Bad genes. Eggs. Red meat. Butter.

When high cholesterol suddenly shows up on lab results, genes and high cholesterol foods are typically blamed for it all.

The common recommendations are:

1. Eliminate those delicious foods.

2. Take cholesterol lowering medication.

My proposition? There is a better way that works long term.

My clients’ results are a testimony to this unique and effective angle on treating high cholesterol naturally.

Get to the Root Cause

There is always a root cause of cardiovascular inflammation, which leads to high cholesterol. Cholesterol DOESN’T mysteriously show up in the blood stream. Don’t blame those organic eggs you love eating and your “bad genes”. Let’s pull back the curtain on cholesterol.

Patching Things Up

When damage occurs in your veins and arteries, an internal vascular wound is created. In response to this weakness, the body sends healing agents to begin repairing and supporting that damaged area.

The body then calls on cholesterol to patch up the wounded section of the blood vessel. In that way, cholesterol is similar to spackle that fills and supports a hole or crack in a wall.

So let’s take that analogy a step further. If you have a hole in your wall, it’s smart to put spackle there to patch it up. Then you scrape away the excess. If there is no hole in the wall, you don’t use spackle.

Similarly, cholesterol, which acts like that spackle, does not show up spontaneously in the bloodstream. It is a response to damage.

The damaging factor is the problem, not the cholesterol. When treating elevated cholesterol, it is essential to look at the root cause rather than put the blame on the response team.

The Aggravators

The fragile vascular walls can be damaged by a variety of factors:

1. Excess sugar and refined carbs in the diet, leading to high insulin levels

2. Processed fats

3. Artificial ingredients in the diet

4. Environmental toxins

5. Excess stress hormones in the blood

Cutting Dietary Cholesterol

Cholesterol is incredibly important for the body. It is used in the following ways:

1. Repairing the cardiovascular system

2. Fueling the heart

3. Creating healthy sex hormones & boosting libido

4. Enhancing brain health

Because it is so vital, the body has a backup mechanism for creating cholesterol if you cut it out of the diet. Approximately 70% of the cholesterol that the body needs can be produced by the liver if the diet is devoid of cholesterol.

Therefore, removing cholesterol from the diet won’t necessarily lower those lab numbers.

Action Steps

Getting to the root cause of the vascular inflammation is key. There are a number of factors and it often takes a lot of analytical work to narrow it down. However, here are a few ways to support your cardiovascular health to help you get started.

1. Reduce sugar consumption. Avoid processed foods or beverages (e.g. alcohol) that break down quickly as sugar, causing damaged blood vessels.

2. Sleep more. Reduce physical stress by improving sleep quantity and quality.

3. Increase intake of omega 3 fats. These anti-inflammatory fats can be found in foods such as wild caught salmon, high quality fish oil, nuts and seeds, organic free range eggs, and grass fed beef. Note that the diet and health of an animal will determine how rich its meat or eggs will be in omega 3s. Proper sourcing of your food is key!