Now, the only question to answer is: Just how do you go about raising your HDL cholesterol numbers anyway?

This is quickly becoming THE cholesterol question as more and more people are eating special diet after special diet while seeing little if any improvement in their HDL number.

You should start with “The Big Three” when it comes to raising your HDL levels…

1. Stop smoking. Obviously, this doesn’t apply to everyone with low HDL, but smoking is horrible on HDL levels and stopping this nasty habit will put a quick boost in your HDL numbers. (Do you live with a smoker? Get them to stop!)

2. More exercise. Here’s a key tip for you on this one. The absolute best time to exercise for improved HDL is right before you eat. Of course, exercising any time of the day is good and should be done, but right before a meal will provide you with the best results.

3. Reduce (avoid if possible) refined carbohydrates. This doesn’t just include sugary sweets, but foods like flour, white rice, etc. Any food that causes your blood sugar to spike will lower your HDL.

Other factors which will help increase your HDL include losing weight, getting rid of trans fats, increasing your Omega 3 intake, and adding more soluble fiber to your diet.

Improving HDL is important, but taking care of cholesterol from both sides of the HDL and LDL equation will provide you with the best heart and health results.

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In one corner is the High-density lipoprotein (HDL) we call the good cholesterol. In the other corner is the low-density lipoprotein (LDL) we call the bad cholesterol.

So what exactly makes the HDL good and the LDL bad? At the risk of making things more confusing in the LDL versus HDL analysis, neither one is really good or bad by itself. It’s what they do and how they work that makes them good or bad for your arteries and heart health.

Allow me to explain.

LDL carries cholesterol and triglycerides FROM the liver to peripheral tissues. This is not what you want. So the LDL is bad because of WHERE the cholesterol is being transported.

This “dumping” of cholesterol in the wrong places from LDL causes a plaque build-up and it’s common knowledge that this same plaque accumulation leads to an increased risk of atherosclerosis, heart attacks, and strokes.

On the other hand, HDL helps carry lipids through the bloodstream BACK to the liver. These lipids include LDL cholesterol and triglycerides. So by carrying these harmful fatty substances back to the liver, the liver can then do it’s job and filter it out of the body. This is what you want to happen.

It’s now believed my many scientists that your good cholesterol does more than just transport some of the nasty fats back to your liver.

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That really shouldn’t come as a surprise as it’s common sense that staying active is needed for all aspects of good health.

But one of the more exciting aspects about the relationship between exercise and cholesterol is that exercise is one of the few things – along with the proper cholesterol diet foods – that has been proven to be effective at raising high-density lipoprotein, or your “good” HDL cholesterol. (Ideally, both men and women should have 60mg dl of HDL cholesterol.)

And having high levels of HDL cholesterol is every bit as important (maybe more so) as maintaining low levels of LDL (low-density lipoprotein) cholesterol. In fact, having a higher amount of HDL will help reduce LDL naturally as it’s the HDL which serves as a “cleaning agent” for the more harmful LDL particles.
How Much Exercise is Needed to Benefit Cholesterol Levels?

How much exercise is enough to start seeing improvements and noticeable results on that next blood test?

That’s the tricky part as no one seems to know for sure. There’s no formula or foolproof plan that gets consistent results across the board for both men and women.

As reported by WebMD , a study at the University of Tokyo seems to indicate that longer periods of aerobic exercise is more helpful at increasing HDL levels than shorter, brief periods.

That’s not really a surprise, but is there a target that you should aim for?
Is There An Ideal Exercise or Fitness Plan or Cholesterol?

If you have the time, a good plan would be to focus on aerobic or cardio activities such as:

* Walking
* Biking
* Swimming

… and resistance training is great for increased metabolism, burning fat, and weight loss. This can include either weight training, using resistance bands, or simple isometric exercises.

If you did a 30 minute session, 5-7 times a week, of aerobic activities you’d get a ton more health benefits than simply lowering your cholesterol levels.

But don’t feel pressure to do intense exercise sessions several days per week. You don’t have to take up running or join a gym to get benefits. As anyone will tell you, any added activity is time well spent.

The extra physical activity can be simple things such as:

* Working in the yard
* Cleaning the house
* Walking you do while out shopping
* Playing a musical instrument
* Gardening

Just get your body in motion and get your blood pumping. Anything that gets your heart rate up and increases circulation can do wonders at cleaning your artery walls and blood vessels, which make it easier for your heart to pump blood through your body.

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Maybe you saw your numbers increase and it left you scratching your head wondering what you did wrong.

Unfortunately, most doctors don’t really understand natural foods as well as they understand drugs and that’s a shame. So the end result is that you often get bad advice when it comes to dietary changes.

But sit tight as I’m about to share some foods that are proven to help regulate blood cholesterol levels.

Now, for the most part, it’s a good idea to ignore any health claims made by the maker of any food product. Chances are they are stretching the truth at best. But guess what … the Quaker isn’t kidding around about oatmeal and cholesterol. Thanks so the soluble fiber, oatmeal really does help lower cholesterol.

If you’re already eating oatmeal to help with cholesterol, I’m wondering if you know a neat little trick that can help even more. You can sprinkle some cinnamon on your oatmeal and get another boost of help with your cholesterol. People have successfully used cinnamon for cholesterol for a very long time now with good results.

And then there’s a tasty, crunchy snack that not only provides your body with good, healthy fats but once again … is proven to help regulate and lower blood cholesterol levels. The crunchy snack I’m referring to is often called the “healthiest nut’ … the almond.

But you need to be careful when it comes to almonds and cholesterol. Any heated oils are bad for your cholesterol, so you’ll want to stay away from roasted almonds. For optimum benefits you’ll want to get raw almonds. And if given a choice, never get anything salted with regular table salt. Instead, opt for unsalted or salted with sea salt.

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1. Does Cinnamon Lower Cholesterol? If you enjoy the taste of cinnamon and have high...

Cinnamon does help regulate cholesterol as well as blood sugar levels. But your body does need it in pretty high doses before you see big results, so don’t expect miracles.

Studies have shown that you can receive noticeable cholesterol improvement with cinnamon but only at doses of around 1-2 teaspoons a day. That’s quite a bit of sprinkling every day, don’t you think?

You can supplement with a cinnamon extract, but the results from a high dose of cinnamon will never compare to using low doses of a wide variety of effective cholesterol-lowering ingredients like you find in CholesLo. (Plus the CholesLo $100 Product Promise is unmatched by any cinnamon product … or any other cholesterol product for that matter.)

And of course, using a sugar and cinnamon combination is not a good choice, as the sugar will more than offset any good the cinnamon does.

So don’t get too carried away with thinking cinnamon is going to cure your cholesterol problems. It’s really been over-hyped a bit, but it is a good healthy spice.

One food that is a little under-rated is the almond. Many know of the healthy fat in almonds, but few know about the good you can get with almonds and cholesterol.

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1. Low Cholesterol Foods Have you gone on a special cholesterol diet plan from...

Thoughts of Surf-and-Turf meals clogging your arteries and increasing your risk of a heart attack really took a lot of the enjoyment out of the meal, didn’t it?

But here’s the interesting tidbit that you probably haven’t been told…

You see, foods with high cholesterol content have little or no effect on your blood cholesterol levels.

All that matters is if the food is a cholesterol-forming food … not whether or not the food contains cholesterol.

I know it sounds counter-intuitive at first, but think about this…

It wasn’t that long ago that doctors told their patients who had water retention to STOP drinking water. The logical and accepted thought was that if you drank more water it would make the situation worse.

Of course, we now know that to be utterly false. If you’re retaining water you actually want to drink MORE water to flush it out. The body only retains water when it’s not getting enough and begins to store it up.

While this analogy isn’t an apples-to-apples comparison with how cholesterol in food works, it’s another example that what seems logical at first glance isn’t always how the body works in real life.

But get this… eating lobster can still have a negative impact on your blood cholesterol levels.

Before you think I’m changing my mind on all this, let me tell you why I say that.

You see it all depends on whether you eat your lobster “dry” … or if you dip it in butter vs. margarine. The difference is a big one and I’m guessing it’ll surprise you.

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The confusion about cholesterol and eggs is as great as any other topic concerning blood cholesterol levels.

For decades now, we’ve known that eggs – specifically the egg yolk – is high in cholesterol. And we’ve been told to limit our dietary cholesterol intake in order to keep our levels down and reduce our risk of cardiovascular disease.

One large chicken egg typically has between 200-213 milligrams of cholesterol. And since the daily intake recommendation is less than 300mg per day … it’s easy to see why eating eggs would be a no-no on a low cholesterol diet.

Yes, egg yolks are a food that is high in cholesterol. That’s 100% true.

The logic in that advice is too simple to ignore. Eat too much cholesterol and our levels will elevate to dangerous levels. (Or so we thought…)

Then came reports from organizations like the American Heart Association and American Cancer Society that weren’t very anti-egg at all. Their studies showed that eating 1-2 eggs … every single day … has little to no impact on your cholesterol levels or risk of coronary heart disease.

Then the Harvard Medical School jumped on board with more pro-egg information.

In fact, new studies are popping up all over the place which show little to no connection between eating eggs and having high cholesterol in the blood. (I’ll get back to this point in a minute. It’s critically important in understanding all this…)

FACT: Eggs are high in cholesterol.

MYTH: All that food cholesterol goes straight to your bloodstream and is a risk to clog arteries.

While it makes sense that eating high cholesterol foods would cause high blood cholesterol … the truth is … it doesn’t. It never has. It never will.

Eat the egg as a whole … egg white and yolk together … and it’s a good, healthy food.

In fact, eggs are packed with good nutrients. One egg contains around 6 grams of protein as well as healthy unsaturated fats. Eggs are also known to be a good source of choline and lutein. (Choline has been directly linked with preventing memory loss, and lutein aids with vision.)

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1. Butter versus Margarine Controversy Q. “I keep hearing two totally different points of view...

The comparison between butter and margarine certainly has drawn some extreme opinions with both sides digging in their heals and claiming the other to be a heart risk nightmare.

The argument against butter is that it is on the banned list of high cholesterol foods as it contains dietary cholesterol and saturated fat and hence, is increasing your risk for coronary heart disease.

The anti-margarine side will contend that it’s the hydrogenation process and trans fats which make margarine a far worse choice for your arterial and heart health.

First, let’s cut to the bottom line. Will replacing butter with margarine lower your blood cholesterol levels and reduce your heart attack risk?

The answer is a resounding NO.

As reported by Nutrition Week, those who eat margarine have twice the rate of heart disease as butter eaters.

The surprising fact to most is that the dietary (natural) fat in butter is not stored as excess body fat, but rather is used directly for energy.

The trade-off and decision in deciding between butter and margarine boils down to this…

Do you want to consume natural fats or artificial fats?

Natural fats (yes, even saturated fats) are necessary to the body for cell regeneration and to maintain proper balance. While anything artificial is viewed as a foreign object to the body and it takes extra “stress and energy” to deal with it.

I want you to remember this and make this Rule #1 when making any food choice: Natural foods are always better than artificial foods. Always.

Butter is made from cream and is a natural healthy fat. Believe it or not, butter does have nutritional value. there’s plenty of evidence to support that butter helps boost the immune system, and we know it contains nutrients that build strong bones and teeth.

Margarine on the other hand, is an artificial spread concoction of chemicals. The artificial trans fat created in the hydrogenation process is a serious contributor to elevated blood cholesterol levels and damages artery walls.

Butter tastes better. And it’s better for you.

The truth is that margarine is one of the absolute worst things you can consume for both your arteries and heart. (That’s why I rank the “margarine vs. butter myth” right up there with the lies you’ve been told about cholesterol and eggs.)

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