1. HDL, the Good Cholesterol
HDL cholesterol stands for high-density lipoprotein. It's actually the only cholesterol component that you want in a high amount. HDL cholesterol should be at least 40, but the higher, the better. This cholesterol carries cholesterol away from the heart and back to the liver for eventual elimination from the body. Keep in mind, though, that males usually have lower HDL levels than females.
2. Raise Your HDL
Exercise helps raise your HDL levels. Incorporate physical activity for at least 30 minutes on most days of the week if you're interested in increasing HDL cholesterol. Researchers believe that resistance training such as weightlifting is also helpful for raising your HDL cholesterol. Some studies have shown a significant increase in HDL levels in individuals who weight train. It's not even necessary to lift heavy weights to benefit from resistance training. Do some basic movements such as squats and bench presses along with some dumbbell exercises for your shoulders, biceps and triceps.
3. Let's Talk About Ratios
Your heart disease ratio is helpful for determining your risk of developing heart disease. To calculate your heart disease ratio, divide your total cholesterol by your HDL cholesterol. It's desirable to keep your total cholesterol under 200, but a very high HDL level brings down your heart disease ratio. It's possible to have a very high total cholesterol but still have an acceptable heart disease ratio if you have a very high HDL level.
4. Terrible Trans Fats
Eating a lot of trans fatty acids can lower your HDL levels. Limit your intake of processed foods or reduce them from your diet completely, and you should see an increase in your HDL levels. Trans fats are a main ingredient in packaged, baked goods and cookie items. Prepare baked goods from scratch when possible, using cold-pressed vegetable oil. Cold-pressed or expeller-pressed oil has the advantage of not having any chemicals added during processing.
5. Do You Know Your Cholesterol?
The National Cholesterol Education Program recommends that individuals get a complete cholesterol profile done every 5 years, beginning at age 20. Heart disease takes years, and even decades, to develop. If you begin having cholesterol tests done early on, you'll have enough time to make diet and lifestyles changes if necessary. Diet and lifestyle changes should almost always be tried before beginning cholesterol medication. Hypoalphalipoproteinemia is the name for continually low HDL cholesterol, which in some cases is hereditary.
