Do you like sweets, cheese, butter, meat, fruit? Be careful. Dr. Stolińska advises what we should eat
Hypercholesterolemia, i.e. increased levels of “bad” cholesterol in the blood, is a problem that affects increasingly younger people. We talk to Dr. Hanna Stolińska, a clinical dietitian, about why this happens and what to do to help yourself.
Paulina Cywka, “Wprost”: Let's start with the basics. What really is cholesterol?
Dr. Hanna Stolińska*: Cholesterol is a steroidal alcohol transported by lipoproteins, i.e. HDL or LDL protein complexes. This is what we commonly call “bad” or “good” cholesterol. “Good” proteins (HDL) carry cholesterol to the liver, where it is metabolized and used. However, “bad” proteins carry cholesterol from the liver to the body's cells, causing various damage. From a medical point of view, the total amount of cholesterol in the body is very important. These standards are constantly falling, even to 190 mg/dl. The pharmaceutical industry is doing its thing.
Are you saying that the pharmaceutical industry deliberately lowers cholesterol standards?
Yes, I think that's the case.
What could be the reason for such actions?
The pharmaceutical industry wants to sell as many cholesterol drugs as possible. On the other hand, these lower standards may be a kind of “scary thing” and encourage people to take greater care of their health. It must be remembered that more and more people suffer from cardiovascular diseases. These diseases are one of the main causes of death in the world, including in Poland.
It is worth mentioning that cholesterol levels increase not only by eating fatty or fried products, but also by consuming large amounts of sugar hidden in sweets and various unhealthy snacks.
So what should we eat to lower the level of “bad” cholesterol?
