We’ve been lied to about to causes of heart disease
“High cholesterol causes heart disease”
How many times have you heard this? Probably a lot.
But what if I told you that cholesterol is actually necessary for good health?
And that everything you’ve been told about cholesterol is a lie?
Without cholesterol, we die. It’s that simple.
It is needed to synthesize hormones like cortisol, testosterone, progesterone, estrogen and even vitamin D.
It strengthens your cell membranes, helps break down your food, and so much more.
So if that is the case, why has cholesterol been demonized for so long?
Well, like most things, you can follow the money.
The American Heart Association has demonized foods containing cholesterol & saturated fats, while encouraging people to eat “heart healthy” vegetable oils
This is horrible advice, considering those oils increase risk of heart disease, and foods with saturated fat are some of the most nutrient dense foods on the planet.
Imagine thinking that a grilled mushroom with canola oil on a bun is healthier than a grass fed steak?
According to healthline:
“New statistics predict that 45 percent of people in the United States will have at least one issue related to the disease by 2035.
That’s up from earlier predictions from the American Heart Association (AHA) of 40 percent by 2030.
The AHA predicts that costs related to the disease will double from $555 billion in 2016 to $1.1 trillion in 2035.”
This is very interesting considering their donors make billions off of cholesterol lowering pharmaceuticals
The truth is, dietary cholesterol has little to no effect on your blood cholesterol.
Your body regulates the amount of cholesterol in the blood.
When you eat less cholesterol, your body makes more.
When you eat more cholesterol, your body makes less
Heart disease is simply not caused by cholesterol, and there is plenty of high quality research showing that cholesterol is not associated with an increased risk of heart disease.
I’m sure you’ve heard that there is good cholesterol (HDL) and bad cholesterol (LDL), which is just more outdated advice.
Many doctors are still claiming that elevated LDL is causing heart disease.
This study shows that LOW LDL levels are actually associated with HIGHER risk of all cause mortality
So if it isn’t LDL, what is the cause of heart disease?
Enter: oxidized LDL
“Oxygen in our blood can attack things flowing in our blood, including the fatty acids in LDL. After oxygen has attacked the fatty acids in LDL, the LDL particle is said to be oxidized, or basically burnt.” –
The oxidized fat and cholesterol can be toxic to your cells.
If your LDL is oxidized and your arteries are continually exposed to oxidized fats and cholesterol, it becomes a large plaque, eventually causing a heart attack or a stroke.
Your triglyceride to HDL ratio is a much better indicator of heart disease risk than your LDL levels as well.
“Research has shown that people with the highest ratio of triglycerides to HDL “good” cholesterol has 16 times the risk of heart attack as those with the lowest ratio of triglycerides to HDL.”
Men with a low ratio of triglycerides/HDL had low risk of heart disease even with high LDL cholesterol
Men with a high ratio had higher risk even with low LDL
⬆️Triglyceride/HDL ratio➡️poor metabolic health
“Men with conventional risk factors for IHD [heart disease] have a low risk of IHD if they have low TG–high HDL-C levels.”
TG/HDL dominates