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Cholesterol
Cholesterol is a waxy substance found in all tissues in humans and other animals. Because of this it only makes sense that all foods derived from animal sources such as meat, eggs, fish, poultry, and dairy products contain cholesterol. The highest sources of cholesterol include egg yolks and organ meats like liver and kidneys. There is no known plant derived food that contains cholesterol, not even avocados or peanut butter which contains a lot of fat. People are often confused about cholesterol because they confuse food or dietary cholesterol with blood cholesterol. High levels of cholesterol in the blood are a risk factor for coronary artery disease. Health guidelines generally recommend a dietary cholesterol intake of 300 mg or less per day. However if LDL (low density lipoprotein) cholesterol is elevated, dietary cholesterol intake should be less then 200 mg. The interesting part of this is the fact that the major culprit in raising blood cholesterol is not dietary food cholesterol but too much food fat in the form of dietary triglycerides and in particular saturated fats; food cholesterol alone makes a minor difference for most people. Too much food cholesterol becomes a problem when it is eaten in conjunction with very high fat diets. Sometimes this extra cholesterol in the blood may be dropped off, staying in the vessels and arteries. It is a factor in atherosclerosis as it leads to plaque build-up in the arteries. One reason for the confusion is the way food is cooked and eaten. Eggs, for example, are high in cholesterol and are often cooked and served with high fat bacon or sausage. The combined meal of eggs and bacon get a bad reputation for raising blood cholesterol. The fact is that the large amount of fat in bacon and sausage is more likely to raise blood cholesterol than the food cholesterol in eggs. Shrimp are high in cholesterol but low in fat. They remain low in fat is they are steamed or broiled, but that changes when they are encased in a deep fat fried coating. Another source of confusion is that many cooking oils made from corn, safflower, and soybeans are often labeled as cholesterol free. They are of course cholesterol free being made from plant products. The only problem is these vegetable oils are nearly 100% food fat and large amounts of dietary fat can also raise blood cholesterol. In addition to the amount of fat, another characteristic of food fat that causes it to affect blood cholesterol differently is whether the fat is saturated or unsaturated; that is whether the fat contains mostly saturated or unsaturated fatty acids. Saturated fatty acids generally raise blood cholesterol by providing the liver with the best building blocks for making cholesterol. A simple guideline followed by many people is that blood cholesterol is raised by eating solid saturated fates and lowered by unsaturated and monosaturated liquid fats. This is a good rule to remember is you are concerned about your Lower Cholesterol. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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