Advances in medical science and the latest research are now finally revealing that some of the most widely believed myths are just that: myths. You are urged to see the truly life-changing and thought-provoking information in this free ebook. It will leave you looking in a new direction when it comes to protecting your good health and well-being.
In this unusual book you will discover exactly why cholesterol is good for health - the higher the level of blood cholesterol the better. Why polyunsaturated oils are in fact much worse for health than saturated fat and lard, and why a high fat diet is much healthier than a low fat diet.
This e-book reveals in shocking detail the truth about some of the most treasured and widespread myths in the world. Pet beliefs that we have been brainwashed to believe are turned on their head, based on the latest scientific evidence. For example, oily fish such as sardines, herring, salmon and trout are widely believed to be good for the heart but in fact they actually cause heart disease. Equally, all kinds of fish oil supplements are shown to greatly increase the risk of cancer, heart failure, diabetes and brain disease.
Among the world's greatest myths you will also discover why all kinds of exercise are bad for health, however little the exercise. In fact, exercise is responsible for millions of documented deaths worldwide, and is a major cause of heart disease and diabetes. For the first time ever, this book reveals startling new research showing that exercise is a major cause of cancer.
Excerpt:
Myth # 1: high cholesterol in the blood is bad for health.
Reality: the higher the level of cholesterol in the blood the better for health.
According to the World Health Organization, about 17.3 million people die each year from heart disease and stroke (and many more are permanently incapacitated), making clogged arteries the leading cause of death from disease. Clogged arteries are caused by 'atherosclerosis'. According to Wikipedia, atherosclerosis is a condition in which an artery wall thickens as a result of the accumulation of fatty materials such as cholesterol and triglyceride. It is caused by the accumulation white blood cells that form plaques within the arteries and is promoted by LDL cholesterol."
Put simply, Wikipedia is saying that LDL cholesterol accumulates in arterial plaque. For this reason it used to be thought that a high level of LDL cholesterol in the bloodstream was bad for health. The thinking was that the higher the level of LDL cholesterol in the blood, the greater the chance that some of that LDL cholesterol will end up promoting clogged arteries, i.e. heart disease.
But this is not so. All the latest research is showing that LDL cholesterol does not cause clogged arteries unless it becomes oxidised. The level of LDL cholesterol in the blood does not matter provided it does not become oxidised.
LDL cholesterol particles in the bloodstream act like a microscopic bus fleet, picking up and taking vital supplies to all our trillions of body cells everywhere. So LDL cholesterol particles carry nutrients to body cells where they are used for a variety of essential functions such as providing the building blocks for cellular membranes, and for making hormones that are vital for life.
We want our level of LDL cholesterol to be high because this improves the delivery of vital nutrients to cells throughout the body and the brain. A low level of LDL leads to poor health, brain disease, pre-mature aging of the body and a shorter life span than otherwise.
To be clear: trying to reduce your cholesterol level is not necessary or even healthy because we do in fact need a high level of cholesterol for good health. It is a myth that we need to keep our blood cholesterol level low. The reality is that we want our blood cholesterol level to be as high as possible for both LDL and HDL.
"Cholesterol is not a deadly poison, but a substance that you need to be healthy. High cholesterol itself does not cause heart disease. People who have low blood cholesterol have the same rates of heart disease as people who have high blood cholesterol".
Source: 'The Cholesterol Myths: Exposing the Fallacy that Saturated Fat and Cholesterol Cause Heart Disease' by Uffe Ravnskov (regarded by most as the world's leader on the relationship between cholesterol and human health), Newtrends Publishing, 2000, ISBN-13: 978-0967089706.
Coming back to atherosclerosis, LDL cholesterol is only harmful when it becomes oxidised. So the question is: what makes LDL particles in the bloodstream become oxidised? The answer is that lifestyle factors such as exercise, smoking, stress, air pollution and a poor diet can make LDL particles become oxidised. Exercise, in fact, is a major cause of LDL oxidation.
Such lifestyle factors cause a shortage of oxygen in the bloodstream and this in turn causes a shortage of oxygen for the circulating LDL particles. And this in turn causes oxidation. Oxidative stress is caused from a lack of oxygen, not from too much oxygen.
When the LDL cholesterol particles become oxidized they quickly and easily go directly into the inner-lining (endothelium) of any artery in the body, including the brain, the carotid artery, coronary artery or the arteries that supply your legs and arms with blood. Once there, the oxidised LDL particles become stuck to the inside of the artery/vessel creating a 'damaged area' where inflammatory cells such as macrophages and platelets accumulate.
More macrophages, cholesterol and other lipids begin to accumulate at the site, forming a plaque that begins to grow thicker. Over time, this can slow or completely restrict the amount of blood flow that travels to one or more areas of the body. This can result in a variety of health conditions, including coronary heart disease, peripheral vascular disease or dementia.
A high level of LDL cholesterol does not increase the likelihood or incidence of cholesterol oxidation. On the contrary, a high level of LDL cholesterol promotes good health, mainly by providing the building blocks for strong, healthy cellular membranes (thus preventing cellular decay). This greatly protects the body from aging and general body deterioration.
The amount of cholesterol oxidation that occurs from poor lifestyle factors is the same regardless of whether you have a high or a low level of LDL blood cholesterol. All the recent research is pointing to the fact that we should be worried about the amount of LDL cholesterol that becomes oxidised, NOT the amount of LDL cholesterol circulating in the blood.
Here are just two examples of such research:
"Six of the studies found that total mortality was inversely associated with either total or LDL-cholesterol, or both. This means that it is actually much better to have high than to have low cholesterol if you want to live to be very old. Many studies have found that low cholesterol is in certain respects worse than high cholesterol. For instance, in 19 large studies of more than 68,000 deaths, reviewed by Professor David R. Jacobs and his co-workers from the Division of Epidemiology at the University of Minnesota, low cholesterol predicted an increased risk of dying from gastrointestinal and respiratory diseases".
Source: The Benefits of High Cholesterol, by Uffe Ravnskov, MD, PhD, 2004, www.westonaprice.org.