I’d love to kick off this post with the old cliche “As summer heats up…”  However, this summer’s weather is so unpredictable (at least in the American Mid West), that I’ll start this way, instead: As summer tries to decide what season it wants to act like, people are making vacation, cookout, and party plans [...]

Beta Glucans The soluble fiber from oats, which is mostly oat beta glucan, can be beneficial for someone looking to achieve healthy weight.  It has many properties that contribute to maintaining and achieving healthy weight loss goals. The Benefits are Numerous Because it’s a fiber, it can increase the feeling of fullness when taken with [...]

Apples and Peanut Butter Apples are rich in natural fiber, and fiber is an absolute must in any healthy diet.  These colorful fruits can actually help lower cholesterol.  On top of that, the skin is rich in antioxidants.  Your choice of apple will change what antioxidants you can get out of it, since colors are [...]

The Natural Way Is it possible to lower cholesterol?  A research study printed in the American Journal of Clinical Nutritions says a emphatic “YES”.  A low saturated fat diet was combined with either a statin medication or a specialized diet.  The result of cholesterol drop for the specialized diet (29.6%) was comparable to the drop using [...]

Get Some TLC To help people on the road to lower cholesterol naturally the goverment has created the TLC (Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes) diet.  This diet is designed to help the typical American drop their cholesterol naturally.  The government suggests that doctors first recommend the TLC diet, for those who do not have heart disease, to help [...]

The Mediterranean diet emphasizes the following: An abundance of food from plant sources. These include vegetables, fruits, breads, potatoes, cereals and grains, nuts, beans and seeds. Whole grain instead of enriched sources of breads and cereals are preferred.  These benefits are definitely worth it. Minimally processed foods and whenever possible, seasonally fresh produce. Purchasing seasonally [...]

Healthy Tips High fiber vegetable source foods are best for a cholesterol lowering diet.  This includes beans, whole grains, nuts, seeds, fruits, and vegetables.  In addition to fiber, all of these have natural phytochemicals (plant chemicals) which are beneficial to your heart health and your overall well-being. Protein Sources Use beans and whole grain recipes [...]

The “Good” Cholesterol A good level of HDL cholesterol is vital to heart health.  The idea is that HDL cholesterol is cholesterol that is being moved to the liver, where it will be processed.  After the liver, the cholesterol leaves the body.  HDL levels reflect how well your body is processing cholesterol.  When your LDL [...]

Addressing the Issue I will not pretend I know the answer to this question, but I can give some of my opinions on the matter. Doctors for years have been telling us to eat right and exercise.  For most of those years we have taken a very American stance and asked them kindly to mind [...]

Many people are aware that heart disease is the number one killer in America, but many do not realize that according to the World Health Organization at least 80% of premature deaths from cardiovascular heart disease and stroke could be prevented through a healthy diet, regular physical activity and avoiding the use of tobacco…