Cholesterol plaques

When we eat, we think little about what is in the composition of the foods we eat. And only after we are diagnosed with coronary heart disease or atherosclerosis, we begin to treat nutrition with reverence. Women over 40 should be afraid of cardiovascular diseases, but this does not mean that if you are 25, you can not think about the content of the so-called “bad” cholesterol in foods. Prevention is still better than cure.

To begin with, let’s explain why cholesterol is divided into useful and harmful . In general, cholesterol is an indispensable building block in our body. It is involved in the construction of cells, helps to produce vitamin D, all kinds of steroid hormones of the adrenal glands, female and male sex hormones. This is our irreplaceable and important “useful” cholesterol.

“Bad” cholesterol comes to us with food of animal origin, for example, butter, margarine, sour cream, fatty meat, etc. Such cholesterol worsens the work of the heart, as it lingers on the walls of blood vessels and forms a kind of “cholesterol plaques”. Due to the formation of plaques, the blood flow in this place slows down, which allows cholesterol to be deposited even more. As a result, obstructed blood circulation, or even blockage of blood vessels, and these are the causes of heart attack and stroke. Possible detachment of the plaque, which leads to the formation of thrombosis.

How to Control Your Cholesterol Levels

In order to control the level of cholesterol, you need to do a special blood test every six months. The normal level of “bad” cholesterol ranges from 4-5.2 mmol / l. If the level is higher, then you need to see a doctor.

An interesting discovery was made by British scientists: 30% of people have a gene that increases the amount of “good” cholesterol. To wake up this gene, you just need to eat every 4-5 hours at the same time.

If your cholesterol level is above normal

If the norm is not greatly exceeded, then doctors, as a rule, prescribe a special diet. If the norm is greatly exceeded, then medication is prescribed. It may be necessary to undergo an examination – angiography, to find out exactly where the small place is.