It’s time to rethink everything you’ve been told about cholesterol!
Today, September 29th, is World Heart Day so we borrowed Clinical Nutritionist Suzan Terzian for 5 minutes to provide us with tips on whole-body wellness and shatter a commonly held misconception about cholesterol.
Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death on this planet, and believe it or not, is a silent killer in women. According to Suzan, the very best way to beat it is to know more than just your heart—now’s the time to heal your whole body.
As we all know, Suzan’s passion ‘is to empower people with cutting-edge scientific information and provide functional tools to enhance and improve their health’. By understanding that heart disease does not happen overnight, there’s always time to reset your life and take back control of your body. So here are her tips on how to help you begin your healthy heart journey:
❤️ 90% of heart disease cases are caused by lifestyle choices, not genetics. Suzan says that the one single choice you can make today to heal your body is to cut out all processed vegetable oils, such as canola, safflower, or sunflower oils. Opt instead for extra-virgin, cold-pressed olive oil, extra virgin organic coconut oil, or high-quality avocado oil—these oils protect your heart and brain and reduce inflammation in the body, and always be mindful of the types of carbohydrates you may be consuming along with them!
❤️ Cholesterol is not the end all and be all. LDL (low-density lipoprotein) cholesterol is often called ‘bad’ cholesterol because it collects in the walls of your blood vessels, raising your risk of heart attacks or strokes. The truth is that cholesterol is extremely important for our health and our bodies need it to make healthy cells and hormones. The answer is not in simply reducing LDL values through medication. To determine your risk for cardiovascular disease, we must look at particle size of the cholesterol molecule as well as your triglyceride and inflammatory markers.
❤️ Search your lifestyle first. The view of cholesterol—that all LDL is bad—has enabled the adoption of oversimplified dietary trends, overuse of medication and the myth that all saturated-fat consumption raises your risk of heart disease. But when it comes to the health of your hear, there is definitely a link between consumption of processed fats, simple carbohydrates, lack of movement, and management of stress.
❤️Stop thinking about your organs as separate entities! Take a whole-body approach to wellness, and consider every lifestyle change you make as benefitting the whole you. Everything in your health is interconnected.
If you’re interested in a lifestyle change, contact us for a free discovery call with Suzan!
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