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What You Need To Know On VLDL Cholesterol
Nowadays, people have become more health aware than earlier and health issues like cholesterol have become a concern for them. Now, there are various types of cholesterols and not all of them are harmful. Humans need some amount of HDL cholesterol, but VLDL cholesterol is harmful, when stored in high amounts in the body. It stands for Very low density lipoproteins and plays a role in moving cholesterol, triglyceride along with other lipids in your body. It also carries elevated amounts of triglycerides. It is made by your liver and then gets released into bloodstream. What You Need To Know On VLDL Cholesterol
Why you should be careful about VLDL
VLDL carries triglyceride to tissues in the body. Triglycerides are stored in the body to serve as an energy source to tackle low calorie intake situations, but their abundance can be really bad for health.
VLDL leads to development or deposit of cholesterol on artery walls and thus it is harmful for your health. If you do not keep a tab on its amount in the body, several health problems can crop up. It can lead to onset of ailments like coronary artery disease. Sadly, there is no direct way to measure its amount in the body and doctors analyse its percentage by checking the amount of triglyceride.
How to treat VLDL and keep it under safe limits?
The best way to keep VLDL under control is through dietary intervention and lifestyle changes.
Dietary changes
To keep VLDl levels under check, you need to cut down on consumption of saturated fats in any form. It denotes you have to eat processed and junk food as less as possible. If you are unsure about the right diet to keep VLDL in check, talk to a suitable dietician.
You can benefit by eating less amount of sugar laden foods as well. Cutting down on foods made with refined sugar can be useful as well. Be careful about choosing desserts and stick to the low fat variants or those made with natural sugar. Avoid sugar laced breakfast cereals and candies.
You also need to raise intake of fibre rich foods to keep VLDL under check. Eating fibre enriched vegetables and fruits is one way to do so and of course you can eat oats regularly to step up fibre intake. Acting low fat dairy products can be beneficial.
You should eat foods enriched with omega-3 fatty acids. Sea fish and nuts and beans are ideal for this. Switch to lean meat and evade high fat meat and processed meats.
Lifestyle changes
You may benefit by making some changes in your lifestyle if controlling VLDL cholesterol is your goal. Obese people generally tend to have elevated levels of triglyceride and VLDL in the body. Working out also helps enhance healthy HDL cholesterol levels in the body which in turn reduces the amount of triglycerides.
You can work out on a daily basis to shed flab. While everybody may not be able to hit the gyms daily, resorting to activities like swimming and walking can be ideal. Even aerobics and evening walk can be helpful. Overall, you will need to resort to activities that help you in burning more calories.
Avoiding boozing can also be helpful in this regard. Alcohol intake causes a surge in triglyceride levels. Similarly, you should cut down smoking and it is best if you can discard the habit altogether. Smoking reduces the urge to work out and it is also harmful to the lungs.
Medications
At times, people with elevated levels of VLDL in the body may not benefit much by altering lifestyle and dietary patterns. They may get benefits by using specific cholesterol lowering drugs.