CHOLESTEROL – our enemy steroid?

Cholesterol sure has gotten a bad wrap the last couple of decades.  My dad has been on a statin for 12 years, which got me thinking – why does he have to be on this forever?  Isn’t there something better? 

Cholesterol is made by the body as a protective mechanism.  It comes out of the liver and is also used in seminal fluid and vaginal lubrication, and is an essential part of nerve-fiber structure, strength and resilience. 

Cholesterol gets that bad reputation because it builds up in the body.  So why does it do that?  Unfortunately doctors who deal with this every day don’t have the training, the time or the inclination to know why – they rely on the pharmaceutical companies to do their research for them.  According to a study done in June 1998 issue of Business & Health stated:  “nearly six out of 10 of the 250 physicians who completed self-assessments for the American Medical Association admitted they rely solely on the claims made by manufacturers’ sales reps when prescribing new drugs or using new medical devices.  And nearly one in seven said they don’t refer to the Physicians Desk Reference (PDR) or any other resource when they write prescriptions for other unfamiliar drugs.”  So how do they know that what they are giving you is going to work – the pharmaceutical rep in the nice suit that brought in pens and donuts told them so?  The same rep that makes $80k per year to repeat what the pharmaceutical companies told them.  But I’m off course – let’s get back to cholesterol. 

So in the body, cholesterol is the band-aid.  If an artery becomes brittle because of not enough water, or oxidation due to free radicals and toxins in the body – the body’s soldiers “cholesterol” are sent out to patch up the crack. 

In an ideal situation, water, b-complex vitamins, anti-oxidants and essential oils would come to the rescue, fix the crack and the cholesterol would be carried out of the body.  Awesome.  But in a diet lacking all of these, the crack is never fixed and gets bigger.  Bigger crack – more cholesterol, and so on.  Eventually that artery is clogged with cholesterol and a heart attack might happen. 

So what’s wrong with statins again?  Well, among other things, they inhibit the product of CoQ10.  CoQ10 is important for the heart – it’s an anti-oxidant for one thing – gets rid of free radicals (bad guys) in the body.  It’s also an energy booster for the heart so it doesn’t have to work as hard and feels better.  CoQ10 is ubiquitous in our bodies – it’s in every cell.  It protects everything!  Oh and CoQ10 can lower blood pressure. 

So back to the cholesterol – the amazing part is there is a whole class of foods that contain cholesterol but also the things that balance out the cholesterol – choline and lecithin.  Eating these foods will help build an amazing triangle of these essential elements and a good naturally balance.  These foods include:  most nuts, vegetable oils (like olive oil - not corn or canola), fenugreek and dandelion.  These plant based foods contain the balancing chemistry for cholesterol to remain in circulation – not deposited. 

So when your DR says you need a statin – state a resounding NO! and head to the grocery store to pick up some essentials- essential fatty acids (like nuts and olive oil), sunflower seeds, fenugreek, leafy green vegetables, eggs, carrots and kelp. 

Good Health

Julianna

CNHP

ND in training