SearchExclusive.com

High Cholesterol – Symptoms and Treatment Options

Cholesterol is a thick and waxy, fat-like substance widely found in every cell of the body. Produced by the liver, cholesterol is essential for the production of certain hormones, vitamin D as well as some substances that aid in digestion.

Cholesterol is transported through the bloodstream by small particles called lipoproteins. Healthy cholesterol levels protect an individual against heart diseases. However, at the same time, if the level of cholesterol rises beyond a certain limit, it can build up in the arteries and become the cause for a heart attack or stroke.

There are two types of lipoproteins — low-density lipoproteins (LDL), which causes heart diseases, and high-density lipoproteins (HDL), which returns the LDL cholesterol to the liver for elimination from the human body.

If the level of LDL cholesterol is high, or the level of HDL cholesterol is low, fatty deposits can build up in the blood vessels, leading to a blockage of the arteries. This condition is called high cholesterol. Thankfully, there are plenty of treatment options that help in controlling the LDL cholesterol levels.

Common symptoms of high cholesterol
There are no visible symptoms of high cholesterol. So, an individual could have this condition and yet know nothing about it.

If a person has high cholesterol, their body will store all the excess cholesterol in the arteries. Arteries are responsible for transporting blood from the heart to the rest of the body. A buildup of cholesterol in the arteries can result in plaque, which in turn makes these arteries narrow. If the cholesterol levels keep rising, it can lead to a blockage in the arteries.

In case the arteries that supply blood to the heart muscles get blocked, a person can have a heart attack. Similarly, if there is a blockage in the artery that delivers blood to the brain, a person experiences a stroke.

Apart from this, high cholesterol often causes an unusual pain in the chest as well as pain while walking as the arteries are unable to supply an adequate amount of blood to the legs.

Some effective treatment options for high cholesterol

Medications
Usually, all doctors prescribe lifestyle changes and regular exercise to lower the cholesterol levels. However, if these remedies are unable to fetch results, they may prescribe medications to bring down the LDL cholesterol levels. They will examine your physical state and study your medical history before prescribing any cholesterol medications.

Exercise
Regular exercise can boost HDL cholesterol and decrease the levels of LDL. One should indulge in 30 minutes of moderate exercising, 5-7 days a week. Brisk walking, yoga, swimming, aerobics, jogging, and bicycling are some activities that can help in reducing LDL cholesterol levels.

Exercise coupled with a healthy diet is one of the best treatment options for high cholesterol.

Quit smoking
Smoking has a negative impact on HDL cholesterol levels. Moreover, smoking compounds the risk and likelihood of heart diseases by affecting a person’s blood pressure. It is also extremely harmful to diabetic patients and increases the chances of coronary heart diseases.

If you quit smoking, you can lower your cholesterol levels and prevent the blockage of arteries. It is also advisable to avoid passive smoking.

Losing weight
People whose weight exceeds the ideal body weight tend to have high levels of LDL cholesterol. Thus, shedding those extra pounds is one of the best treatment options for high cholesterol.

Eating a well-balanced and heart-healthy diet
Reducing the intake of saturated fats and trans-fats is the best way to treat high cholesterol. According to the American Heart Association, an average person’s saturated fat consumption should not be more than 5 to 6 percent of their daily calorie intake.

One can make the following dietary changes to lower their cholesterol levels:

Avoid consuming products such as fried foods, red meat, sugary foods, beverages, and full-fat dairy products.
Consume foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids such as tuna, mackerel, and salmon.
Eat more fruits, vegetables, poultry, whole grains, and nuts.
Cook food with healthy oils, such as vegetable oil.

Newer treatments
Sometimes, doctors prescribe relatively new medicines such as alirocumab or evolocumab to people who do not respond to regular cholesterol medicines. These medicines are injected once every two weeks. They help the liver in removing cholesterol from the blood.

However, there is ongoing research to find out more about this treatment option for cholesterol.

When to see a doctor?
In case you experience any symptom of high cholesterol, it is best to consult a doctor. They may suggest getting a blood test done. Usually, people need to get retests once every five years.

If your test numbers are not within the desirable range, your doctor will suggest getting the test done frequently to measure the changes. They may also recommend frequent testing if there is a family history of heart disease, high cholesterol or diabetes. However, dietary and lifestyle changes can be the headstart toward a healthy heart as it is one of the most effective and convenient treatment options for high cholesterol.

Related Reading

Tips for Buying the Best Dog Food

Most of the dogs do not have a food fuss and may eat almost anything that you feed them. Dogs are not choosy at all when it comes to food and nutrition. Hence, it is important to make sure that the food that you are purchasing for your dog is healthy. The landscape of dog food has been developing by leaps and bounds in recent times. There is a wide variety of options to choose from in the online and offline market. Given the wide range of options that are available today, buying the best dog food might seem to be a confusing task indeed. All the commercial pet food that is available in the market today is regulated by the FDA. Therefore, most of the products do contain nutritious, healthy, and safe ingredients. But it does help to know certain basic factors you should look for while buying food for your dog. Prioritize on the nutritional guarantee The best dog food, which meets the dog’s needs adequately has a statement written on the label of the product, from the Association of American Feed Control Officials. Buy from some of the best dog food brands, such as Fromm Family Foods, Earthborn Holistic, Nature’s Variety Instinct, and The Honest Kitchen.

Different Types of Kitchen Cabinets Available for Your Home

The most important aspect when designing your kitchen is deciding on the type of cabinets. In addition to functionality, kitchen cabinets score on aesthetics as well. Once the layout is planned, you can go ahead with choosing the cabinets. If you’re remodeling your home or just the kitchen, what you need to consider are the types of cabinets that furnish your kitchen. Here are a few types of kitchen cabinets that you can choose from. Base cabinets These kitchen cabinets are mounted on the floor and they are placed after checking out the floor plan. A major part of your job in the kitchen is on these base cabinets, which hold and support the countertops. These base cabinets are combined to carve out kitchen islands. A number of base cabinets are fused/set against one another and installed on site. The base cabinets, in addition to supporting the countertops, serve as drawers to hold your cutlery and appliances. Wall cabinets Mounted on the walls, these cabinets can store everything, right from your cookware to cookbooks. In terms of design, they offer utmost flexibility. Wall cabinet kitchen is available in varying heights, multiple widths, and custom depth options. This customization helps you to fit in your stuff of varying shapes and sizes into the wall cabinets.

How to Pick the Right Dog Food for a Sensitive Stomach

In today’s world, where you are presented with over a dozen choices for every item you would purchase for your own kitchen, it is not surprising that you have an equal number of options for your dog’s food. However, choosing the perfect brand and formula for your dog out of a range of options in the market is not an easy job. Your pet depends on you and trusts you to make the right choice for them. Therefore, it is imperative that you do your research about the products available in the market, understand what your dog needs, know what might be your pet’s problems, and then make a sound decision. What is a sensitive stomach? Dogs are known to have voracious and large appetites. Keeping that in mind, it is normal to assume that they have strong stomachs. They can eat close to anything be it sweets, bakes, chewy gum, hard leather or even woolen socks for that matter! It always so happens that the strongest of them are prone to allergies and can develop a disorder which is medically translated as a sensitive stomach. This might be due to a sudden change in the food habits or even due an infection picked up from somewhere.

All You Need to Know about Cat Food

For cat owners, cat food is a hot topic. You need to think about it in different aspects. The best thing is to know which ingredients are good for cat food and which are harmful. If you are aware of this, you can get an idea about the quality of the cat food just by going through the label. It is always sensible to stick to one brand of cat food. However, you may also want to try and prepare cat food yourself. There are also various options for wet cat food as well. Cat’s love for fish is universal, so you can do without going for expensive cat food. Nevertheless, whether you buy it or prepare cat food at home, you need to ensure that the food contains enough nutrition and calories. You would need to have some idea about the ingredients that must be present in cat food and make a worthy selection for your cat. Basic ingredients present in good cat foods Cats need a variety of nutrients to stay healthy and active; they need various vitamins, minerals, fats, proteins, and oils. The following is a brief explanation of the basic ingredients that should be present in cat foods.