The other day, I took my mom to see her cardiologist for a regular checkup.
He’s a smart doctor and a great heart surgeon. He doesn’t like prescribing medications unless in rare situations where his patients have tried everything and their cholesterol levels are still above 300.
Anyway, we talked about a bunch of things about heart health, what the newest research is saying, and so forth. I’ll tell you more about them in future articles as well as simple and proven ways of avoiding a heart attack or stroke.
Keto Diets = Higher Cholesterol?
The subject I want to quickly talk about is ketogenic diets and how they cause high cholesterol. I bring this up because my mom’s doctor was saying, “looks like the high fat, the ketogenic diet is becoming popular again like it was 10-15 years ago with Dr. Atkins.”
I said, “Yeah, like all fad diets, they come full circle every few years.”
He continued and said, “I’m getting a ton of patients whose cholesterol levels have dramatically shot up ever since they started these high fat, ketogenic diets. I tell them to get off these diets or else I’m going to have to put them on a statin drug and I don’t want to do that.”
But For Some, It Lowers Cholesterol?!!
The weird part is that for some people, these high-fat, ketogenic diets actually help lower cholesterol.
But, there is a higher percentage than their cholesterol levels really go up – especially the longer they follow these days.
WHY Cholesterol Levels Go Up
And, there are a variety of reasons for this.
- Eating WRONG Fats – One main reason is they eat a lot of bad fats. They have too much saturated and animal fats (butter, etc.). They need to lower these fats and replace them with monounsaturated fats such as macadamia nut and extra virgin olive oil.
- Not DIGESTING Fats – The other problem is that many people do NOT digest fats very well due to their genetics and metabolic type. This puts a lot of extra stress on your liver.
- A Liver Issue – And if you’ve read my previous articles, you recall that 80% of your cholesterol is produced in your liver – NOT from the foods you eat. Of course, as we age, negative changes in your hormones, toxins, medications, etc. all put stress on the liver and it’s just not as strong as it used to be. This is why your body has a harder time getting rid of excess cholesterol. So, make sure you take liver cleansing herbs such as Milk Thistle, NAC and rALA.
- Lower Thyroid – Another problem is that no-carb ketogenic diets reduce thyroid production and slow your metabolism. This further reduces your body’s ability to get rid of excess cholesterol – especially with the extra stress of the high fat diet. The slower your metabolism, the slower your body can heal and cleanse itself. So, make sure you take an herb such as Guggulsterones, which increases your thyroid to optimal levels.
- Less Exercise – Also, people who follow no-carb diets don’t exercise very much. They don’t lift weights to build muscle. Mainly because it’s hard to exercise when you have no carbs in your diet. Your brain can run on either glucose OR ketones – but your muscles need glucose. Well, the lack of exercise and muscle loss further slows your metabolism.
Now, if you’re concerned about your cholesterol levels or if you have a family history of high cholesterol or heart disease, I would suggest you do NOT follow a no-carb, ketogenic diet.
Try LOWER, Not “NO” Carbs
You can follow a lower-carb diet, and have some healthy fats, lots of fiber, vegetables, and some protein.
And make sure you do some form of exercise daily – walking is a great start.
Don’t forget to drink plenty of water to cleanse your system.
Take Natural Herbs
And if your cholesterol levels aren’t where you’d like them to be, then take some natural herbs that help improve your cholesterol, while also:
- optimizing your HDL/LDL ratios
- lowering fatty triglycerides
- decreasing homocysteine levels
- and also, cleansing your liver.
What My Parents Use For Healthy Cholesterol For Over 20+ Years!
The ONLY “all-in-one” solution that does all of this, is a formula my parents have been taking since 1999, called CholesLo. In fact, this is why my mom’s “good” HDL is super high and why her cardiologist is so happy with her blood test.
This is something you might want to try if you’re looking for a natural, no-drug, no side-effect solution.
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Unfortunately, most of us don't have the time, money or devotion to make big lifestyle changes (diet, exercise, stress management, etc.) Plus, AGING is another major factor (not just lifestyle)...
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