Many people mistakenly believe that all they need to do to stay healthy is reduce their bad cholesterol. They may think that all cholesterol is bad and be quite surprised to find out that there is actually good and bad cholesterol. It is important to raise your good cholesterol as well as lower the levels of bad cholesterol in your blood.
Any cholesterol reading is made up of two numbers. They include HDL (or good) cholesterol, and LDL (or bad) cholesterol. Each of these has a definite impact on your chances of developing heart disease and suffering dangerous cardiovascular complications.
It is interesting to note that while LDL cholesterol is involved in the formation of build up which can clog arteries and lead to heart attacks and strokes, HDL cholesterol can actually have the opposite effect. In addition to its anti-clotting properties, it can actually remove bad cholesterol from the bloodstream and return it to the liver where it can be metabolized and eliminated naturally.
As you can see, it is important to raise good cholesterol in order to achieve the best cardiovascular health possible. The good news is that this is actually quite easy to do and can involve the addition of some very tasty foods and beverages to your diet. In fact, people often report that choosing to raise good cholesterol levels is much more fun than trying to lower bad cholesterol levels.
You may have heard that Omega 3 fatty acids, such as those in fish oils, can help with a variety of health issues. They can help regulate brain function and improve the symptoms of mood disorders such as depression. The interesting fact is that they can also help to raise good cholesterol levels as well. If you are not a fan of fish, you can also look at supplements such as flax seed oil to provide you with Omega 3 fatty acids.
Red wine is also able to increase your levels of HDL cholesterol. While it is important to consume alcohol in moderation, studies have shown that consuming about a glass of red wine per day can help to raise the levels of HDL cholesterol in the bloodstream. This effect is due to an antioxidant known as resveratrol. There have been some attempts at creating supplements that contain this antioxidant but experts agree that red wine is one of the best sources possible.
There are other foods and herbal supplements you can use. They include sources of monounsaturated fats such as olive oil, avocados and nuts. In fact, replacing fatty meat with nuts as a protein source can be a great way to control your cholesterol.
Remember that good health is all about balance. Making sure you raise your good cholesterol levels can help you balance out the effects that bad cholesterol can have on our bodies and live longer, healthier lives.
Author Resource:
Learn more about how to lower your cholesterol naturally without dangerous drugs at http://controlling-cholesterol.com . Find out how to raise good cholesterol .
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.look4articles.com/images/icon_Rss.png "XML Feed For RSS"){kind=icon}
Category Rss Feed
Print This Article
Add To Favorites
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.look4articles.com/images/rss.jpg "XML Feed For RSS")