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Dying to Lower Your Cholesterol?
In 2004, Time magazine came out with facts that countered all the anti-cholesterol drug advertisements that bombarded the media. It points to the problem with the cholesterol hypothesis: “sometimes it's dead wrong.” The fact is, more than half of the people who suffer from heart attacks have “low cholesterol.” Not only that, “high” cholesterol (300-350mg/dL) is a normal and healthy part of aging. The higher total blood cholesterol, the longer people lived.
The Great Chole$terol Hoax
No association has ever been found between the amount of lipid in the blood and the degree of atherosclerosis in the arteries. It is a myth is that high cholesterol is a major risk factor for heart disease, yet cholesterol lowering drugs are selling like hotcakes. Why? The math has already been done for you. Statin drugs are the mostly widely sold pharmaceutical drug, raking in $12.5 billion dollars in revenue. The CEO of Pfizer, makers of the cholesterol-lowering drug Lipitor, was compensated 33.9 million dollars last year, not including millions in stock options. This equates to 2.8 million per month, which is about $94,000 per day. The True Cause of Heart Disease
There are many potential causes of vascular injury, including stress of all kinds, tobacco fumes, polyunsaturated oils (unstable), oxidized fats & oils, refined sugar, metabolic consequences of diabetes (high blood sugar), iron overload, vitamin & mineral deficiencies, hydrogenated fats and trans fatty acids, microorganisms, to name a few. Injuries from the resultant free radicals weaken the vascular structure and initiate the inflammatory process in the cells lining the arteries. Cholesterol and other materials accumulate at the weakened site to prevent the vessel from rupturing.
Can Heart Disease be Reversed without Drugs? Absolutely! Diet is mostly to blame for most health problems, including heart disease; thus, a change in diet will resolve the problem. Those suffering from atherosclerosis often overindulge in refined sugar and starch. They also partake in rancid and fake fats (commercial vegetable oils, trans, and hydrogenated oils such as margarine). They tend to overcook their foods, particularly meat. They do not properly supplement.
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| Statin Drugs= Trading Cholesterol for Cancer & Congestive Heart Failure
Unknown to the public and most doctors, statin drugs such as Lipitor, Mevacor, Zocor, Pravachol, etc… can be life threatening. In every study to date, statins have caused cancer. In one trial, breast cancer rates of those taking statin drugs increased 1500%. All drugs have the potential to depress the immune system, which can contribute to cancer amongst other diseases. The damage is often irreversible. The irony is that not a single cholesterol lowering drug trial has shown to increase survival rates among users. Despite the successful attempts to lower cholesterol with pharmaceutical drugs, the death rate from heart disease has not changed over the last 75 years except that mortality from heart failure has more than doubled from 1989 to 1997.13 (Statins were first given pre-market approval in 1987. You do the math.) In other words, taking statin drugs does NOT prolong life while doubling your chances of dying of heart failure.
But there’s more. These drugs often have unpleasant side effects, including nausea, indigestion, constipation, restless sleep, loss of balance, decreased fine motor skills, loss of cognitive function, muscle problems, erectile dysfunction, weakness, heel pain, polyneuropathy, dizziness, loss of memory and mental focus. Long term users who take large doses may be left with permanent nerve damage, even after they stop taking the drug. Statins have killed and injured more people than the government has acknowledged.
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| Cholesterol…the Necessary Nutrient High cholesterol may protect against cardiovascular disease instead of being the cause! |
Most studies have shown that high cholesterol is not a risk factor for coronary heart disease. In fact, cholesterol is so crucial to the body that the liver will make 2000mg per day, regardless if there is any in the diet. Why is it so important?
- Cholesterol is part of the body’s repair substance. Scar tissue contains high levels of cholesterol, including scar tissue in the arteries.
- Cholesterol is the precursor to vitamin D, necessary for numerous biochemical processes including mineral metabolism.
- The bile salts, required for the digestion of fat, are made of cholesterol. Those who suffer from low cholesterol often have trouble digesting fats.
- Cholesterol also functions as a powerful antioxidant, a protectant against cancer and aging.
- Cholesterol is vital to proper neurological function.
- It plays a key role in memory and the uptake of hormones in the brain, including serotonin, the good mood chemical. Numerous studies have linked low cholesterol with depression. In previous studies, men who lower their cholesterol levels with medication have increased rates of suicide and violent death.
- Cholesterol is the main organic molecule in the brain, constituting over half the dry weight of the cerebral cortex.
- Cholesterol is the precursor to all the hormones produced in the adrenal cortex, which regulate blood sugar levels, and mineral balance. Corticoids are the cholesterol-based adrenal hormones that the body uses in response to stress of various types; it promotes healing and balances the tendency to inflammation. The adrenal cortex also uses cholesterol to produce sex hormones, including testosterone, estrogen and progesterone. Thus, low cholesterol can lead to blood sugar problems, edema, mineral deficiencies, chronic inflammation, inability to heal, allergies, asthma, reduced libido, infertility and various reproductive problems.
Persistently low cholesterol actually increases risk of death. The European Heart Journal has published the results of a 3-year study involving 11,500 patients found that in the low cholesterol group (below 160mg/dl) the relative risk of death was 2.27 times higher relative to those with high cholesterol. The most common cause of death in the low cholesterol group was cancer while the risk of cardiac death was the same in both groups.
The Journal of Cardiac Failure published the findings of a study involving 1,134 patients with heart disease. It was found that low cholesterol was associated with worse outcomes in heart failure patients and impaired survival while high cholesterol improved survival rates. Additionally, findings showed that elevated cholesterol among patients was not associated with hypertension, diabetes, or coronary heart disease.
If you are still fearful about adding saturated fats and cholesterol to your diet, you will find yourself on the wrong path.
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