Heart Disease Prevention - Can High Cholesterol Cause Heart Disease?

For some peoples, too much cholesterol in the body can be unhealthy. High blood cholesterol, which does not have any signs or symptoms, can raise the risk of coronary heart disease, a condition in which plaque builds up inside the coronary arteries. Find out more at:

Heart Disease Prevention - Can High Cholesterol Cause Heart Disease?

Why Eating Eggs Might Not Raise Heart Disease Risk?

Whole egg consists of 2 main components: egg white and egg yolk. Egg white is a wonderful source of protein. Egg yolk contains not only essential nutrients like choline and lutein which are important for preserving our brain and eye health, but also important vitamins such as vitamins B2, B5, B12 and D.

But people have been told to limit intake of eggs because of high cholesterol in egg yolks. A single egg yolk has about 200 mg of cholesterol, making it as one of the richest sources of dietary cholesterol. High cholesterol is said to be a risk factor for heart disease and stroke.

In reality, dietary cholesterol and cholesterol in the blood are only weakly related. Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance that is found in all cells of the body. The body needs some cholesterol to make hormones, Vitamin-D, and substances that help digest foods. The body makes all the cholesterol it requires, though cholesterol can also be found in the food eaten (dietary cholesterol). The liver is stimulated to make cholesterol primarily by saturated fat and trans fat in the diet, not dietary cholesterol.

Eating foods high in cholesterol has very little impact on the blood cholesterol levels for most people. That is why the Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2015 removed the prior recommendation to limit consumption of dietary cholesterol to 300 mg per day. In about 70 percent of the population, foods rich in cholesterol like eggs cause only a subtle rise in cholesterol levels or none at all. In the other 30 percent, these foods do cause a rise in blood cholesterol levels. 

Some evidence suggests that eggs might even be beneficial because this raises levels of HDL cholesterol (good cholesterol) that is associated with a lower risk of heart disease. Egg yolks are also rich in the carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin that help eye health and protect against inflammation. Carotenoids need to be eaten with fat in order for the body to more fully absorb them, and a whole egg is the total package. Egg yolks contain a vibrant mix of saturated and unsaturated fat (about 5 grams per egg).

The risk of heart disease is influenced by the total lifestyle. It is a disease that has its root in inflammation and levels of inflammation are affected by weight, physical activity, the anti-oxidant levels in the diet and the type and amount of fats consumed.

Many huge studies that followed hundreds and thousands of people have found eating an egg a day is safe for most people. They did not find higher rates of heart attacks, strokes, or other cardiovascular diseases in people who eat up to an egg per day. A study by the University of Eastern Finland, for instance, reported that even carriers of the ApoE4 gene, which makes them highly susceptible to heart disease, egg and cholesterol intake was not linked to an increased risk of coronary artery disease. The findings were published online February 10, 2016 in the ‘American Journal of Clinical Nutrition’.

For the majority, an egg a day does not increase their risk of heart attack or stroke. But people who have difficulty controlling their total and LDL cholesterol, with diabetes, or already have heart disease, may want to be cautious about eating egg yolks and should instead choose foods made with egg whites. No more than 3 egg yolks per week is recommended.

Heart Disease Prevention - Why Controlling Diabetes Is Important For Heart Disease Prevention?

Coronary artery disease is the major cause of death in patients with diabetes. It can lead to heart attack, heart failure or angina. The risk of developing coronary artery disease in diabetic patients is known to be several times higher at every level of cholesterol. That is why controlling diabetes is important. Read more at:

Heart Disease Prevention - Why Controlling Diabetes Is Important For Heart Disease Prevention?

Heart Disease Prevention -Can One Rely On Coconut To Prevent Heart Disease?

People used to stay away from coconut products because they are unhealthy. Lately, coconut seems to return as a health food, and coconut-based products have become increasingly popular. Proponents of coconut claim that coconut contains healthy fats that are good for the heart, protect against illnesses like Alzheimer’s, arthritis and diabetes, and can even aid weight loss. But can you rely on coconut to prevent heart disease? Find out more at:

Heart Disease Prevention -Can One Rely On Coconut To Prevent Heart Disease?

Heart Disease Prevention - How Is Efferocytosis Linked To Heart Disease?

Despite of good control of cholesterol and other risk factors, some individuals’ arteries continue to progressively narrow. Obviously, there ought to be other mechanisms beyond the conventional risk factors that cause heart attack and stroke. First, it is necessary to understand a term called “efferocytosis”. Learn more at:

Heart Disease Prevention - How Is Efferocytosis Linked To Heart Disease?

Heart Disease Prevention - What To Eat To Prevent High Cholesterol And Heart Disease?

Human body, and especially the liver, makes all the cholesterol it needs. But cholesterol can also be found in foods from animal sources. As such, making healthy eating choices is paramount. Recent trials that tested the impact of specific foods on blood cholesterol found that eating more nuts, legumes, olive oil, and plant sterols can help reduce blood cholesterol. More details at:

Heart Disease Prevention - What To Eat To Prevent High Cholesterol And Heart Disease?

Heart Disease Prevention - How Could Unhealthy Diet Affect Children’s Health?

According to the CDC, childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and quadrupled in adolescents in the past 30 years. Health experts attributed the obesity epidemic to sedentary lifestyle and especially unhealthy diet. A recent study revealed that American kids eat excessive amount of salt and sugar and do not eat sufficient amount of fruits and vegetables. Find out more at:

Heart Disease Prevention - How Could Unhealthy Diet Affect Children’s Health?

Is Butter Coffee A Healthy Drink?

Being one of the most popular beverages in the world, coffee is a must-have drink for many especially in the morning. People who drink coffee believe that it will keep them aware because of the caffeine contained therein.

Experts have been debating over the health effect of coffee for quite some time. Mixed evidence has been received so far. The majority of recent research suggested that moderate consumption is benign or mildly good for healthy adults but the diterpenes in coffee might actually raise the risk of heart disease.

Lately, there is a so-called ‘bulletproof coffee’ or ‘butter coffee’ that promises to give people extra kick of energy. By adding a couple tablespoons of unsalted, grass-fed butter, together with a coconut-palm oil blend called MCT (medium chain triglycerides) into the coffee, one will have an extra energy and it will also help lose weight.

The addition of unsalted butter can produce a creamy version that enhances the taste of coffee and meanwhile remove any bitterness. However, such addition can produce certain amount of calories, depending on how much butter is added.

Bear in mind that butter is very high in saturated fat that can raise the risk of heart disease and stroke. So would this version of coffee make one lose weight or gain weight?

Inventor of butter coffee claims that butter from grass-fed cows supplies a ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acids that is far healthier than those from conventionally raised livestock. Furthermore, MCT is a unique form of fat that require less energy and enzymes to be digested. Hence, “butter coffee” can boost one’s energy, promote weight loss and increase the brainpower.

While there is no scientific proof to back up such claim, there is some evidence that regular consumption of MCT can induce very mild fat loss over time and MCT might also help regulate cholesterol levels. Nevertheless, the types of coconut oils and sources from which people try to obtain MCTs often contain dangerous amounts of trans and saturated fats.

Because of its high calories (ranging from 100 to 300), “butter coffee” has to replace some food or another caloric drink, or else one would gain an extra weight of 10 to 30 pounds each year by drinking a cup a day.

So, for people who try to reduce calories or saturated fat, “butter coffee” might not be the brew for them. Otherwise, there is no harm trying it. Just aware of its extra calories and do not expect it will help lose weight or boost extra energy.

Keep Slim By Cutting Down Fat Without Dieting!

In order to lose weight or keep slim, people would normally go on dieting by deliberately selecting specific food to consume. But a study conducted by WHO (World Health Organization) reported on December 6, 2012 in the ‘British Medical Journal’ that swapping fatty foods for low-fat alternatives can actually keep people slim.

33 trials involving 73,589 men, women and children in America, Europe and New Zealand were reviewed. It was found that choosing low fat foods without dieting helped people lose about 1.59 kilos, reduce waistlines and cut bad cholesterol.

According to researchers who conducted the study, the weight reduction was remarkably consistent in almost every trial. Those who reduce more on fat intake lost more weight. The study looked at people who did not aim to lose weight and continued consuming a normal amount of food. Yet these people did lose weight with reduced BMI (body mass index) and slimmer waists. The lower fat eaters also kept their weight down over at least 7 years.

There were varying ages and states of health among all participants. After comparing those eating less fat than usual and those eating their usual amount of fat, the researchers measured the effect on weight and waistline after at least 6 months.

Their analysis showed that eating less fat had their body weight reduced by 1.6 kilos, BMI cut by 0.56 kg/m and waist circumference slimmed by 0.5cm. Moreover, statistically significant reductions in cholesterol and blood pressure were also found, suggesting that a lower fat diet could be beneficial.

Cutting down on fat is not a difficult task. For instance, people can opt for low-fat yoghurts, skimmed milk and reduce intake of butter, cheese and fatty snacks like crisps and cakes.

As the study was commissioned by the WHO's Nutrition Guidance Expert Advisory Group, its findings are likely to become part of global recommendations on nutrition.

BMI is the ratio of weight (kilo) to the square of height (meter). A person is said to be overweight if the BMI is more than 25 kilo/m2 and obese if the ratio is more than 30 kilo/m2. In Europe, more than half of the population is obese or overweight, and in America more than 35 percent of adults and almost 17 percent of children are qualified as obese.

Being overweight or obese will raise the risk of many diseases including cancer, heart disease and stroke. As indicated by WHO, more than 17 million people died of heart attack, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases, which are the biggest killers worldwide.

Why Pregnant Mother Should Not Smoke?

Tobacco smoking is bad for the health. It would lead to many chronic diseases including lung cancer, hypertension (high blood pressure), heart disease, stroke, erectile dysfunction and COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease).

The harm often extends not only to the smokers themselves but also to others, especially the family members and friends. Studies have shown that people might develop similar diseases through secondhand smoke.

Smoking is no longer the privilege for men. Many women have picked up this habit as well.

Around 15 percent of women smoke while pregnant in many Western countries. What these female smokers do not know is that a wide range of childhood health problems, including behavioral and neurocognitive problems and sudden infant death had been linked to smoking during and after pregnancy.

A recent study by researchers from the University of Sydney found that pregnant mothers who smoke could cause changes to their unborn babies that can lead them to have lower high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. HDL is commonly referred to as ‘good cholesterol’ that plays a key role in protecting against atherosclerosis.

Atherosclerosis is a condition in which the artery wall thickens because of accumulation of fatty materials. It could cause heart problems and even heart attack.

Published on June 21, 2011 in the European Heart Journal, the Australian researchers reported that by the age of 8, children born to mothers who smoked in pregnancy had level of HDL cholesterol at around 1.3 millimoles per liter (mmol/L), which was lower than those born to mothers who had not smoked, with about 1.5 mmol/L.

The participants were 405 healthy 8-years-old children (born between 1997 and 1999) who had been enrolled before birth into a randomized controlled trial that was investigating asthma and allergic disease. Data were collected before and after they were born, including information on mothers' smoking habits before and after pregnancy, exposure to passive smoke, and data on height, weight, waist measurement and blood pressure.

Ultrasound scans were used to measure the arterial wall thickness and blood samples were taken from 328 children, who agreed, to measure lipoprotein levels. There was no effect on the thickness of the children's arterial walls, but it was found that there was an effect on levels of HDL cholesterol.

The findings suggested that smoking created an unhealthy set of characteristics on babies while they are developing in the womb, which might cause them prone to develop heart disease and stroke later on. The effect seemed to last for at least 8 years and the risk of getting heart disease for smokers’ children could be 10 to 15 percent higher.

A New Risk Factor for High Cholesterol!

Bad cholesterol refers low-density lipoprotein, or LDL. A person with high LDL is at high risk of developing heart disease, hypertension (high blood pressure), and stroke.

High fat diet and lack of physical activity could be 2 of the common causes for getting high LDL. But United States researchers from West Virginia University recently found that chemicals used to make non-stick coatings on cookware and to waterproof fabrics might increase cholesterol levels in children. Their findings appeared on September 6, 2010 in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.

In the study, children with highest levels of these chemicals in their blood had higher levels of total cholesterol and LDL, compared with children with lower readings.

The 2 chemicals studied were perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS). They enter into people through air and occupational exposure, breast milk, cord blood, drinking water, dust, food packaging, and microwave popcorn.

Studies in animals had suggested that perfluoroalkyl acid, which is a known neurotoxin, could affect the liver ad so result in changes in cholesterol levels. Perfluoroalkyl acid could interfere with brain development, which leaves its mark on later behavioral functions such as cognitive performance.

The cholesterol levels in blood samples, taken from more than 12,000 children in the mid-Ohio River who had PFOA in their drinking water, were examined. These children and teens had more PFOA in their bodies than the national average, and a PFOS concentration about the same as the national average.

After analyzing the data, it was found that children and teens with the highest PFOA concentration had total cholesterol levels that were 4.6 points higher and LDL levels that were 3.8 points higher than those with the lowest PFOA levels.

Nevertheless, the researchers admitted that their findings only indicated there is a link between the compounds and higher cholesterol. They suggested more studies should be carried out to prove chemical exposure was the cause.

Breastfeeding Can Help Women Prevent Heart Disease!

For years, scientists and researchers have known that breastfeeding is important for babies’ health, and now a new study has furnished evidence on the importance for mothers’ health as well.

Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences reported that postmenopausal women who have breastfed a child have a lower risk of heart attacks, stroke and cardiovascular disease. Their findings were published on April 21, 2009 in the May issue of 'Obstetrics and Gynecology.'

Funded by the National Institutes of Health, the study was carried out under the United States Federal government's Women's Health Initiative study on chronic disease launched in 2004.

After studying 139,681 postmenopausal women, the researchers found that those participants who breastfed for at least one month had lower blood pressure, better cholesterol and less frequent diabetes. It also appeared that the longer the mothers breastfed, the more apparent cardiovascular benefit.

Women who performed breastfeeding for more than a year had their cardiovascular risk reduced by 10 percent. In fact, the longer a mother nurses her baby, the better for both of them.

According to the researchers, the study also provided another good reason for corporations to implement policies for encouraging women to breastfeed their infants.

High blood pressure, high blood cholesterol level and diabetes are all known risk factors for heart disease, which is also crowned as the leading cause of death for women. As such, it is paramount for women to aware that what they can do to protect themselves.

Inactive Kids Are At Risk of Heart Disease As Teens!

Childhood obesity has been a major issue facing governments around the world. This is because obese kids can develop heart disease, diabetes, hypertension (high blood pressure), and even some types of cancer later in their life. The amount of medical expenses thus incurred is expected to be huge and this surely will create great pressure on the authorities concerned.

Most health experts have attributed such epidemic to unhealthy diet and sedentary lifestyle. A recent finding published on April 4, 2008 in the British journal Dynamic Medicine pointed out that young children who have sedentary lifestyles are up to 6 times more likely to be at serious risk of heart disease later in life, than their peers who are active. Meanwhile, the cluster of symptoms reflecting heart trouble, known as metabolic syndrome, could just show up as early as at the teen years.

In the study, key health indicators like blood pressure, body mass, cholesterol levels, height, percentage of body fat were measured for about 400 kids between 7 and 10 by the researchers from the University of North Carolina. Their frequency and duration of physical exercise were also monitored.

7 years later, these children were reexamined as teenagers and it was found that there was nearly 5 percent of the adolescents had 3 or more of core symptoms of metabolic syndrome.

Such result more or less confirmed the previous research that showed 4 to 9 percent of adolescents in the United States have some combination of glucose intolerance, hypertension, obesity and a worrying cholesterol count.

The study also found that adolescents with the syndrome were 6 times more likely to have low aerobic fitness as children, and 5 times more likely to have low levels of physical activity when the study began. These kids at best brisk walked, rode a bike or performed some equivalent activity for not more than 20 minutes a day.

This was indeed very much lower than that recommended by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that children should exert themselves at this level for at least an hour per day.

It is undeniable that children today have adopted a very sedentary life and are prone to overweight or even obesity. The new findings have already highlighted the link between sedentary life and heart disease. As such, efforts to ensure kids to increase exercise in their childhood as early as possible are inevitable. It is better to keep fit now rather than suffer the health consequences later in life.

Can Stroke Risk Be Reduced by High Level of Vitamin-C?

A high-level consumption of fruit and vegetable can benefit one’s health, including prevention of heart disease and many other medical disorders because of the high contents of Vitamin-C found in fruit and vegetable

Researchers from the University of Cambridge, United Kingdom indicated in the American Journal of Nutrition in January 2008 that people’s level of Vitamin-C might be an indicator of their likelihood of getting a stroke.

In a 10-year study, they examined some 20,000 middle-aged and older residents of Norfolk, United Kingdom and found 448 strokes in the participants during an average period of 9.5 years. They also noted that people having the highest Vitamin-C concentration at the beginning of the study had a 42 percent lower risk of stroke compared with those with the lowest levels of Vitamin-C.

In fact, the protective effect of Vitamin-C against stroke remained, even after the researchers took into accounts for factors that could affect the risk (stroke), such as alcohol intake, blood pressure level, body mass index (BMI), cholesterol level, diabetes, prior heart attack, physical activity, use of supplement, and social use.

According to the researchers, the level of Vitamin-C found in the blood is a good biomarker of fruit and vegetable consumption, which contain many nutrients that may be biologically active and protective for stroke. They also argued that their study supports the existing body of evidence, which proposed stroke could be protected with high consumption of fruit and vegetable.

While other health experts also agree that fruit and vegetable are linked with many health benefits, including reducing stroke risk, it is still not known why or how the benefit occurs, or what kinds of fruit and vegetable are effective. Therefore, the best way is to consume a wide variety of fruit and vegetable.

Meanwhile, there is still no concrete evidence on the optimum intake of fruit and vegetable for reduction of stroke and cardiovascular disease. However, it is believed that an intake of 5 to 9 servings on a daily basis could actually benefit. As such, the public is encouraged to adopt a higher intake of fruit and vegetable.

Why Obese Children Could End Up with Heart Disease or Stroke?

In the evolution of heart disease and stroke, there is a saying that “one is as old as his or her arteries”. This does mean that his or her state of arteries is more important than his or her actual age.

A recent paper, presented on November 11, 2008 at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2008 in New Orleans, revealed that neck arteries of obese children and teenagers experienced similar strain as those of middle-aged adults. The researchers from the University of Missouri School of Medicine and Children's Mercy Hospital, Kansas City, Kansas found that the state of the arteries in these children is more typical of a 45-year-old than of someone their own age.

Data from 34 boys and 36 girls who were likely 'at-risk' because of obesity, abnormal cholesterol and/or a family history of early heart disease were analyzed. These teenagers had an average age of 13, and 89 percent of them were white.

Ultrasound was employed to measure the thickness of neck arteries (carotid arteries) that supply blood from the heart to the brain. When increased carotid artery intima-media thickness (CIMT, in short) occurs, there is a strong possibility that fatty buildup of plaque has taken place, which can clog the arteries and lead to a heart attack or stroke.

The analysis on the data obtained in the study indicated that the children’s ‘vascular age’ was approximately 30 years older than their actual age. A person’s vascular age refers to the age at which the level of artery thickening would be normal for his or her actual age.

In the meantime, the researchers also discovered that a higher body mass index (BMI) and higher blood pressure would have the biggest impact on CIMT.

It was suggested in the study that further research is necessary to determine whether the build-up of artery thickness would decrease if obese children undertake weight loss and exercise.

The researchers believe that something could be done to help those obese children, as the buildup in the vessels was found not hardened and calcified. If the vessel walls and blood flow in adults could be improved through medical treatment presently available, it is highly possible that health experts could come up with some solutions to help obese children even more in the prevention of heart disease and stroke.

Can TCM Protect Kidney Damage in Diabetics?

When urine of diabetic patients contains a certain protein, which is a sign of kidney damage, or if their blood pressure is high, the doctors will normally prescribe them with medication to lower their blood pressure and protect their kidneys. Otherwise, patients who already have some form of kidney damage can end up with kidney failure.

However, these medications do produce side effects in some patients such as cough, which can be so bad for them that doctors might have to take off the medication. As such, other options should be explored for these patients.

Researchers at the Singapore General Hospital (SGH) in Singapore announced in April 2008 that they would conduct a study involving 60 diabetic patients. The purpose is to find out how well traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) could prevent kidney damage in diabetics, in comparison with the normal Western drug.

Over a period of 3 months, all the 60 patients in the study will be given the usual medication to lower their blood-sugar levels and for other conditions such as high cholesterol. However, these patients will be divided into 2 groups: half of them will be prescribed with enalapril, a commonly prescribed Western drug that protects kidney, and the other half will be given a concoction of 9 TCM herbs.

If the study can yield favorable results, TCM could well become a feasible alternative for those patients who cannot tolerate the normal medication.

In fact, a similar one-year study in Shanghai, China has shown that TCM prescription works as good as the standard drugs in protecting kidneys without the side effects.

Meanwhile, another 2 studies will be done by SGH to find out how effective the TCM can do for patients with blood disorders that cause a low platelet and anemia.

SGH are putting effort to conduct TCM-related research in 3 areas: patients for whom conventional medicine has failed, patients with chronic diseases, and cancer. If encouraging results could be found, those affected patients can at least be given with another option.

Fruit Juice May Be Superior Than Fruit To Prevent Heart Disease

Fruit and vegetables should form part of everyday’s diet if one wishes to prevent heart disease and maintain a healthy body. Yet, most of the health experts would advise us not to take fruit juice because it may cause a person to gain weight.

However, a recent study by French researchers from the Universite Montpellier reported in May 2008 that grapes, apples and their juices could prevent atherosclerosis being developed in hamsters eating a high-fat diet, high-cholesterol diet.

The term atherosclerosis refers to buildup of fatty plaque deposits in the arteries that can lead to heart attacks or stroke.

The study found that fruit juices had a more powerful anti-atherosclerotic effect than the fruit itself. This is probably the first time that processing fruits can have a major impact on its health benefits.

In the study, hamsters were fed with grapes, grape juice, apples, apple juices or water, along with a diet designed to promote atherosclerosis. The aim is to investigate how juice might influence the content of phenolic compounds, which are powerful antioxidants contained in fruits. Meanwhile, a control group of animals ate normal chow.

The hamsters, which were fed with fruits, had the amount equivalent to 3 apples or 3 bunches of grapes daily for a human, while the amount of juice given to another group of hamsters was equivalent to 4 glasses daily for a person weighing 70 kilos.

The researchers noted that apples and grapes had roughly the same phenol content but the purple grape juice had 2.5 times more phenols than apple juice.

When comparing with hamsters given water, those consumed fruit or fruit juice had lower cholesterol levels, less oxidative stress, and less fat accumulation in their aorta (the main vessel supplying oxygenated blood to the body). In terms of health effects, purple grape fruit rank high, followed by purple grapes, apple juices and apples.

According to the researchers, while the amounts of phenols contained in a food have a direct effect on its antioxidant properties, other antioxidant compounds in the fruits such as Vitamin C, carotenoids could also contribute to their effects. Such findings do provide encouragement that fruit and fruit juice may have significant clinical and public health relevance.

Watch Out Your Waist, Ladies!

Weight used to be a health concern for people because many diseases may be developed as a result of overweight. However, a recent large United States study suggested women with large bellies may die earlier of cancer and heart disease than other women, regardless of their weight.

In the medical journal “Circulation”, researchers from the National Institutes of Health and Harvard Medical School reported that middle-aged and older women who were abdominally obese (with a waistline of 35 inches or more) were more likely than those thinner one to die of heart disease or cancer during the study period.

In the past, studies have shown that abdominal obesity appear to be at risk of clogged arteries, diabetes and high blood pressure, and it has also been linked to certain cancers like kidney cancer and colon cancer.

Over a period of 16 years, the researchers tracked more than 44,000 women in the United States and found that those with abdominal obesity had doubled their chances of dying of heart disease or stroke, as compared with women who had waistlines smaller than 28 inches. Meanwhile, women with largest waists had a 63 percent higher risk of dying of cancer than those women with small waists.

Furthermore, the study also found that the risk of a large waist were independent of a woman’s overall body mass index (BMI). In fact, those women with waistlines of 35 inches or more were subject to a higher risk of dying of heart disease or stroke.

While maintaining a healthy weight remains important in the prevention of chronic diseases and premature death, and should continue to be encouraged, it is also essential to keep a healthy waist size to prevent abdominal obesity.

Excess abdominal fat has been regarded by experts as unhealthy because of its metabolic effects. Too much fat in the abdomen would raise cholesterol levels, promote insulin resistance (a precursor to Type-2 diabetes), and spur body-wide inflammation. People with these conditions may just end up with heart disease and certain cancers.

How Much Do You Know About Fats and Cholesterol?

Trans fats and saturated fats, as well as their relationship with cholesterol has been a pretty confusing topic for many people. A common belief is that fats will develop cholesterol that is harmful to our body. Unfortunately, this is not correct. In reality, not all fats are bad for the body.

Cholesterol is manufactured naturally in our bodies by our liver. It can also be found in certain foods like eggs, seafood, meats, organ meats and animal products. Taking high volume of dietary cholesterol will increase the risk of many medical disorders including cardiovascular disease, heart disease, high blood pressure.

In general, there are 4 types of fats: mono-unsaturated, poly-unsaturated, saturated and Trans fats. The first 2 unsaturated fats are the healthier ones as they increase our HDL (high density lipoproteins, or what we called the 'good' cholesterol) and decrease LDL (low density lipoproteins, or what we called the 'bad' cholesterol). On the other hand, saturated and Trans fats are bad for our bodies as they increase our LDL. The damage caused by trans fats is even serious because they also decrease our HDL.

Foods such as animal fat, animal skin, animal products such as butter, coconut milk and dairy products are good sources of saturated fats. Trans fats are formed when vegetable oils goes through a process called hydrogenation. As such, products that are labeled 'partially hydrogenated' or 'hydrogenated' vegetable oil in the ingredient list do contain trans fats.

Unsaturated fats can be found in vegetable oils like olive oil, canola oil, sunflower oil, and foods like nuts, avocados and oily fish.

In fact, our bodies still require a certain amount of fats for absorption of vitamins as well as other daily functions. Therefore, we should allocate only 10 per cent of our daily caloric intake for saturated and Trans fats, as recommended by health experts, and should take more foods containing unsaturated fats.

Can Glucosamine Help Raise Good Cholesterol?

Glucosamine is an amino sugar and a prominent precursor in the biochemical synthesis of glycosylated proteins and lipids. It is commonly used to treat osteoarthritis. More information about glucosamine can be found at

---> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glucosamine

Many people have taken glucosamine for arthritis-like symptoms. Previous research has made medical experts to think that it may also have a beneficial effect on HDL (good cholesterol). Nevertheless, a recent study has proved that the HDL level would not be increased for diabetics who are prescribed glucosamine at commonly taken doses.

The researchers at Saint Louis University School of Medicine, Missouri evaluated the effects of glucosamine (500 milligrams taken 3 times daily) versus matching 'placebo' capsules in 10 people with Type-2 diabetes and 2 people with Type-1 diabetes.

The study examined 3 men and 9 women, all with low HDL cholesterol, who were randomly assigned to take glucosamine or placebo for 2 weeks, and were switched over to a 2-week course of the alternative therapy. The finding revealed that there was no benefit of glucosamine on HDL cholesterol or any worsening of the diabetes control.

Their report, which was published in the journal Diabetes Care, indicated that the lack of an effect on the control on diabetes is consistent with previously published studies on the effect of glucosamine in both diabetic and non-diabetic individual. However, the study did not go further to answer whether higher dose or longer duration of glucosamine may make any difference to HDL levels.

People with diabetes are at a higher risk of developing heart disease. As such, appropriately managing diabetes is very important.