HDL Cholesterol

HDL cholesterol is more powerful than
a speeding locomotive.

The INTERHEART study, which was recently published in the prestigious Lancet Medical Journal has come to some very interesting conclusions.

Researchers have reported that LDL cholesterol is not nearly as important as  previously believed.

This 10-year research has been called the most “robust” study ever conducted on heart attack risk factors. About 15,000 heart attack patients recruited from around the world were matched with the same number of subjects who had not experienced any heart problems.

Number One Heart Attack Risk Factors.
Neither high cholesterol nor high LDLs (the bad cholesterol) showed up among the top causes of heart attacks.

According to INTERHEART, the number one risk factor of heart disease is a poor ratio of APO-B to APO-A1. These are sub classes of proteins found in cholesterol, which are infrequently measured by most doctors.

APO-B is the protein found in the “bad” LDL and APO-A1 is found in the “good” HDL cholesterol. Increasing HDLs is more important in lowering your risk than reducing LDLs. Statin drugs do very little to improve HDLs.

There are several more pieces to the cholesterol/heart disease puzzle. The INTERHEART study concluded that the relative risk of a heart attack could be lowered by 80% by doing just three things.

• Eating plenty of fruits and vegetables,

• getting regular exercise and

• avoiding smoking.

In this study neither high cholesterol nor high LDLs appeared among the top risk factors. This was not good news for the makers of the statin drugs which lower LDLs but do little to improve HDL cholesterol.

The Power of HDLs
As a youngster growing up I remember clearly waiting expectantly for the next issue of Superman to read what feats my hero would accomplish.

He was “faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a speeding locomotive and could leap tall buildings with a single bound.”

When it comes to saving your life HDL cholesterol is the superman that can accomplish even greater feats. HDL cholesterol acts like a miniature hydraulic vacuum cleaner, streaming through your arteries (not quite as fast as a speeding bullet), scooping up the heart- stopping LDL cholesterol, and carrying it back to your liver where it can be “dealt with”.

HDLs also douse the fires of inflammation. It is this smoldering inflammation and oxidation that causes the cholesterol in our arteries to turn rancid and clog our arteries.

Do you know what your HDL cholesterol number is…and what it should be?
Although HDLs are routinely measured, many doctors provide this information to their patients only on a “need to know” basis.

This important knowledge is probably resting in your medical file, unnoticed and unappreciated like an unassuming Clark Kent at the Daily Planet. This is your blood that was tested and your life that is on the line. You should ask for copies of your lab reports, which will provide you with the information to take corrective action.

If your HDL number is below 40 you’re in big trouble.
Take a deep breath and get busy. If it is between 40-59 it is considered “normal”, but like the doctor’s comments in one of my favorite cartoons,

“Your blood pressure is off the chart, you’re over weight, out of shape and your cholesterol is god-awful. In short I find you perfectly normal.”

Here’s what you need to do to unleash the power to get your HDLs above 60.

• Exercise and lose weight. (I probably should have saved this for last so you would keep on reading.)
• Smart exercise will lower LDLs and increase HDLs. Did you know that Superman used exercise equipment? He didn’t get that energy, stamina and muscle strength from sitting around watching TV.
• Stay away from trans fats. They lower your protective HDLs while increasing LDLs. Read your labels.
• Enjoy olive oil, avocados, peanut butter and fish. The right kind of fat is critical for good health.
• I also recommend Cholest-Check, a powerful cholesterol lowering formula that combines 20 mg of policosanol derived from sugar cane with three additional proven heart support nutrients:

  • 60 mg coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10)

  • 200 mg niacin (non-flush)

  • 50 mg grape seed extract

  Look, up in the sky. It’s a bird, it’s a plane. No…it’s superman!

Gene

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