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Lifestyle and home remedies (6)
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continued:
HDL cholesterol: How to boost your 'good' cholesterol
Make your lifestyle count
Your lifestyle has the single greatest impact on your HDL cholesterol. Even small changes to your daily habits can help you meet your HDL target.
- Don't smoke. Smoking lowers HDL cholesterol and increases your blood's tendency to clot. It also causes chemical changes to HDL, which may eliminate HDL's beneficial effects. If you smoke, quit. Quitting smoking can increase your HDL cholesterol by up to 10 percent. Quitting isn't always easy, but you can increase your odds of success by trying more than one strategy at a time. For example, combine medication to reduce nicotine cravings with a support group or individual counseling. Talk with your doctor about your options for quitting.
- Maintain a healthy weight. Excess pounds take a toll on HDL cholesterol. But there's good news. If you're overweight, losing even a few pounds can improve your HDL level. For every 2 pounds you lose, your HDL may increase by 0.35 mg/dL (0.01 mmol/L). That's about 1 mg/dL (0.03 mmol/L) for every 6 pounds. If you focus on becoming more physically active and choosing healthier foods — two other ways to increase your HDL cholesterol — you'll likely move toward a healthier weight in the process. What a bonus.
- Get more physical activity. Within two months of starting, frequent aerobic exercise can increase HDL cholesterol by about 5 percent in otherwise healthy sedentary adults. Your best bet for increasing HDL cholesterol is to exercise briskly for 30 minutes, five times a week, so that you get more than 120 minutes of brisk aerobic exercise a week. Aerobic exercise is the kind that increases your heart rate and maximizes the amount of oxygen in your blood. Examples of aerobic exercise include walking, running, cycling, swimming, playing basketball, raking leaves — anything that increases your heart rate.
- Choose healthier fats. A healthy diet includes some fat, but there's a limit. In a heart-healthy diet, between 25 and 35 percent of your total daily calories can come from fat — but saturated fat should account for less than 7 percent of your total daily calories. Avoid foods that contain saturated and trans fats, which raise LDL cholesterol and worsen inflammatory effects. Trans fat is found in many margarines and commercial baked products, and anything that contains partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. On the other hand, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats — found in olive, peanut and canola oils — tend to improve HDL's anti-inflammatory abilities. Nuts, fish and other foods containing omega-3 fatty acids are other good choices for improving your LDL cholesterol to HDL cholesterol ratio.
- Drink alcohol only in moderation. In some studies, moderate use of alcohol has been linked with higher levels of HDL cholesterol — but the benefits aren't strong enough to recommend alcohol for anyone who doesn't drink already. If you choose to drink alcohol, do so in moderation. This means no more than one drink a day for women, and one to two drinks a day for men.
What about medication?
Some medications used to lower LDL cholesterol may also increase HDL cholesterol, including niacin, fibrates (Lopid, others) and statins (Lipitor, Zocor, others). Niacin is the most effective of these medications, increasing HDL cholesterol by up to 30 percent.
Researchers continue to study other options for increasing HDL's beneficial effects on the heart and blood vessels. In particular, they're interested in exploring not just how to increase HDL cholesterol but how to expand its protective functions and minimize potentially negative effects. In the meantime, lifestyle changes will help you on your way to an optimal HDL level.
If your doctor prescribes medication to help control your cholesterol, take it as directed while you continue to focus on a healthy lifestyle.
Dietary supplements that may help
A number of dietary supplements may have a healthy effect on blood cholesterol levels. Some for which current evidence suggests possible benefits include plant sterols such as beta-sitosterol and sitostanol (typically found in margarine spreads such as Promise activ or Benecol), omega-3 fatty acids (fatty fish, fish oil supplements), and flaxseed oil or grain. If you're currently taking medications, talk to your doctor before starting any supplement, to avoid potentially harmful interactions.
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