 50 mg/dL) Eat a low-cholesterol, low-fat diet. This kind of diet includes cottage cheese, fat-free milk, fish (not canned in oil), vegetables, poultry, egg whites, and polyunsaturated oils and margarines (corn, safflower, canola, and soybean oils). Avoid foods with excess fat in them such as meat (especially liver and fatty meat), egg yolks, whole milk, cream, butter, shortening, lard, pastries, cakes, cookies, gravy, peanut butter, chocolate, olives, potato chips, coconut, cheese (other than cottage cheese), coconut oil, palm oil, and fried foods. Blood pressure. Get your blood pressure checked every visit. (Target: Below 130/80 mm Hg) Glucose (Sugar) test. Control your blood glucose & do self-monitoring as & when required. (Target: Fasting blood sugar 60-100 mg/dL; Postprandial blood sugar 2 hours after food-Less than 140 mg/dL) Health life style. Exercise regularly & stay healthy.

Question: How can I increase good cholesterol through diet and lifestyle? I know about the distinction between good and bad cholesterol, and wondered how to improve good cholesterol levels.

Answer: Many, and probably most doctors will try to dismiss this question quickly if you ask them. They have divorced themselves from diet (saying "I'm not a dietician") and other factors. Sadly, they have become puppets of the drug companies and they sling prescription pads like men in the old west slinged guns. They would probably consider you a bother or even a troublemaker for asking this. Their allegiance to the drug companies (and pleasing their drug overlords) is of paramount importance. As you may guess, I don't think a lot of most doctors.

Question: what foods have good cholesterol and what are bad cholesterol? I just want to know what foods will help lower cholesterol and what foods produce good cholesterol?

Answer: Salmon and things with Omega 3 are the best.

Question: How can I increase my good cholesterol? In my recent lipid profiling, I found out that I have a low bad cholesterol, BUT I also have a low good cholesterol? Should this concern me? How can I increase my good cholesterol? Right now it is my habit to eat every night my own style of garlic bread. I put 3 to 5 raw garlic cloves ( thinly sliced ) between two pieces of a high fiber wheat bread together with cheese spread. Does this make my good cholesterol lower than what is normal? Please help help help. Thanks.

Answer: just stick to eating only vegetables and fruit and walk briskly everyday. do not eat anything with fat in it, except maybe salmon. what is important is the TC/HDL Ratio- below 4.0 is good. even with low ldl is not good enough. your hdl should be above 40 or higher. Your triglyceride level should be below 100 good luck you can do it.

Question: How can one increase his good cholesterol? I have a total cholestral of 117, LDL 58, HDL 38 and Triglycrides 105. I am concerned with my good cholesterol (HDL) being very low. Please give your comments.

Answer: eat oatmeal and exercise. mostly exercise. Thats' what I was told was the only way to bring that up.good luck

Question: There are two types of Cholesterol: Good and Bad. How will i know if the food im eating contains good choles? I want to know what should i look on the "nutrition facts" label terms of looking for food that are promoting good cholesterol.

Answer: Dietery cholesterol isn't "good" or "bad", it's the carrier of cholesterol in the bloodstream that is good and bad. HDL is the good cholesterol, LDL is the bad cholesterol. Dietery cholesterol has gotten a bad rap over the years due to outdated research and poor science. The fact is, we need some cholesterol from foods in order for the body to maintain a healthy cholesterol output. The liver produces cholesterol and if the body senses it's not getting cholesterol in the diet, it will produce more of its own cholesterol, often the bad type. Though diet and exercise do play a role, unfortunately cholesterol levels are chiefly determined by genetics and medication is the only thing beyond diet and exercise you can do to reduce it. That being said, eating clean and having smart food choices will help. Low GI carbs with lots of soluble fiber, moderate intake of polyunsaturated fats and other fats, and lean proteins is optimal. Regular exercise will also help.

Question: How to increase the HDL or good cholesterol? My HDL Cholesterol (good cholesterol) is too low 0.55. Bad cholesterol was high but now it has gone down to 3.18, which is almost nearly optimal. Can anyone tell me how to increase the good cholesterol or HDL? My doctor had asked me to take cholesterol medications; she had mentioned that the cholesterol medication wouldn’t help in increasing LDL. Any suggestions? I have been taking Omega 3 regularly for the last 3-6 months.

Answer: Surprisingly fat is not the culprit. Its actually simple carbs that keeps your HDLs low and your LDL high. Basically simple carbs cause an insulin response. This signals the body that your are not comsuming animal protein/fat and the liver shuts down the HDL production that scavenges off the excess cholesterol from the meat. If you eat a diet that is mostly lean protein and complex carbs, the HDL production increases and LDL production drops. Cholesterol is necessary for hormone production and skin integrity. Eating a diet high in simple carbs that gives a insulin response that signals the body that animal protein and fat is not being consumed and the body produces it own, LDL. Cut back on simple carbs, eat lean protein and complex carbs. Be consistent in exercise. Omega 3 are good and garlic like wise. Note: LDL/HDL are transports for the cholesterol. The density denotes the cholesterol roll.

Question: How do you boost your good cholesterol? My bad cholesterol is good, but my good cholesterol has gone down, why is that and how do I boost it?

Answer: orange juice helped 21%!! eat healthy and exercise is key :)

Question: How can I raise my good cholesterol? My doctor said my overall cholesterol was low (174), but my "good" cholesterol was kind of low and could be better. When I asked him what I could do to elevate those numbers he just recommended proper diet and execise. I do that already. Any other ideas? Do any of you know of any particualr exercises or types of foods that might help bring these numbers up?

Answer: It's demonstrated that the more effective way of increasing your "good cholesterol" or HDL is exercising, as its produced by your own body and there arent really any types of food that can increase it.

Question: How do you raise good cholesterol? My nurse told me my good cholesterol is to lot and I need to raise it up.

Answer: You can raise your good cholestrol or HDL through aeorobic exercise,by losing weight,quitting smoking,cutty out the trans fatty acids,alchohol,(one or two drinks per day can significantly increase HDL levels),Increasing the monounsaturated fats in your diet,adding soluble fats and fibre in your diet. Don't try hard to get a good amount of HDL.It will make you sick.You will get it through a good and healthy diet.

Question: Bloodwork showed my triglycerides to be 154 despite very good cholesterol numbers. Is this at all worrisome? I used an at home kit that showed my total cholesterol was 149, HDL 67, LDL 49, and triglycerides 154. I know the HDL and LDL levels are good, but the triglycerides are generally considered borderline high. Everywhere seems to state that high triglycerides and low HDL are correlated, but that doesn't seem to be the case here.

Answer: Don't worry. Your figures are really good. Sometimes your dietary habits can influence the results. However, yours are really good. Keep them like this!

Question: Question about low good cholesterol and weight loss? Lemme ask ya all something. My work gives us a discount on our health insurance if we have a health assessment. They take our blood and then check our sugar and cholesterol. My bad cholesterol was great but my good cholesterol was low. Could that affect my weight loss? I've been thinking about printing it out and making an appt to see my family dr so I can show him the report. What's your opinion?

Answer: No, it won't affect your weight, one way or the other. Unfortunately, HDL, your 'good' cholesterol, is often very hard to get up. It's usually a problem for men, not women. I think some of the statin drugs used to treat high blood fat levels may raise it some. It's been pretty well documented that regular, moderate exercise is the most reliable way of raising it. Mine went up dramatically, from 28 to 52, after I started regular cycling and eating a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast every morning. Not sure about the oatmeal for HDL, but it has been documented as a way to lower total cholesterol. Doctor? Well, that's your call.

Question: I am told I have too much good cholesterol How can that be? I had my blood tested and the "bad" cholestrol was ok but I had too much "good' cholesterol. I work out 4-6 times a week and I eat carefully. I was told the 5 pieces of fruit a day might make the good cholesterol to high. How can I have too much if it is good?

Answer: Normal values for good cholesterol High density Lipoprotein - 30-80 mg/dl I don't see any problem with that (having high good cholesterol)

Question: What foods contain the most amount of "Good Cholesterol"? I've heard rumors that Good Cholesterol can get rid of some amounts of bad cholesterol. Does good cholesterol have any other pros and cons?

Answer: What you're looking for are foods with high monounsaturated fats: Avocados Nuts Sunflower Seeds Peanut Butter (the natural kind) Olive Oil Peanut Oil Canola Oil Grapeseed Oil Flax seeds High Oiled Fish: Salmon, Sardines, Mackeral, Calamari (squid) and other fish with a high Omega 3 fatty acid content.,...... Those are a few that flew into my brain......I'll think of more...... Christopher This is what I found on the Inet: What are monounsaturated fats? From a chemical standpoint, monounsaturated fats are simply fats that have one double-bonded (unsaturated) carbon in the molecule. Monounsaturated fats are typically liquid at room temperature but start to turn solid when chilled. Olive oil is an example of a type of oil that contains monounsaturated fats. Back to top How do monounsaturated fats affect my health? Monounsaturated fats can have a beneficial effect on your health… when eaten in moderation and when used to replace saturated fats or trans fats. Monounsaturated fats can help reduce bad cholesterol levels in your blood and lower your risk of heart disease and stroke. They also provide nutrients to help develop and maintain your body’s cells. Monounsaturated fats are also typically high in vitamin E, an antioxidant vitamin most Americans need more of. Back to top Are monounsaturated fats better for me than saturated fats or trans fats? Yes. Monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats can have a positive effect on your health, when eaten in moderation. The bad fats – saturated fats and trans fats – can negatively affect your health. Back to top Which foods contain monounsaturated fats? Most foods contain a combination of different fats. Examples of foods high in monounsaturated fats include vegetable oils such as olive oil, canola oil, peanut oil, sunflower oil and sesame oil. Other sources include avocados, peanut butter, and many nuts and seeds. Back to top Are monounsaturated fats lower in calories? Monounsaturated fats – like all fats – contain nine calories per gram. Back to top How much monounsaturated fat should I eat in a day? The fats in the foods you eat should not total more than 25–35 percent of the calories you eat in a given day… and, for good health, the majority of those fats should be monounsaturated or polyunsaturated. Eat foods containing monounsaturated fats and/or polyunsaturated fats instead of foods that contain saturated fats and/or trans fats. For practical tips, learn how to Live Fat-Sensibly.

Question: How would being on a vegan diet affect one's good cholesterol level? I'm just curious, I know it would reduce the overall cholesterol of a person but if their good cholesterol was borderline to begin with, how would it affect it?

Answer: As you may have heard, the profile for heat disease is not really based on total cholesterol, but rather the ratio of HDL to total cholesterol. An even better indicator is the ratio of HDL to triglycerides. You can limit triglycerides by avoiding processed carbs like refined sugar, white rice, and white flour products. But what about raising HDL? One of the best ways of increasing HDL is from saturated fat. Since many sources of saturated fat are from animals. That's obviously a non-starter for a vegan. The smart vegan finds it in virgin coconut oil. It is a plant based source rich in healthy saturated fat. Many people are under the impression that saturated fat is bad. Until recently, I was one of them. A recent incident in my life forced me to re-examine the types of foods I was consuming. This led me to the important discovery that saturated fats are actually a very healthy type of food. I now make sure I consume a sufficient amount of saturated fat in my daily diet.

Question: Can anyone tell me a couple of good foods to add to my diet if I want to raise my good cholesterol? I have dropped my overall cholesterol by 58 points but my good cholesterol is still a little low. What are the best ways to raise this up?

Answer: You have done well to get your cholestral down that much, so you must be eating the right foods, like omega 3 rich fish (salmon), and flax seed suppliments etc. I have a lipid problem as well and I was told that one of he best ways to raise you good cholestral is through exercise. So keep eating the right stuff and get into an exercise regime that suits your lifestyle and physical ability. Always check with your Doctor before starting an exercise program to make sure you are healthy enough. Good Luck.