6 Common Cholesterol Myths - Busted
Pretty much everything your doctor and the media has had you believe about high cholesterol and its connection to heart disease is false. Cholesterol’s poor reputation has tainted the credibility of some of nature’s most nutrient dense food sources. Let's take a closer look.
Myth Number 1: Cholesterol Will Kill You
This is simply not true. Cholesterol is your friend, not your enemy.
It is a naturally occurring product found in the body which is made by the liver. It is vital to normal cell function and is the parent molecule for such major hormones as estrogen, progesterone and testosterone. It is critical to the immune system and the brain. It is also used to make neurotransmitters, bile salts and every single cell membrane in the body. That's about 30 trillion cells.
Even if you did not consume any cholesterol at all, you would still find it present in your body. Your liver makes it. Your diet is actually secondary when it comes to looking at cholesterol levels, but this is often ignored by the doctors.
Myth Number 2: High Cholesterol Causes Coronary Heart Disease
There is NO proven link between dietary cholesterol and coronary heart disease. Numerous studies have been done which claim to show a link, but all have been flawed and NONE have been conclusive. This, we now know.
The most influential study of all – the Seven Countries Study done in 1953 by Dr. Ancel Keys involved a highly suspicious model of analysis in itself, with Dr. Keys removing statistics which did not ‘agree’ with his ideology. Having taken data from 22 countries, he only took note of the seven countries whose evidence supported his views, discounting the rest. Incredibly, it is this paper upon which the whole cholesterol theory is based. Can you believe it? “If all 22 countries had been analyzed, there would have been no correlation found whatsoever,” confirms leading physician, Dr. Joseph Mercola.
As a result of the study, everyone was told to cut out butter, red meat, animal fats, eggs and dairy from their diet. This approach is mistakenly still in force around the world today. This is unfortunate and has proven detrimental to human health.
Myth Number 3: Saturated Fat Is Dangerous
There is absolutely no correlation between saturated fat and heart disease, as two major studies have recently confirmed.
The biggest issue for the body in terms of fats is WHERE THEY ARE FROM. Raw fats from a healthy natural diet are GOOD! Your body NEEDS these in order to thrive. They even help REDUCE heart disease. Artificial and chemically induced fats from processed food, bottled seed oils and hydrogenated fats are to be avoided at all times.
Great sources of healthy fats include nuts, wild fish, wild and grass-fed meats, seeds (such as chia, hemp and flaxseeds), avocados, organic free-range eggs, butter from grass-fed cows, olive oil and coconut oil.
Myth Number 4: The Higher Your cholesterol, The Shorter Your Lifespan
In a major inquiry into cholesterol known as the Framington Study, those who actually lived the longest had the highest cholesterol. Fact. Also, seniors with low cholesterol had a higher rate of dementia. It seems cholesterol goes up as we age. Could this be because it is protective? Who are we to mess with “Mother Nature” and the wisdom of the human body?
Myth Number 5: High Cholesterol Is A Good Predictor Of Heart Attacks
Statistics actually show that more than 50 percent of people admitted to hospitals with cardiovascular disease have NORMAL cholesterol. In fact, most have LOW cholesterol, by conventional standards. However, those with high cholesterol are seen to have HEALTHY hearts.
Myth Number 6: Lowering Cholesterol With Statin Drugs Will Prolong Life
Research shows no difference in death rates between patients who take statins and those who don’t. In fact, statin medication can cause major negative side effects on the body, such as loss of memory, loss of libido, muscle pain and fatigue. In fact, these drugs can lead to heart attacks due to CoEnzyme Q10 deficiency. That’s right, heart attacks. The very thing you are trying to avoid.
What does cause cardiovascular disease? There are many factors that contribute to poor artery and heart health like Vitamin C deficiency, Vitamin D3 and K2 deficiency, inflammation, sugar and refined oil consumption, stress and many other factors. When you have stress in the body, it causes a spike in cortisol, which breaks down vitamin C. When you have a long-term subtle deficiency of vitamin C this causes a weakening of the arterial walls and then, in your body's natural intelligence, it uses readily available cholesterol in the bloodstream to patch up the weakening arterial walls.
This is your body trying to protect itself from arterial wall damage. We call this healing process atherosclerotic plaques or heart disease. We then prescribe statins to reduce cholesterol and try and 'fix' the problem. The underlying causes, like stress and vitamin C deficiency, are rarely addressed.
We can also help design a customized diet plan to address your cholesterol problems.
