Watch out for cholesterol

Subject: Watch out for cholesterol Thu Mar 20, 2008 6:40 am

Cholesterol supplies energy to vessels and helps control them. However, excess cholesterol may prove fatal as they may lead to even heart attacks. Controlling the in take of fried food items helps reduce cholesterol levels to a great extend. Instead of frying, try switching over to baked and grilled items. The maximum quantity of oil required by the human body is four teaspoons per day. The extra oil consumed increases the cholesterol level. Animal fat, coconut oil, palm oil and milk products contain high levels of fat. As far as possible avoid the yolk of eggs too and do not consume more than three eggs a week.

Mutton and beef increase cholesterol levels in the body,whereas skinned chicken is harmless. Coconut oil and sugar are high cholesterol agents, whereas gingelly oil and sunflower oil are relatively safer. Use more of olive oil, saffola, corn oil, groundnut oil and gingelly oil for cooking. Sweets contain lot of sugar and dalda the fat of which gets absorbed by the body easily and thereby must be avoided as far as possible as the excess fat gets immediately converted to cholesterol. The compound omega 3 fatty acid present in fish prevents blood from clotting while small amounts of cholesterol are present in prawns and crabs. Fish fried in fatty oils increase cholesterol levels in the blood.

The American Heart Association Programme have charted out two basic diets. They have prescribed certain items as fatty foods and these include egg yolk, butter, red meat and milk products. Fish and chicken contain only very low levels of cholesterol while vegetables, grams, grains and vegetable oils are zero cholesterol food items. For those who want to bring down cholesterol levels a diet of vegetables, fruits, grains, grams, chicken and fish would be ideal. Another oil very safe to use is the olive oil. Olive oil may be used as an alternative to animal fat and is healthy and safer too.