Lowering Triglycerides and Heart Inflammation

When you eat, your body converts calories you don’t need right away into triglycerides. The triglycerides are stored in your fat cells. Later, hormones release triglycerides for energy between meals. If you regularly eat more calories than you burn, particularly “easy” calories like carbohydrates, you most likely have high triglycerides.


C-reactive protein is an indicator of inflammation in the body and high levels of this protein result in heart attack, disease, stroke or sudden cardiac death. C-reactive protein is actually a better indicator of heart health than triglyceride levels according to an article in "The New England Journal of Medicine reported in November of 2002. The American Heart Association agrees." 

Cholesterol lowering medications are big business. Advertising is rampant. These "statins" are effective in treating high cholesterol and may also be prescribed for treatment of high C-reactive protein levels. However these drugs are expensive and dangerous. Muscle reactions have left patients severely disfigured. 

Natural methods of reducing triglycerides and C-reactive protein have been researched by scientists and are being shown to provide effective or better results than drug therapies, without the risks. Some of these natural methods are listed below, as information only. (Please be sure to talk with your healthcare provider before changing your treatment plan.)

1. Decrease or eliminate sweets. 

High carbohydrates bind to fat cells resulting in high triglyceride levels.

2. Decrease or eliminate alcohol.

All types and amounts of alcohol: beer, wine or liquor elevate triglyceride levels.

3. Reduce highly refined carbohydrate foods.

Choose moderate amounts of whole grain foods: brown rice, quinoa, oats, barley and whole grain breads and whole wheat pasta.

4. Choose foods high in Omega 3 fats.

Eat at least 2 servings of fatty fish per week.

5. Lose weight or maintain a healthy weight.

Ask your healthcare professional to assist you in determining the best option available to you for losing excess weight or maintaining a healthy weight.

6. Avoid high fat foods in your diet.

Choose to eat a moderate amount of olive oil. Avoid high fat meats, hot dogs, lunchmeat, sauces and gravies.

7. Eat legumes and high fiber foods.

Consume more beans, whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables in your daily meals. 

8. Exercise daily.

Exercise will burn off excess triglycerides. Aim for 30-60 minutes per day.

9. Supplements.

Niacin: Ask your doctor about adding this supplement to your daily regiment. Niacin has been shown to decrease C-reactive protein and triglycerides.

Omega 3 Fish Oils: Again ask your doctor about adding this supplement to your daily regiment. Omega 3 fats raise the good cholesterol in your body.

You can be proactive and well informed about natural options available to you when you talk with your healthcare provider. I hope this posting has given you some ideas of ways to change your eating habits to incorporate healthier food choices on a daily basis. This may affect you personally or your loved ones. When preparing foods for a group gathering, offer whole grain dishes and fresh fruit and vegetable options to your friends and family. Lead by example.

Thanks for visiting today. Wishing you all the best as you discover new things to share with others. See you soon!

Resources:

http://www.umassmed.edu/uploadedfiles/LoweringTriglycerides.pdf

http://EzineArticles.com/51523

Anti-Inflammatory Menu Components

Anti-inflammatory foods are foods which do not promote inflammation in the body. The following list is provided by Wendy Kohatsu, M.D., Director of the Integrative Medicine Fellowship at Santa Rosa Family Medical Residency Clinic in California.  Dr. Kohatsu is interested in the integration of primary care with nutrition, lifestyle changes, mind and body therapies and botanical medicine. She studied under Dr. Andrew Weil, at the University of Arizona in 1999 and has since gone on to receive her professional culinary degree in 2008. Along with her regular private practice she teaches healthy cooking classes at wellness centers and national conferences. She hopes to inspire her patients to not only eat healthier but to use food as medicine. I had the good fortune to have her as my primary care physician for a few years before she left to take her current position. It is interesting to find out that 'anti-inflammatory foods' is a passion of her practice. I did not know this until I found her list online through my research. It is a perfect representation of her healthcare focus.

Dr. Kohatsu describes this list of foods as evidence based principles to promote health, prevent and reduce inflammation in the body and generally be a helpful diet for patients with heart disease, diabetes, and chronic pain illnesses.  The following items are guidelines for a healthy diet.

1) Ensure adequate omega-3 intake.

         Eat two servings (4 ounces each) of fatty fish per week, or supplement with 1
         gram combined EPA + DHA daily.
         Reduce use of omega-6 fats.  Keep the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 in range of
         2:1 – 4:1.

2) Choose healthy fats. 
        Substitute olive oil for other vegetable oils, trans-fats, or butter in cooking for health
        benefits. (I suggest you consider coconut oil as well. See previous post.) 

3) Increase vegetable and fruit intake (especially vegetables)
        Eat 5 - 9 servings of vegetables and fruit per day - more than
        half should be vegetables.
        Color your diet!  -- deeply-colored fruits and vegetables contain
        higher amounts of protective phytochemicals.
        Use the visual plate method – the biggest portion, half your plate should be vegetables
        (excluding starchy vegetables like potatoes, peas or corn).

4) Choose whole grain carbohydrates and limit the portion sizes to 1/4 of your plate.
        Choose carbs that are whole grain (requires chewing!), and aim for total
        of 25 grams of fiber per day.

5) Incorporate plant-based proteins (legumes) and/or choose lean, natural animal
         sources of protein as the other 1/4 of your plate.

6) Spice it up!   Include garlic, turmeric, rosemary, ginger, and cayenne in your
         diet.

7) Eat mindfully - use a small salad plate instead of a dinner plate.
         Adopt the Okinawan philosophy of “hara hachi bu” – stopping when nearly 8/10 full
         and paying attention to hunger and satiety signals.
         Regardless of how healthy your food choices are, excess calories from any source
         increase inflammation and obesity.

8) Focus on the whole diet pattern, not just components. Choose foods that are closest
         to their natural form (i.e., less processed).

9) Keep your weight under control.
         It is especially important to prevent and reduce obesity, especially abdominal obesity,
         as obesity itself sets up chronic inflammatory responses in the body.

10) Don’t forget dark chocolate! – 2 ounces of dark (70% cocoa mass or greater)
         chocolate as your treat once a week.


Hope these guidelines along with my other postings about nightshade vegetables and alkaline foods help you to make wise food choices in the days ahead. Thanks for coming by today, and may you be blessed each day. Hope to see you again soon! Please leave your comments or questions.

Balance Your Omega 3 & Omega 6 Fatty Acids

Welcome to this blog! Today I'd like to explore Omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acids. They are an essential source of energy for our metabolic system, however because we are increasingly eating more fast foods with our busier lifestyles, we are putting our lives in jeopardy. Fast foods are predominantly saturated with Omega 6 vegetable oils. Too many Omega 6 fats cause inflammation in our body. This reaction produces high cholesterol, high triglycerides, diabetes and many other serious heart and health risks. 


The good news is that we can balance our diet by adding a few Omega 3 fats, and eliminating some of the Omega 6 fats. By planning ahead and putting a few walnuts in a snack ziplock to take with you, you can stretch out your eating times with a healthy snack. By adding a little tuna to a salad, you will find yourself adding in Omega 3 rich foods to your diet quite easily. 


Diabetes.about.com has a list of primary foods to substitute for fast foods.  Here are some ideas to help you make healthier food choices.


Omega 3 - use these items more often

• Salmon, sardines, herring, tuna and other cold water fish
• Walnuts, ground flaxseed
• Canola Oil, Olive Oil
• Dark green leafy vegetables
• Eggs from free range chickens
• Daily supplements

Omega 6 - limit these items daily

• Nuts and seeds
• Vegetable Oils (soybean, corn, cottonseed,sunflower, and safflower oils)

Last fall my husband and I went over to Astoria, Oregon to buy some fresh tuna off the fishing boats in the marina. They cleaned it for us and put it on ice for the trip home. Upon returning home we cut up the tuna into small chunks and put them into sterilized jars for canning. We added a few spices and sealed them for processing in a pressure canner. It has been a god-send having this fish on hand. Once the jars are opened, the tuna tastes just like fresh cooked fish. It's awesome. 

Foods That Fight Pain

[The five lists below include foods which contain compounds that may have a role in the body's management of pain. If you are considering managing your pain with diet then try including at least one food from each of the lists in your diet each day. Although there is no guarantee that this will banish pain from your life, at least it will improve the nutritional content of your meals. For further information view metabolismadvice.com]

Anti-Oxidants Asparagus Avocados Berries Broccoli Cabbage Cauliflower Grapefruit Kiwi Fruit Oranges Peaches Tomatoes Flavanoids List Apples Grapes Green Tea Onions Soy Beta-Cryptoxanthin              Apricots Bell Peppers Nectarines Oranges Papaya Peaches Persimmons Plums Pumpkin Tangerines Watermelon

Omega-3 Anchovies Herring Mackerel Salmon Sardines Shad Sturgeon Tuna Whitefish Brazil Nuts Eggs Flaxseed/Linseed Hazelnuts Hemp Seeds Pecans Pumpkin Seeds Sesame Seeds Spinach Walnuts Resveratrol Blueberries Cranberries Grapes Mulberries Peanuts