5 Simple Ways To Improve Your Cholesterol

Cholesterol has a bad reputation, but the truth is that the soft, waxy substance is important for your health. Your body makes it to build and repair cell walls, produce hormones, and aid digestion. Heart-health problems may crop up, however, when there’s too much bad LDL cholesterol and not enough good HDL cholesterol in your body. 

Bad Cholesterol cause Heart attack

While it’s estimated that 54 million Americans could benefit from higher HDL levels, the good news is that every 1-point rise in HDL lowers the risk of death from a heart attack by 6%. (If you’re not sure of your HDL level, ask your doctor about getting a baseline cholesterol test.)

Good Cholesterol (HDL) reduce the risk

Factors like age, gender, and family history can all affect cholesterol in ways you can’t control, but diet, exercise, and other lifestyle habits can make a big difference in maintaining a healthy cholesterol profile. Read on for some of the steps you can take to help you naturally boost your good cholesterol.

Lose weight

The benefit: 1 point HDL increase for every 6.6 pounds dropped

Losing just 5 to 10 pounds may be enough to increase your HDL level.

Take a brisk walk

The benefit: 2 to 4 point HDL increase

Exercising for 20 minutes a day may increase your good cholesterol by 2.5 points. For every additional 10 minutes per day, you could add an extra 1.4 points to your HDL. The type of exercise you choose doesn't matter; just keep your exertion at a point where you’re panting but not out of breath. If you haven’t exercised in some time, or are new to exercise, it’s important to talk with your doctor before starting a new fitness program.

Don’t smoke

The benefit: 4 point HDL increase

Smokers have HDL cholesterol levels 5mg/dL lower than nonsmokers, on average. As little as two weeks after quitting, a smoker’s HDL cholesterol level begins to climb. Talk to your doctor about your options for quitting.

Snack on nuts

The benefit: 2 to 3 point HDL increase

Eating 67g of nuts per day—that’s a little more than 2 ounces—may increase the ratio of HDL to LDL in the blood by a little more than 8%. Good options include walnuts, pecans, almonds, peanuts, pistachios, and macadamia nuts.

Get more calcium

The benefit: 1 point HDL increase

In a study published in the American Journal of Medicine, people who took a daily 1,000mg calcium supplement saw their HDL level rise by 7%

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Signs You're Having A Heart Attack (Female)

Even though heart disease is the leading cause of death for women, and men and women die of heart attacks in roughly equal numbers each year, women are still largely assumed to be less at risk for heart attacks than men. That makes getting the right care—even in an emergency—all the more difficult. That's why it's crucial for all women to know the symptoms of a heart attack—and to realize the signs are often different in women than in men. Here are the often subtle symptoms you should be aware of. 

Heart Attack Symptoms

Extreme fatigue: In the days or even weeks before a heart attack, more than 70% of women experience debilitating, flulike exhaustion. You may suddenly feel too tired to cook dinner or lift your laptop.

Mild Chest pain: Rather than the elephant on the chest, women may feel less severe pain—and not always in the region of the heart. Pressure or achiness can occur in the breastbone, upper back, shoulders, neck, or jaw.

Profuse sweating: You may find yourself suddenly drenched in perspiration for no apparent reason, or your face may be pale or ashen.

Nausea or dizziness: Prior to a heart attack, women often have indigestion or even vomit. You may also feel like you're about to pass out.

Breathlessness: Almost 58% of women report panting or inability to carry on a conversation because they couldn't catch their breath.

Sleeplessness: Nearly half of women have trouble falling asleep or wake up during the night in the weeks before a coronary.

Anxiety: "Many women experience a sense of impending doom or fear before a heart attack," though experts don't necessarily understand why, says Marianne Legato, MD, director of the Partnership for Gender-Specific Medicine at Columbia University. Nonetheless, it's real and it matters. "That's your body telling you to pay attention. Trust those instincts," she advises.

It is time to pay your doctor a visit when you have the symptoms above

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Running is Bad for Health? Reduce Mortality Rate by Following These 5 Advices

According to new research in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, lots of running may be worse for your heart and your health than a lighter jogging regimen.

Running Induce Higher Mortality Rates?

People who pounded pavement at a slow pace for 1 to 2.4 hours a week had lower death rates than those who ran faster and more frequently, the study found. In fact, the fast-paced, hard-core runners in the study had nearly the same mortality risk as people who didn't run at all.

Any running—slow or fast, for long distances or short ones—is a strenuous form of exercise, says study coauthor Jacob Marott, who researches heart health at Frederiksberg Hospital in Denmark. And long-term, heavy amounts of strenuous exercise may cause unhealthy structural changes to your heart and large arteries. These changes may help explain the greater mortality rates among the serious runners, Marott says. (This is not the first study to link lots of exercise to higher mortality rates.)

Physical activity is unquestionably good for your health. But when it comes to running, going at an easy pace for 20 to 45 minutes three days a week is ideal for your long-term health, the study data show.

Here are 5 other times you're better off taking it easy:

When it Comes to Dieting

There are countless cleansing or detoxifying products and plans that claim to "flush" your system of harmful contaminants. That sounds great. But there's one problem: "In terms of dieting, weight loss, and your health, there's no hard science backing these cleansing or detox approaches," says Joy Dubost, PhD, RD, a spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. On the other hand, there is research showing these types of extremely restrictive diets may be damaging. One study of various colon cleanses found side effects ranging from cramping and vomiting to major electrolyte imbalances and renal failure. Skip the extreme diets in favor of eating a wide range of healthy foods. 

This is my dinner (On diet)

When your reach for Pro-biotics

Strains of these helpful gut organisms have been linked with improved digestion, a healthier immune system, and even a sharper brain. But while study after study shows the potential benefits of pro-biotics, a few have also highlighted the possible risks. New research from the University of Texas suggests adding lots of different pro-biotic organisms to your diet might actually reduce the number of helpful critters in your gut, and national health organizations also aren't sold. "It [may be] possible to take too many pro-biotics or mix them in inappropriate ways," states to a report on pro-biotics from the American Gastroenterological Association. So while pro-biotics may be a big part of smart dieting down the road, mainlining every pro-biotic source and supplement you can get your hands on may be risky. 

Too much of Pro-biotics?

Drink Too Much

Lots of research has linked heavy drinking to major health issues, from heart disease to cancer. But adopting a zero alcohol policy isn't necessarily your healthiest course of action, as a growing pile of evidence has linked light or moderate drinking to a longer life and a healthier heart: People who swallow 6 or fewer drinks a week lower their risk of death from heart disease by 29%, shows a recent study from the Journal of Aging Research. That doesn't mean you should start drinking to protect your heart, the authors say. But if you enjoy alcohol, having a glass of wine or cocktail now and then may be healthier for you than total abstinence, the research indicates.

 Having a glass of wine makes you healthier

Sleep Too Much

You know the perils of too little sleep. But an overabundance of zzzs may also be hazardous. Research from the University of California, San Diego linked regularly sleeping more than 8 hours a night to higher mortality rates. Similar studies have linked 10 or more hours of sack time to memory problems, heart disease, and diabetes. While the mechanisms tying too much sleep to these health conditions is foggy, it's likely that poor sleep quality and other underlying health conditions are to blame for your massive amounts of shut-eye. If you're regularly sleeping 9 hours or more, that may be cause for concern.

Overslept actually induce higher mortality rates

Reduce Caffeine Intake

Studies show coffee is a good source of healthy antioxidants—not to mention caffeine; everyone's favorite stimulant has been linked to lower rates of depression, stroke, and some cancers. But while you can safely enjoy several cups of coffee a day, you can definitely overdo it. One Mayo Clinic study found adults who drink more than 4 cups of coffee a day suffered a 56% jump in risk of death from all causes. While black coffee—not java loaded with sugar and cream—appears to be a healthy addition to your diet, if you're having problems sleeping or you can feel your heart racing in your chest, you're overdoing, the Mayo study authors say.

Have you been drinking too much of Coffee?

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The Miracle of Apple Cider Vinegar

Droves of traditional home remedies have been debunked as little more than old wives’ tales. There are a handful of popular home remedies, however, that have stood the test of time and proven over and over again that they work to cure a variety of common ailments. Apple cider vinegar has not only proven to be a good remedy for all kinds of medical issues but it may just have earned the moniker of miracle food.

Apple Cider Vinegar

Apple cider vinegar is a special type of vinegar that results from the crushing of apples or the fermenting of apple cider. As with all vinegar, the sugar is converted to alcohol by the work of bacteria. But the real champions of apple cider’s folkloric superpowers is in its acids. So let’s get a leg up on how these acids can help us.

The Benefits of Acetic Acid

Acetic acid is the dominant acid of all vinegars, responsible for giving vinegar its distinctive smell and sour taste. Acetic acid acts as a strong antimicrobial agent, preventing the development and growth of bacteria. Acetic acid is also corrosive so it can be used as a cleaning agent with great effect. Acetic acid is present in all vinegars, so it’s no wonder dear old mom used vinegar to clean her glass in years past.

Strong antimicrobial agent

The Benefits of Lactic Acid

Lactic acid is normally produced by our muscles and has several notable benefits to our health. Extra lactic acid boosts your stamina and energy, assists in the metabolizing of carbohydrates and promotes the growth of muscle tissue in the body. Lactic acid also has anti-aging benefits. It boosts collagen production and hydrates the skin from the outside in. Lactic acid helps men to increase testosterone levels, which can be quite useful for men with a testosterone deficiency.

Slow down aging process

The Benefits of Citric Acid

Citric acid promotes the growth of brain and muscle tissue. Citric acid converts proteins, carbs and fat into CO2 which serves to boost your metabolism. If you have been afflicted with kidney stones, citric acid has been shown to aid in breaking up the stones.

Citric acid help in breaking up the kidney stone

The Benefits of Malic Acid

Found most commonly in apples, malic acid is what makes green apples tart and has a health benefit of its own. In small doses, it can serve as a teeth whitener. But you don’t want to overdo it because malic acid is also very corrosive. Its primary health benefit is to boost energy by converting the carbs you eat to usable energy.

Natural Teeth whitener?

Some of the benefits touted by the most the strident proponents of apple cider vinegar, like acne reduction and blood sugar control for diabetics, have yet to be proven. However, you cannot doubt the power of the acids that make up apple cider vinegar.

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