Go to the Grocery Store and Lower Your Cholesterol

Go to the Grocery Store and Lower Your Cholesterol

By Dr. Cherry

 

God has provided many natural ways for us to lower

cholesterol. The most obvious way to reduce cholesterol levels

is to restrict your intake of saturated fat found in products

such as fast foods, high fat beef, and high fat dairy products.

You should, of course, reduce these foods in your diet but

there are some positive things that you can do that can

literally “soak up” cholesterol in your body.

 

Many people are shocked to discover that a common laxative

can also lower their cholesterol levels. Two to three teaspoons

of Metamucil, or another similarly psyllium-based product,

can drop cholesterol levels. Metamucil and psyllium products

are actually forms of soluble fiber similar to those found in

numerous fruits such as apples, beans, etc. Metamucil works

to lower cholesterol this way: the liver was designed by our

Creator to filter cholesterol from the blood and convert it into

bile acids. The bile acids are secreted into the first part of the

small intestine which help digest fat. When you consume

Metamucil, the soluble fiber absorbs and, in a sense, “soaks up”

the bile and carries it out of the body. The liver then responds

by making more bile, skimming even more cholesterol from

the blood stream in doing so. Psyllium powder contains

concentrated forms of soluble fiber and can lower cholesterol

5 to 8%. This translates to a 10 to 20 % reduction in the risk

of heart attacks.

 

If you were to consume three glasses of a psyllium drink daily,

you could lower the bad (LDL) cholesterol up to 13% which would

reduce your risk of hardening of the arteries and heart blockage

by 26%. Remember, this is potent and concentrated fiber and

you need to ease into it gradually or your body is going to go

into rebellion. Start off with one teaspoon daily and gradually

increase this to one teaspoon twice daily. I would recommend

working up to at least one tablespoon daily over a period of,

say, three weeks but remember to drink plenty of water

with this according to the directions on the container.

 

Since this stuff can taste like cardboard, I like the orange flavored

Metamucil which you can at least swallow without major

contortions on your face. Not only will this lower your

cholesterol and help prevent fat buildup in the arteries;

it will also soften your stools. Even if your stool pattern

is normal, studies show that the softer the stool the less

your potential risk of diverticulosis as well as colon cancer.

Now, your flesh is going to rebel against undertaking

a healthy practice such as using Metamucil, or psyllium,

daily, but as Paul said, “We must put under our flesh.”

 

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For more information about the ministry of Dr. Cherry,

visit his website, www.drcherry.org.