Shouldn’t you be the “picture of health” as a young adult? Guess it shouldn’t come as a surprise that looks are deceiving.

Canadian researchers presented study results recently at the 2011 Canadian Cardiovascular Congress regarding their study of 168 adults between the ages of 18 and 35 years-old.

Study participants had no family history of heart disease, nor any other known risk factors, such as diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or smoking.

Guess what? Researchers found a “staggering” number of participants to have atherosclerosis, which is a build-up of plaque along artery walls. Almost half of participants had signs of atherosclerosis – 48%.

Height, weight, body mass index (BMI), and waist circumference were recorded for all participants. MRI scans measured both subcutaneous (fat under the skin) and visceral fat (fat around vital organs).

These measurements found many participants to have greater waist circumferences and higher levels of visceral fat within the chest and abdomen. These high levels of visceral fat increase risk of suffering a heart attack or stroke at some point in their lives. It’s this high level of visceral fat that is likely contributing to the early signs of atherosclerosis.

These Canadian findings corroborate previous research that has found up to 80% of young American’s killed in war or car accidents to have premature and hidden atherosclerosis.

What Can You Do?

Continue reading ‘Clogged Arteries: Young Doesn’t Equal Healthy’ »

Dietary changes can result in lower cholesterol levels. By making dietary changes to promote lower cholesterol levels you’ll be able to work with your doctor to gradually wean off medication and eliminate negative medication side effects. And the diet changes don’t have to be hard!

Here are three examples of simple diet shifts that will promote a lower cholesterol.

Diet Shift #1 – Replace eggs & bacon with oatmeal & fruit.

If your standard breakfast consists of cholesterol laden fried eggs and a side of fat (okay, bacon) swap this out for a bowl of oatmeal topped with fresh berries and ground flaxseed. The whole grain oatmeal will promote lower cholesterol levels, blood sugar control, and help you feel full longer. Antioxidant rich berries will help reduce the oxidation of LDL cholesterol that leads to plaque build up, while flaxseed is a rich source of heart healthy omega 3 fatty acids.

Continue reading ‘Lower Cholesterol with 3 Diet Shifts’ »

I recently had an individual email me the following question:

How much fiber do I need to eat to equal 25 grams? How many pieces of fruit, slices of bread, cups of barley or flaxseed? I can’t relate to 25 grams.

I want to share the answer with everyone. Read on. . .

How Much Dietary Fiber

You need to consume between 25-35 grams of dietary fiber daily. Of this, soluble fiber should make up 15 grams. For every 1-2 grams of daily soluble fiber intake, LDL (bad) cholesterol is lowered 1%.

The average US dietary fiber intake is 12-18 grams/day. If your current diet is very low in dietary fiber, do not increase to 35 grams overnight. A sudden increase will result in gastrointestinal (stomach) distress and unpleasant side effects (flatulence and diarrhea). You want to increase your intake gradually.

Top 5 Foods Containing Dietary Fiber

Continue reading ‘What equals 25 – 35 grams of dietary fiber?’ »

Are you familiar with the TLC diet? I was not, so when I saw this treatment plan to lower cholesterol I was interested to see what it was all about. Below I’ve shared a summary of the diet plan and a link where you can access more information.

TLC stands for Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes and consists of a three part program of diet, physical activity, and weight management.

Diet

Diet changes focus on reduces saturated fat, trans fat, and cholesterol in your daily intake. If you are overweight, you would also work to reduce your daily calorie intake.

Here are goal levels for nutrients on the TLC diet:

Continue reading ‘TLC Diet to Lower Cholesterol’ »

Flaxseed is high in dietary fiber and omega 3 fatty acids. Both of which you need to increase in your diet as your work to lower cholesterol levels. Here are 10 ways you can incorporate flaxseed into your diet.

1. Sprinkle on your cereal every morning. . .hot or cold.
2. Add to pancake or waffle batter.
3. Mix in your orange juice.
4. Add to muffins.
5. Mix in yogurt.
6. Sprinkle on fresh salad greens.
7. Add to cottage cheese.
8. Add to spaghetti sauce, meatloaf, and lasagna.
9. Add to cookie dough.
10. . . . .get creative! It can be an addition to just about anything.

Grind Your Flaxseed

Continue reading ‘How to Use Flaxseed to Lower Cholesterol’ »

The nutritional quality of tuna depends on a variety of factors, such as the type of tuna you buy, the differences in the fishery where it was produced/captured, the diet of the fish, and even water temperatures.

Types of Tuna

There are dozens of different tuna fish species, but tuna companies group tuna into three categories:

1. White or albacore

Continue reading ‘Tuna – Heart Healthy of Not?’ »

Metamucil is a rich source of psyllium husk. Psyllium husk is a soluble fiber which works to lower LDL cholesterol levels.

Currently the American Heart Association recommends everyone consume 25 to 30 grams of dietary fiber daily. The average American only consumes 15 grams of fiber daily.

How much soluble fiber?

Continue reading ‘Metamucil to Lower LDL Cholesterol’ »

Cholesterol lowering drugs, such as statin medications, are commonly prescribed to lower cholesterol and are many times effective.

HOWEVER, it takes more than a medication alone to improve overall health and control cholesterol. Lifestyle changes are necessary.

Other risks to consider

Individuals with high cholesterol are often overweight. If you simply pop a pill to correct the cholesterol problem and do nothing to address being overweight you leave yourself at risk for other weight related health conditions, such as diabetes, joint problems, high blood pressure, and certain cancers.

Unknown risks

Continue reading ‘You Need More Than Medication to Lower Cholesterol’ »

Tuna is a fatty fish providing high quality protein, B-vitamins, and selenium. The nutrients help the body produce red blood cells, reduce heart disease risk and macular degeneration, and promote brain growth. The protein provides essential amino acids used for body growth and maintenance, while the fat provides a rich source of heart healthy omega 3 fatty acids.

Many organizations, such as the USDA, American Heart Association, and American Dietetic Association have been encouraging people to eat more fish. This includes eating more tuna. Omega 3 fatty acids have been shown to reduce heart disease risk, blood clots, and stroke, relieve depression, and help fight certain cancers.

How Much Tuna

Continue reading ‘Is Tuna a Heart Healthy Food?’ »

Are you looking for a supplement to promote heart health? If so I recommend you consider Dr. Sinatra’s supplement Omega Q Plus. This supplement has recently been revised to provide higher levels of the omega 3 fatty acid DHA via calamarine.

Omega Q Plus supports:

Continue reading ‘Omega Q Plus – Heart Healthy Supplement’ »