We’ve all heard of cholesterol, and immediately think of our heart health when we hear this word. Is it always bad? Are there foods that can help to keep cholesterol levels in check, and if there are, then how?
Cholesterol can be both good and bad for the body. It can keep our cells healthy, or like having too much of anything, an excess of cholesterol will cause disease. While the body can both create and process out some cholesterol, it is best kept in a good balance with food. Certain foods in particular are really good at maintaining healthy cholesterol levels because they contain monounsaturated fats. Knowing this, you’re probably wondering what some of these super-powered cholesterol balancing foods might be…
Introducing, hazelnuts! Keep reading to learn how this nut can take your heart to healthy land.
What Is Cholesterol?
So we know that cholesterol can be good or bad for the body and that it can be balanced out with food. But what is it?
Cholesterol is a type of lipid that falls into the sterol category and is a waxy and insoluble substance. It’s made by and also processed through the liver. It is the primary substance that is synthesized by animals, and so we hear about it often.
Our bodies need cholesterol to make bile, vitamin D, and hormones which are all essential to a well-balanced, healthy body. People need to maintain a good balance of cholesterol levels to maintain healthy bodily functions that cholesterol impacts, but if left unchecked cholesterol can lead to many life-threatening issues.
Cholesterol Levels: Good vs Bad
Approximately 30% of all animal cells are constructed with cholesterol… which means humans, too! This is what moderates the consistency of cell membranes, which is why it is important for humans to monitor their cholesterol levels. HDL, or high-density lipoprotein is the type of cholesterol associated with keeping membranes at the right consistency is considered the ‘good’ cholesterol. HDL will take cholesterol to the liver to be processed out of the blood. We need this to happen to keep that pesky high cholesterol at a level that won’t cause heart disease or more.
The type that is considered bad will flow in the blood, and cause plaque to build in the vessel lining of the arteries. Arteries that become clogged will elicit many dangerous symptoms, such as heart attack or stroke. What we call ‘bad’ cholesterol is actually Low-Density Lipoprotein, or LDL.
Good Cholesterol Levels
HDL is known as the good type of cholesterol and will contribute to healthy levels because it returns the excess cholesterol to the liver to be broken down and processed out of the body. A good cholesterol level for an adult that doesn’t have heart disease is less than 200mg/dL. For HDL alone, having 60 mg/dL and above is considered a healthy level for both men and women, as it is protective against heart disease.
Bad Cholesterol Levels
LDL travels through the bloodstream and delivers cholesterol to the cells that need it, however, if there is too much LDL then it will cause plaque to form in the arteries, narrowing them. If the plaque builds up in the arteries it can cause heart disease, which is why too much LDL can contribute to bad cholesterol levels. Having a total level of 60 mg/dL for LDL is considered dangerous, or a total cholesterol level of 240 mg/dL or higher.
Hazelnuts: One Of The Best Foods To Lower Cholesterol
One of the best foods to lower cholesterol is hazelnuts. Hazelnuts contain a type of phenolic compound known as a monounsaturated fat, which when replacing saturated fat can drop the bad cholesterol, or LDL, by levels up to 10 percent! This will impact the total cholesterol level because of the drop in LDL levels but doesn’t actually affect HDL levels, or good cholesterol levels, at all.
How to Make Hazelnuts Work For You
The best way to add more nuts to your diet without having too many calories is to replace them with another portion of some other fatty foods you may eat throughout the day, such as eggs, meats, or certain kinds of fish like salmon.
How can you benefit from these cholesterol balancing benefits of hazelnuts yourself, you’re wondering? Well, a recommended amount of nuts is only about 2 oz., or one handful a day, as they are high in calories and too many can become detrimental to your health. It is so important to eat the correct amounts of food to achieve a healthy, balanced diet!
Just because they’re healthy doesn’t mean they’re boring, though. Hazelnuts are a wonderfully flexible food. They don’t have to be eaten raw! They can be crushed and worked into a nice breading, added as a salad topper, roasted whole, baked into bread, or even made into a nut butter spread.
Hazelnuts are a wonderfully versatile food. They can be prepared in so many different ways for consumption, but the most important thing to remember about hazelnuts is that they help to lower cholesterol. The next time you’re thinking about adding a healthy nut to your diet, consider our flavorful 2 oz. snack packs!
Sote tumesikia juu ya kolesteroli, na mara moja tunafikiria afya ya moyo wetu tunaposikia neno hili. Je, sikuzote ni jambo baya? Je, kuna vyakula vinavyoweza kusaidia kudhibiti kiwango cha kolesteroli, na ikiwa vipo, ni kwa njia gani? Cholesterol inaweza kuwa nzuri na mbaya kwa mwili. Kwa sababu ya kuhifadhi seli zetu, au kwa sababu ya kuwa na kiasi kikubwa cha cholesterol, inaweza kusababisha ugonjwa. Ingawa mwili wa binadamu unaweza kutengeneza na kutengeneza cholesterol, ni bora kuifanya iwe na usawa na chakula. Vyakula fulani vinaweza kusaidia kudumisha kiwango cha cholesterol kwa sababu vina mafuta yasiyo na unyevu. Kujua hili, wewe ni pengine ajabu nini baadhi ya hizi super-nguvu cholesterol kusawazisha vyakula inaweza kuwa... Kuanzisha, hazelnuts! Soma zaidi kuhusu jinsi ya kuondoa nyanya hii kwenye mwili wako. Cholesterol Ni Nini? Kwa hiyo, tunajua kwamba kolesteroli inaweza kuwa nzuri au mbaya kwa mwili na kwamba inaweza kusawazishwa na chakula. Lakini ni nini? Cholesterol ni aina ya lipid ambayo huanguka katika jamii ya sterol na ni waxy na haiwezi kuyeyuka dutu. Ni alifanya na pia kusindika kupitia ini. Ni dutu ya msingi ambayo hutengenezwa na wanyama, na kwa hiyo tunasikia juu yake mara nyingi. Mwili wetu unahitaji cholesterol kutengeneza bile, vitamini D, na homoni ambazo zote ni muhimu kwa mwili wenye usawa na afya. Watu wanahitaji kudumisha usawa mzuri wa viwango vya cholesterol ili kudumisha kazi za mwili zenye afya ambazo cholesterol huathiri, lakini ikiwa haijakaguliwa cholesterol inaweza kusababisha masuala mengi ya kutishia maisha. Cholozeri: Kwa kweli, asilimia 30 ya chembe za wanyama zimefanyizwa kwa cholesterol, na hiyo inamaanisha wanadamu pia. Hii ni nini moderates uthabiti wa utando wa seli, ambayo ni kwa nini ni muhimu kwa wanadamu kufuatilia viwango vyao cholesterol. HDL (High-Density Lipoprotein) ni aina ya cholesterol inayohusishwa na kudumisha utulivu wa utando wa damu na huitwa cholesterol nzuri. HDL huchukua cholesterol kwenye ini ili itengenezwe kutoka kwa damu. Tunahitaji hii kutokea ili kuweka kwamba cholesterol annoying juu katika ngazi ambayo si kusababisha ugonjwa wa moyo au zaidi. Aina inayoonwa kuwa mbaya itatiririka katika damu, na kusababisha plaque kujengwa katika utando wa mishipa ya mishipa. Mishipa inayofungwa itasababisha dalili nyingi hatari, kama vile mshtuko wa moyo au kiharusi. Kile tunachokiita "cholesterol mbaya" kwa kweli ni lipoprotein ya wiani wa chini, au LDL. HDL ni aina nzuri ya cholesterol na huchangia viwango vyenye afya kwa sababu inarudisha cholesterol ya ziada kwenye ini ili kugawanywa na kusindika nje ya mwili. Kiwango kizuri cha cholesterol kwa mtu mzima ambaye hana ugonjwa wa moyo ni chini ya 200 mg kwa dL. HDL ya 60 mg kwa dL na zaidi ni kiwango cha afya kwa wanaume na wanawake, kwani inahakikisha ulinzi dhidi ya magonjwa ya moyo. LDL (cholesterol mbaya) huenea katika damu na kuhamisha cholesterol kwa chembe zinazohitaji, lakini ikiwa LDL ni kubwa sana, inaweza kusababisha plaque katika mishipa ya damu. Kwa sababu ya kuunganishwa kwa plaque katika mishipa ya damu, inaweza kusababisha ugonjwa wa moyo, na LDL inaweza kuwa na athari kubwa kwa viwango vya cholesterol mbaya. Kiwango cha LDL cha 60 mg kwa dL ni hatari, na kiwango cha cholesterol cha 240 mg kwa dL ni hatari. Hazelnuts ni moja ya vyakula bora kwa kupunguza cholesterol. Hazelnuts zina aina ya phenolic kiwanja inayojulikana kama monounsaturated mafuta, ambayo wakati wa kuchukua nafasi ya mafuta saturated inaweza kupunguza cholesterol mbaya, au LDL, kwa viwango vya hadi asilimia 10. Hii itaathiri kiwango cha jumla cha kolesteroli kwa sababu ya kupungua kwa viwango vya LDL lakini kwa kweli haathiri viwango vya HDL, au viwango vizuri vya kolesteroli, kabisa. Njia bora ya kuongeza karanga kwenye mlo wako bila kuwa na kalori nyingi ni kuzibadilisha na sehemu nyingine ya vyakula vingine vyenye mafuta ambavyo unaweza kula siku nzima, kama vile mayai, nyama, au aina fulani za samaki kama samaki. Unajiuliza, unawezaje kunufaika na faida hizi za kusawazisha kolesteroli za hazelnuts? Kwa kweli, kiasi kinachopendekezwa cha karanga ni karibu 2 oz, au mkono mmoja kwa siku, kwani zina kalori nyingi na nyingi sana zinaweza kuwa mbaya kwa afya yako. Ni muhimu sana kula kiasi sahihi cha chakula ili kupata lishe yenye afya na yenye usawaziko! Hata hivyo, kuwa na afya nzuri hakumaanishi kwamba ni wenye kuchosha. Nuts za hazelnut ni chakula chenye kubadilika-badilika kwa njia ya ajabu. Si lazima wauliwe wakiwa mbichi! Unaweza kuzikata na kuifanya iwe mkate mzuri, kuiongeza kama topping ya saladi, kuoka nzima, kuoka kwenye mkate, au hata kuifanya kuwa mafuta ya karanga. Nuts za hazelnut ni chakula chenye matumizi mengi sana. Hizi hazelnuts zinaweza kutayarishwa kwa njia nyingi tofauti, lakini jambo muhimu zaidi la kukumbuka kuhusu hazelnuts ni kwamba husaidia kupunguza cholesterol. Wakati mwingine unapofikiria kuongeza karanga ya afya kwenye lishe yako, fikiria ladha yetu ya 2 oz. vifurushi vya vitafunio!