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Hey, What’s Your Cholesterol?

Joette Calabrese, HMC, PHom M

May 26th, 2011  |  13 Comments

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It’s about as casual and common a question as, “How’s it going?” And because cholesterol is made out to be the dirty culprit responsible for high rates of heart disease, many stay on top of their cholesterol levels and try desperately to keep them below whatever the doctors are touting as the now, new dangerous level.

Men of all ages can’t even watch a hockey game without being prodded to “Ask your doctor if Lipitor is right for you”. Well, don’t bother asking. The answer is “No!” Plain and simple.

Lipitor’s website begins with the words, “If you have high cholesterol, you may not even know it.”  Well, that’s true. If indeed high cholesterol was the cause of heart disease, the reminder and warning might be appreciated, but what the mainstream media doesn’t tell us is this:

  • Cholesterol is not a proven cause of heart disease.

Or this:

  • Diets high in saturated fats and cholesterol do not equate to heart disease or high cholesterol levels.

And this:

  • There is very little cholesterol or saturated fats in the arterial plaque that clogs.

How ‘bout this?

  • Rates of heart failure have doubled since the advent of statin drugs[2]

The truth is, cholesterol-lowering drugs (not cholesterol) cause more harm to the heart than cholesterol levels.

Conversely, Statins are dangerous with their proven crimes:

  • They inhibit the production of a coenzyme, Q10, which the muscles, including the heart need to function.
  • Statins cause heart failure.
  • Statin drugs are a depressant.
  • Statin drugs rob the mind of its cognitive ability.
  • Statin drugs have been shown to cause cancer.

Cholesterol is not the culprit it’s made out to be. In fact, it is a wonderful thing.

Let me repeat: Cholesterol truly is a wonderful thing and necessary to the body.

Did you know that cholesterol is [3]:

  • Made by almost every cell in the body?
  • Waterproof and helps build waterproof cell walls, allowing the cellular function to proceed without impediment?
  • A powerful antioxidant, which helps protect against cancer?
  • A building block for hormones- those that address stress, those that regulate mineral metabolism and blood sugars, and sex hormones, too?
  • Necessary for brain function as well as the central nervous system?
  • Like an anti-depressant? It helps the body make use of serotonin-the chemical that helps make us feel…well, good?

So, if you’re trying to catch cholesterol, you’re going after the wrong perpetrator!

But wait a minute-what about the “good” vs. “bad” cholesterol debate-maybe we shouldn’t be up in arms against all cholesterol, but only the “bad” cholesterol?

Yet, this, too, is an ill-waged war.

The only thing “bad” about the “bad cholesterol”, i.e., LDL (low-density-lipoprotein) is that it carries homocysteine along with the necessary cholesterol, from the liver to other areas of the body.

Homocysteine is an amino acid that we rarely hear about within the cholesterol debate.

Too much homocysteine can damage the arteries and the heart.

Instead of lowering cholesterol levels, endeavor to lower homocysteine levels, which run rampant when our body doesn’t have enough vitamin B6, B12 and Folic Acid.

Unfortunately, this is all too often the case, since the body is ultimately depleted of these vitamins thanks to processed foods (The Heart Revolution, 15). Vitamins B6, B12 and Folic Acid are destroyed by technological advances, which are appealingly called “refined” and “processed”.  Think white: white refined sugars, white flours, canning and heating processes, etc.

Let the case against cholesterol come to a close. It is a beautiful and necessary substance needed for healthy minds and bodies. As is saturated fats and cholesterol rich foods. What we don’t need is a statin drug to cover up symptoms that don’t really even exist and the onslaught of processed foods.

So if you really want to arm yourself against heart disease and truly want to stop worrying about cholesterol levels, try these easy, safe and delicious ideas:

Stock you refrigerator with free-range eggs and raw milk.

Don’t be afraid of fat-soluble vitamins A and D and the butter and lard   from which they are deliciously delivered. Enjoy gourmet, nutrient dense, foods such as coconut oil, palm kernel oil, liver and organ meats from free range animals. Find a friend who hunts and stock your freezer with venison and bones for making genuineheart-healthy bone stocks for your soups.

Eschew canned, processed fruits and vegetables as well as pasteurized dairy, especially ultra-pasteurized. And replace these with homemade or cottage industry provided sources.

Do eat fresh fruits and leafy greens. These are packed with homocysteine- regulating Vitamins: B6, B12 and Folic Acid. Then include crispy, fermented vegetables.

It’s really rather easy.  Just eat like an old time farmer, OR like a European immigrant OR a connoisseur seated at the finest restaurant in Paris or Rome.

Then enjoy your meals knowing that your heart will love it.   In fact,  it  might just have a love affair with genuine food.

Sources and further reading:

Charles T. McGee, M. (1993). Heart Frauds . Coeur d'Alene: MediPress.

Duane Graveline M.D., M. (2009). The Statin Damage Crisis. Duane Graveline M.D., M.P.H.

Kilmer S. McCully, M. a. (2000). The Heart Revolution . New York: HarperCollins .

SHerry A. Rogers, M. (2008). The Cholesterol Hoax. Sarasota : Sand Key Company, Inc.

Uffe Ravnskov MD, P. (2000). The Cholesterol Myths. Washington DC: NewTrends Publishing, Inc.

Joseph Mercola  www.Mercola.com


[1] www.lipitor.com; 4.20.11

[2] www.westonaprice.org

[3] www.westonaprice.org

 

I am a homeopath with a worldwide practice working with families and individuals via Zoom. I'm also a teacher and most importantly, a mom who raised my now-adult children depending on homeopathy over the last 31 years. I lived decades of my life with food intolerances, allergies, and chemical sensitivities until I was cured with homeopathy, so I understand pain, anxiety, and suffering. You may feel that your issues are more severe or different than anyone else’s, but I have seen it all in my practice and in my work in India. My opinion is that nothing has come close to the reproducible, safe and effective results that my clients, students and I have achieved with homeopathy.

Call today and learn how homeopathy might just be the missing piece in your health strategy.


Joette is not a physician and the relationship between Joette and her clients is not of prescriber and patient, but as educator and client. It is fully the client's choice whether or not to take advantage of the information Joette presents. Homeopathy doesn't "treat" an illness; it addresses the entire person as a matter of wholeness that is an educational process, not a medical one. Joette believes that the advice and diagnosis of a physician is often in order.


We've provided links for your convenience but we do not receive any remuneration nor affiliation in payment from your purchase.


The Author disclaims all liability for any loss or risk, personal or otherwise incurred as a consequence of use of any material in this article. This information is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.



 

13 thoughts on “Hey, What’s Your Cholesterol?”

  1. Pam says:

    Thanks for the article. I’m sharing it with some with whom I’ve had conversations on the subject, including some who are using those very drugs.

    Just shows how incomplete, incorrect &/or just plain false information (“miss” information) can be so readily accepted and relied upon resulting in needless harm, even devastation. Some, deceived, pass on the information with well meaning intentions, but certainly there are those with very different purposes whose very intent is to deceive. It can be quite confusing and complicated. No one has it all right all the time. Not even the purported experts, professionals or authorities. So we keep pressing on to learn.

    For an earlier book by McCully (1999,) I found a “thumbs down” review (Sally Fallon, WAPF site) which begins, “Like so many other nutrition books on the market today, The Homocysteine Revolution contains much good information, but absolutely maddening errors in the section on dietary advice.”

    I read one of McCully’s booka several years back. I didn’t realize there were two on essentially same subject with similar names until going between the WAPF site and this news bit, but I wonder if a similar caution would be applied to his second book, The Heart Revolution.

    Since much of this is about dietary choices, the dietary advice would be significant.

  2. helena hennessy says:

    Hi Emily, Thanks for writing all the stuff about Statins, gave my Crestor up because I read about how it affects the liver and how it affects the memory, no after affects now. It didn’t go down well with the medics but hey I would like to keep my memory for a bit longer and as the liver is important I ‘ll keep that too.
    Thanks again,
    Lil

  3. Mindy says:

    i’ve read that a good liver cleanse can help the body’s cholesterol levels, too..does anyone know of a good liver cleanse? I’ve found a couple that include olive oil, grapefruits, epsom salts, ornithine and milk thistles?

  4. Hannah says:

    I grew up on venison, never knowing the true amazing value of what that meat was doing for me & my family! I always looked at it as a frugal means to feed a family of four but to know that it is heart healthy! Thanks for sharing & educating us!

  5. Scott Biba says:

    Thanks for the informative article.
    I have been following this issue very closely since I had 5 stents at the age of 47. I thought I was eating rather healthy but in retrospect a little heavy on the processed foods. After reading in Weston Price and other places, I have quit taking that statins and begun eating more things like flax seed, chia seed, and hemp seed.
    However, what has been on my mind lately is the hereditary aspect of heart disease that don’t seem to be discussed in these more natural approaches.
    I had Uncles on my Dad’s side that died of heart attacks. My Grandpa on my Mom’s side died of a heart attack at the age of 62. His Grandfather died of a heart attack at the age of 59. And I know that he wasn’t eating processed foods because they didn’t exist yet. And he was a farmer, so he got plenty of excercise.
    So what about heredity? If I follow these natural approaches, then it seems I may suffer the same fate as my ancestors. Is, perhaps, the predisposition for too much homocysteine a hereditary factor? Is it the way that the liver processes cholesterol?
    I certainly understand the risks of taking statins, but it seems like there is more to it (what someone like me should be doing) than is being discussed.

    1. Hi Scott, Thanks for addressing some good points. I’d be glad to discuss these in greater depth. Feel free to contact my office: contact@homeopathyworks.net and we can take it from there.

  6. Pam says:

    It is a shame to perpetrate such a scare, condemning as evil, what is really good!

    This topic of cholesterol, as well as other health issues/concerns, can be quite confusing & quite a challenge to know what to believe & who to believe, especially for the untrained and especially when even the trained professionals disagree.

    Listen to the commercials, “See what your doctor thinks is right for you.” A lot of people are trained to follow all their doctor’s advice without question. It’s almost seen a sin to go Against Medical Advice (or more so, to not go to the doctor at all.)

    My husband just had a medical appointment and came back with a prescription (for diabetes, not cholesterol) for a drug implicated in stomach cancer. Timely enough, after the appointment he saw a news story about it on television which then prompted him to do some research on it. (How often does that happen? How often does it not?) After learning more he informed the doctor he wasn’t going to take it and wanted to know if there was an alternative.

    Of course, a helpful alternative for many would be diet/lifestyle changes which could turn around a host of health issues.

    I recall your mentioning on one or some of your CD’s that one may have a genetic disposition to… whatever disease or health condition…but instead of dying at … (younger age), it may be … later in life when appropriate changes are made.

    Thanks for informing!

    1. megan says:

      funny how the brainwashing commercials are all for (and Joeatte said in another one of these and I LOVE this) McMEDICINE. Don’t see natural meds on tv radio. Because they work and people pass that info around. People who go on McMed always seem so down about it. I never hear of people doing natural acting sad about doing this. hum wonder why!

  7. Rebecca says:

    I just read this article to my mom as I have been trying to convince her that cholesterol is not the evil it is made out to be. We read,

    “Too much homocysteine can damage the arteries and the heart.

    Instead of lowering cholesterol levels, endeavor to lower homocysteine levels, which run rampant when our body doesn’t have enough vitamin B6, B12 and Folic Acid.”

    We didn’t know what homocysteines were so we looked up a definition and found the following quote:

    “All homocysteine in the body is biosynthesized from methionine, an essential amino acid found abundantly in meats, seafood, dairy products, and eggs. Vegetables, with few exceptions…, are low in methionine; even such protein-rich legumes as beans, peas, and lentils contain relatively small amounts of methionine compared to animal-derived foods.”

    It seems that the nourishing community strongly recommends these very foods (meats, dairy, etc) that not only contain cholesterol, but that would also contain methionine that turns to homocysteines which in turn break down cell walls.

    Could we conclude that it is not the cholesterol in the foods killing us, but the homocysteine producing qualities of these same foods that are doing the damage? Should we also conclude, therefore, not for the cholesterol content but the homocysteine creating content, these foods (meats, dairy, etc) should be avoided?

    I feel like my argument to tell my mom it is ok to eat butter, read meat, seafood etc. backfired a bit. 😉 I hope I am misunderstanding something! 🙂

    1. Thanks for your inquiry. First off, I strongly recommend you read “The Heart Revolution” by Dr. Kilmer McCully. It’s comprehensive and excellent, in my opinion. I defer to his input on this matter. Yes, “an amino acid called methionine is one of the essential building blocks of all proteins in foods. It is especially abundant in meats and dairy products. In the body, methionine is normally converted to homocysteine. We need some methionine, but an excessive amount will create too much homocysteine, damaging the arteries. The good news is that homocysteine can also be converted back to methionine or excreted from the body by the three important B vitamins-folic acid, B6 and B12.” (11-12).

      Remember, a balance is necessary. The nourishing community promotes red meats and dairy, but doesn’t reject other whole foods, such as organically and locally sourced fruits and vegetables (additional sources of folic acid, B6 & B12). The “nourishing community” recommends incorporating all of these nutrient dense foods and staunchly rejects refined, processed and fake food stuffs-a real cause of concern when caring for our heart’s health.

  8. Auth says:

    I have had 2 heart attacks and am cayrring around 5 stents (1999 to 2002) I am now 70 years old living in Tucson. I have illiminated ALL medicines reccommended by my doctor and cardiologists since 2004. I don’t even take an asprin. My blood pressure is very normal 124 over 72. I work self initiated construction jobs outside in heat often over 110 degrees. My cardiologist, Dr Jerman, who is one of the most respected cardiologists in the nation is trying to figure me out since he put my first 2 stents in 1999. I moved away and came back to him 6 months ago. The doppler tests show that I have no blockages in any of my arteries, all readings are 10 to 15%. I have illiminated the plaque in in my whole system permanently. There are many ways to be healthy and be cured without the TREAT, you only practice of the drug companies. Your new adventure is a wonderful oportunity to see how your technology and vast health information can be dtseminated to the public. I will be watching. P S The drug companies take the active ingredients in red yeast rice and make Zocor and other statins along with enough side additives to require a doctors review of kidneys etc. The National Heath Institute published statics that show that there is no difference between the number of people dying with high cholesterol and those with low cholesterol. 51% to 49%. Relax its not the amount of cholesterol that causes heart attacks. It’s the cracks in the plaque that fill up with choleserol that causes the blockage whether or not you have a little or a lot.

  9. megan says:

    folic acid no. folate yes. read on mercola way back when I was prego 2 yrs ago.

  10. Rose says:

    Interesting. I’m ‘high’ in LDL cholesterol and ‘low’ in B12. Looks like I realize what I’ll be upping!

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