Study finds lifestyle factors that could harden arteries | Newswise:

Study finds lifestyle factors that could harden arteries|

In this age where we find more and more people with Dementia and Alzheimer, it is vitally important to be aware what can cause these conditions!

One of the largest of its kind, the study performed an untargeted metabolomics profile of over 1,200 participants of the Bogalusa Heart Study to identify metabolites linked to the hardening of arteries.
Hardening arteries, or arterial stiffness, is an independent risk factor for heart disease and death, and the mechanisms that contribute to arterial stiffening are not well understood.
That’s where metabolomics can help pull back the curtain on how and when arterial stiffness begins to occur.

Metabolomics is the study of metabolites, which are created each time there is a transfer of energy in the body. Metabolites play a key role in maintaining the body’s normal function, and changes in metabolite levels can reflect how environmental factors, like smoking, diet or pollutants, influence health.

“Metabolomics can accurately measure the amount of exposures entering the body,” said study author Changwei Li
.
“In this study, we identified many metabolites related to coffee drinking, alcohol drinking, Southern foods, dietary supplements, and even pesticides,” said Li, an assistant professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at UGA’s College of Public Health.

Using the most up-to-date panel of metabolites, Li and his colleagues ran an analysis on participant blood samples, looking for environmental exposures that had an impact on measures of arterial stiffness.

The study found 27 new metabolites associated with arterial stiffness.
“We were able to identify some environmental and lifestyle related-metabolites, build metabolite networks to shown how the body reacts to the environmental exposures, and more importantly, tested the effect of those metabolites on arterial stiffness,” said Li.

The majority of these were associated with other known risk factors of arterial stiffness like high blood pressure, high cholesterol or diabetes.

But some of these metabolites are food additives and cooking ingredients found in many U.S. kitchens.

For example, the team identified two peptides – gamma-glutamylvaline and gamma-glutamylisoleucine – that are commonly used to enhance the savory taste of chicken broth.
“Our study raised possibility that those additives may cause arterial stiffness. Given the wide usage of those additives, future studies are warranted to investigate their role in arterial stiffness.”
To be clear, said Li, the current study is a snapshot of metabolites. The relationship between some of the metabolites and arterial stiffness over time is unclear, and he has plans to run this study again using longitudinal data.

The full report of the findings can be found in the current issue of the American Journal of Hypertension at https://academic.oup.com/ajh/advance-article/doi/10.1093/ajh/hpz046/5429584
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Writer: Lauren Baggett, lbaggett@uga.edu, 706-542-7636
Contact: Changwei Li, changwei.li@uga.edu, 706-583-0918
This release is available online at https://news.uga.edu/study-lifestyle-factors-harden-arteries/

SEE ORIGINAL STUDY

10 Healthy Reasons To Enjoy Real Butter

Butter Versus Olive Oil


 The Jury is out!

Posted on:

Saturday, November 10th 2018 at 4:15 am

Written By:

GMI Reporter

This article is copyrighted by GreenMedInfo LLC, 2018
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Butter has gotten a bad rap for many years, starting in the last century with the rise of margarine, which we now recognize as a deadly trans fat.  More recently, butter has been shunned in favor of olive oil and canola oil. But here’s why we should reserve a place at the table for good old-fashioned butter.

A study from Lund University in Sweden shows that butter leads to considerably less elevation of fats in the blood after a meal compared with olive oil, flaxseed oil or a new type of canola oil. High blood fat normally raises cholesterol levels in the blood, which according to the discredited "lipid hypothesis," elevates the risk of atherosclerosis and heart attack.

Why doesn’t butter raise blood lipid levels?
 
Researchers pointed out that 20 percent of the fat in butter consists of short and medium-length fatty acids.  These are used directly as energy and do not stay around long enough to affect blood fat levels very much.

The researchers opined that although butter raises blood cholesterol in the long term, its short-term effects may actually be advantageous.

Not everyone agrees that butter’s advantage over olive, canola or vegetable oils is only a short term phenomenon. Sally Fallon of The Weston A. Price Foundation is a staunch and eloquent advocate of the benefits of butter and disagrees that butter or cholesterol is a factor in the increase of cardiovascular disease.

The vast fat-free conspiracy

Since the early 1920’s butter has been pushed aside in favor of margarine and other fad fats and vilified as a deadly saturated fat that causes heart disease. Yet for thousands of years before that, butter was a dietary staple of many cultures with no evidence of adverse health effects.
Between 1920 and 1960, Americans’ use of butter declined from 18 pounds per person per year to 4 pounds, yet heart disease went from a relatively unknown condition to the number one killer. So how likely is it that butter is killing us?

According to Fallon, butter is the victim of a vast fat-free conspiracy, formed by those who benefit from replacing healthy butter with disease promoting mass produced vegetable oils and trans fats.
The truth is that butter is good for you.  Here are 10 benefits of eating real, fresh creamery butter:

1.   Butter is the most easily absorbable source of vitamin A which supports the thyroid and adrenal glands, and in turn, the cardiovascular system.

2.   Butter doesn’t lead to excess body fat since its short and medium chain fatty acids are burned for quick energy and not stored, and it also gives a feeling of satiety that may decrease cravings and over-eating.

3.   It’s rich in anti-oxidants including vitamins A and E, as well as selenium protecting against heart disease as well as cancer.

4.   Butter is a good source of dietary cholesterol which acts as an anti-oxidant, repairing damage from free radicals caused by rancid fats, vegetable oils and trans fats. Cholesterol is also important for the development of the brain and nervous system in children.

4.   The saturated fat in butter consists of short and medium chain fatty acids which have anti-tumor properties and also strengthen the immune system.

5.   Butter contains conjugated linoleic acids (CLA) which are cancer protective.

7.   When in its raw state and not pasteurized, butter has an anti-stiffness property called the Wulzen factor, that protects against arthritis, cataracts and hardening of the arteries.

8.   Butter is a good source of iodine in a highly absorbable form and necessary for proper thyroid function.

9.   It promotes gastro-intestinal health and decreases rates of diarrhea in children.

10. Butter is a good source of vitamin K2 which prevents tooth decay and builds strong teeth and bones.

Remember that the richest benefits are found in raw butter made from pastured cows.

Learn more about the evidence-based health benefits of butter by visiting the GreenMedInfo butter database: Butter Health Benefits.

You Can Unclog Your Arteries Naturally

Unclogging Arteries

7 Simple Ways You Can Unclog Your Arteries Naturally

by DailyHealthPostMay 14, 2018

Atherosclerosis is a word you probably hear a lot more than you care to. It refers to the hardening of your arteries due to a buildup of plaque, which is essentially a combination of “cholesterol, fatty substances, cellular waste products, calcium and fibrin (a clotting material in the blood).” (1).

When this happens, you are at risk for having a heart attack or stroke. According to the American Heart Association’s 2016 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics Update, in 2013, 1 of every 3 deaths in the US was a result of heart disease, stroke, and other cardiovascular diseases. Plus, heart disease and stroke were listed as the number one (and two) killers worldwide, according to the report (2).

While your doctor will probably recommend living a healthy lifestyle that includes eating according to the national dietary recommendations and getting exercise, if you show any signs of atherosclerosis you will likely be given a prescription for a statin (cholesterol lowering medication) or a fibrate to lower your triglyceride levels, along with a slew of other medications (3).

Ultimately, while your doctor will tell you these drugs can help control or treat atherosclerosis, many studies also show they are inherently dangerous and can even worsen the situation or lead to other diseases, including cancer (4).

Completely Preventable

The good news is that like most diseases, atherosclerosis is preventable and even reversible in some cases. The best part is that you can take charge of your health starting today.
And to help you get started, here are 7 natural ways you can not only prevent arterial plaque buildup but possibly even reverse clogged arteries.

Page 1 / 5 >

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Higher Cholesterol Levels Associated With Better Health

Higher Cholesterol Levels

 This is contrary to what we have been led to believe!

The Big Fat Surprise — Higher Cholesterol Levels Associated with Better Health

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March 6th, 2018
By Dr. Joseph Mercola
Contributing writer for Wake Up World

Saturated Fat and Cholesterol are Important Parts of a Healthy Diet

Saturated fat and cholesterol have been wrongfully vilified as the culprits of heart disease for more than six decades. Meanwhile, research has repeatedly identified refined carbs, sugar and trans fats found in processed foods as the real enemy.

The first scientific evidence linking trans fats to heart disease while exonerating saturated fats was published in 1957 by the late Fred Kummerow,¹ biochemist and author of “Cholesterol Is Not the Culprit: A Guide to Preventing Heart Disease.” Unfortunately, Kummerow’s science was overshadowed by Ancel Keys’ Seven Countries Study,^2,3 which linked saturated fat intake with heart disease. The rest, as they say, is history. Later reanalysis revealed cherry-picked data was responsible for creating Keys’ link, but by then the saturated fat myth was already firmly entrenched.

Keys’ biased research launched the low-fat myth and reshaped the food industry for decades to come. As saturated fat and cholesterol were shunned, the food industry switched to using sugar and trans fats (found in margarine, vegetable shortening and partially hydrogenated vegetable oils) instead.

The Big Fat Surprise

 

Investigative journalist Nina Teicholz was one of the first major investigative journalists to break the story on the dangers of trans fats in a 2004 Gourmet magazine article.⁴ In the video below, Joe Rogan interviews Teicholz on her 2014 book, “The Big Fat Surprise,” which grew out of that initial exposé.

In it, not only does she dismantle the belief that saturated fat and cholesterol make you fat and cause disease, she also reveals that while the dangers of trans fats are now becoming widely recognized, the recommended replacement — vegetable oils — may actually be even more harmful. She also delves into the politics and shady underbelly of nutritional science, revealing how the food industry has manipulated the scientific discussion and built a largely false foundation for the nutritional recommendations we’re given.

Corruption is not the sole problem, though. Teicholz notes there is a very strong tendency to “fall in love” with your own ideas and beliefs, and this is as true for scientists as it is for regular people. And, when you strongly believe something to be true, you will tend to find the evidence you’re looking for and ignore anything that refutes it. So, it’s really a human psychology problem.

Scientists are not supposed to fall into this all-too-human trap. “They’re taught to distrust their beliefs [and] shoot down their own hypothesis,” Teicholz says, “but in the case of nutrition science, that didn’t happen … They cherry-picked the evidence and completely ignored and actively suppressed, even, anything that contradicted their ideas.” This certainly included Keys, who was passionately wed to his hypothesis that saturated fat caused heart disease.

Busting the Low-Fat Myth

 

Teicholz points out the fact that saturated fat has been a healthy human staple for thousands of years, and how the low-fat craze has resulted in massive sugar consumption that has increased inflammation and disease.⁵ The American Heart Association (AHA) started encouraging Americans to limit dietary fat, particularly animal fats, to reduce their risk of heart disease in 1961, and maintains this position to this day.

Just last summer, the AHA sent out a presidential advisory to cardiologists around the world, reiterating its 1960s advice to replace butter and coconut oil with margarine and vegetable oils to protect against heart disease. Yet historical data clearly shows this strategy is not working, because concomitant with low-fat diets becoming the cultural norm, heart disease rates have soared. The AHA also ignores research demonstrating the low-fat, low-cholesterol strategy does more harm than good. For example:

1. In 2012, researchers at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology examined the health and lifestyle habits of more than 52,000 adults ages 20 to 74, concluding that lower cholesterol levels increase women’s risk for heart disease, cardiac arrest and stroke. Overall, women with “high cholesterol” (greater than 270 mg/dl) actually had a 28 percent lower mortality risk than women with “low cholesterol” (less than 183 mg/dl).⁶
2. In 2013, prominent London cardiologist Aseem Malhotra argued in the British Medical Journal that you should ignore advice to reduce your saturated fat intake, because it’s actually increasing your risk for obesity and heart disease.⁷
3. A 2014 meta-analysis published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, using data from nearly 80 studies and more than a half-million people, found those who consume higher amounts of saturated fat have no more heart disease than those who consume less. They also did not find less heart disease among those eating higher amounts of unsaturated fat, including both olive oil and corn oil.^8,9

Why A Low Sodium Diet May Wreck Your Health

Low Sodium Diet May Wreck Your Health


 Interesting how previously prescribed health remedies are frequently overturned, this is one such case.

Story at-a-glance

• Salt has been wrongly demonized as a major contributor to high blood pressure. Factors that play a significantly greater role include your sodium-to-potassium ratio, and a high-sugar, processed food diet
• Symptoms of sodium deficiency may include muscle fatigue, spasms, cramps and heart palpitations. Such symptoms may disappear by adding more salt to your diet
• In the 1600s, the average person was consuming up to 100 grams of salt per day from salted cod, herring and meats. Today, most people get 10 grams of salt per day or less, yet we have far higher rates of hypertension
• Low-sodium diets may lower blood pressure. However, this reduction in blood pressure may not necessarily translate into a reduction in cardiovascular events. In fact, the reduction in blood pressure may actually be harmful by potentially increasing heart rate, as well as the risk of falls and fractures
• Low-sodium diets can also worsen your total cholesterol to high-density lipoprotein ratio and induce insulin resistance increasing both triglycerides and insulin
• Subpopulations that may need to monitor their salt intake are listed, as are conditions that increase your need for salt by increasing sodium loss. The benefits of salt loading before exercise are also discussed

18 Steps To Lower Cholesterol Naturally

How to Lover Cholesterol Naturally

This post shows that with careful food planning, Cholesterol can be lowered naturally.

 

Lowering cholesterol naturally isn’t impossible. This is especially true if you know what to do.
High cholesterol is a common affliction today, contributing to dangerous conditions like heart disease.

Most people turn to medication to lower their cholesterol levels instead of turning to the real culprits: diet and activity (or lack thereof).

With today’s discoveries in nutrition, we know that some specific foods can help lower cholesterol. In addition to making simple lifestyle changes, achieving healthy cholesterol naturally is completely possible.
If you’re trying to avoid taking statins, here’s a list of foods that lower cholesterol naturally:

Fish Versus Meat

Fish Versus Meat


 Interesting facts about fish consumption versus meat.

Story at-a-glance

• A PBS Frontline documentary, “The Fish on My Plate,” tracks a best-selling author’s global pursuit of an answer to the question, “What fish should I eat that’s good for me and good for the planet?”
• For a whole year, Greenberg gave up meat and ate only fish — some 700 portions — while investigating open-sea fishing and fish-farming practices in places like Alaska, Norway and Peru
• Greenberg’s radical change in diet had virtually no effect on helping him address his cholesterol issues and high blood pressure, but it did enable him to lose weight and raise his omega-3 levels

The Cholesterol Myth

The Cholesterol Myth

I am sharing this article as with ongoing research many myths about  Cholesterol and for that matter so many other health issues are constantly under scrutiny and the findings of research are ever changing as we can see here



By Dr. Joseph Mercola

Contributing writer for Wake Up World

For the past four decades, the U.S. government has warned that eating cholesterol-rich foods such as eggs would raise your LDL cholesterol (inappropriately referred to as “bad” cholesterol) and promote heart disease. However, decades worth of research utterly failed to demonstrate this correlation, and the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans ^{[1],[2],[3],[4],[5]} finally addressed this scientific shortcoming, announcing “cholesterol is not considered a nutrient of concern for overconsumption.” ^[6]

How Statins Degenerate Your Brain Health

How Statins Degenerate Your Brain Health


 This post is quite alarming considering how many people are taking statins to regulate Cholesterol.  Perhaps a healthy lifestyle is the answer to avoid the symptoms that Statins cause.

• Tens of millions of people are taking statin medications to lower their total cholesterol levels, which does not have a significant effect on your risk for cardiovascular disease
• Statin medications are linked to the neuromuscular degenerative disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease
• Malfunction of mitochondrial energy production from the effect of statins on CoQ10 may be the primary cause of most side effects

Cholesterol And Heart Disease

Cholesterol And Heart Disease

Here's an interesting article about Cholesterol and Heart Disease.  Dr Mercola reassures us that cholesterol is not a trigger to disease.
 

• Cholesterol, essential to your health, is both manufactured by your liver and ingested from your food
• Understanding your cholesterol ratios is more important than looking at a single number
• Evidence demonstrates use of statins to reduce risk of heart attacks in people over 60 may be a “waste of time”
• Simple lifestyle choices may reduce your risk for heart disease without the additional health risks associated with statin medications

The Truth About Cholesterol

Cholesterol Myth We Need To Stop Believing

Finally an article that uncovers the myths surrounding Cholesterol:

•  Your body needs cholesterol; your liver makes about three-quarters or more of your body's cholesterol—that’s how important it is

• High cholesterol is not caused by what you eat
• Your total cholesterol will tell you virtually nothing about your heart disease risk

Magical Remedy

Magical Remedy

This simple combination of Cinnamon and Honey could be the answer to so many ailments.  It is worth giving a try to see what happens.  It certainly can never do any harm to protect yourself against the inevitable conditions that sometimes occur when we age and certainly is never wrong to strengthen the Immune System.

Statins Linked to Lower Aggression in Men, but Higher in Women

 Here's an interesting study concerning statins that affect behaviour in different ways in men and women.  These are used to control cholesterol levels but affect people often adversely.

 Statins Linked to Lower Aggression in Men, but Higher in Women

How Cholesterol Helps Support Your Health

 A study that contradicts traditional conceptions of High Cholesterol leading to heart disease.

Heart disease is one of the leading causes of death, and cholesterol is frequently given the blame. But is it justified?
Over the past 60 years, research has repeatedly demonstrated that there's NO correlation between high cholesterol and plaque formation that leads to heart disease. Despite that, the saturated fat/cholesterol myth has persisted.

How Cholesterol Helps Support Your Health

Natural Ways to Lower Cholesterol

This is great advice.  Vitamin D is so important to health.  Stock up this summer in the sun and take it internally in Pill form to live a healthy life.   Vitamin D helps reduce Cholesterol so check your levels and take this wonder Vitamin.

That's right, you do need cholesterol. This soft, waxy substance is found not only in your bloodstream but also in every cell in your body, where it helps to produce cell membranes, hormones, vitamin D, and bile acids that help you digest fat.

Cholesterol also helps in the formation of your memories and is vital for neurological function. Your liver makes about three-quarters or more of your body's cholesterol, and according to conventional medicine, there are two types:  .............. read on by clicking the link below.


What Is Cholesterol and Why Do You Need It?