So as most of you know, I've spent the majority of my post-graduation and non-cycling time studying nutrition and the human body with the hopes of better understanding the differences between alternative and western medicine. The whole cholesterol thing are actually pretty old hat if you've kept yourself up-to-date but since I know there are many distractions in our lives I wanted to pass along some great info as this is a fundamental element of many different types of cardiovascular disease. I've recently come across two talks that compliment each other nicely. Yes, there is real science to back this stuff up but unfortunately you are not going to find this type of information plastered all over the world media, you still have to dig a bit. Thank goodness the internet has provided us with shovels.
In case you really don't have time, here are a few points to trip your interest. 1) High cholesterol is your body asking loudly for more raw materials as it needs cholesterol to create vitamin D and testosterone.
2) Oxidized oils are extremely damaging to the endothelial walls of our arteries.
3) When blood viscosity is high, blood pressure will also be high as the heart is forced to PUSH blood through your body. This causes a higher sheering-force on the oxidized-cholesterol damaged and subsequently inflamed portion of the our arteries' endothelial walls.
4) Excessive iron is a bad thing. Donating blood will help the body replace oxidized cells and remove excess iron from the bloodstream. This may be one reason why women out-live men on average.
5) If you are making your own homemade fermented vegetables or buying them at a specialty store, extra kudos for you! 6 ounces of ferment vegetables provide 10 trillion units of bacteria (1/2 your total gut colony!) as opposed to high quality probiotics supplements that provide a mere 5-10 Billion units. Kombucha provides a very low amount in the standard supermarket form and $8 yogurt at the store has to still be cooked to 117' Fahrenheit (just like all the other cheaper yogurts) in order to pass regulations, which is unfortunate as all beneficial bacteria is killed at 115' Fahrenheit. #firstworldproblems!
Take away message: Inflammation induces oxidation of lipids, so avoid cooking with oils and other foods that cause inflammation. Also add inflammation-reducing spices into your diet, classics include cinnamon, tumeric and many others.
