Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Best Kept Secrets Phytosterols, Cholesterol and Healthy Hearts

By Joe Singleton


Phytosterols are a type of phytonutrient that differ from their relative, cholesterol, in that they promote health. The differences between the chemical structure of phytosterols and the chemical structure of cholesterol are small but significant. These phytonutrients can be found in most vegetables, edible fruits, nuts, seeds, cereals and legumes. B-sitosterol, campesterol, and stigmasterol and some of the most commonly occurring phytosterols.

Phytosterols perform much like cholesterol performs in animals and humans, in that they function to regulate the fluidity of cell membranes in plants. Researchers have paid a great amount of attention to phytosterols, since they are known for having the ability to help people maintain healthy blood cholesterol concentrations, healthy cardiovascular systems and healthy hearts. Phytosterols are able to reduce the availability of cholesterol to the body and could also inhibit a percentage of dietary cholesterol absorption because they interfere with intestinal recycling of cholesterol that is produced by the liver. This is most likely due to the fact that phytosterols are structurally similar to cholesterol. Some research shows that plant sterols can be effective regardless of when they are taken, however, other research shows that if they are divided in doses the beneficial effect they have will be greater. The most effective way of ingesting plant sterols is likely to be with or near a meal.

Essentially all of the research conducted on phytosterols - including mathematical analyses of this research - show strong affiliations between phytosterol intake and the promotion of healthy blood cholesterol concentrations, healthy cardiovascular systems and healthy hearts.

The United Stated FDA says, "Phytosterols Lower LDL-Cholesterol"

The US Food and Drug Administration came to a few conclusions after they conducted and extensive and intensive review of "the totality of publicly available scientific evidence." They concluded that 1)"there is significant scientific agreement to support a relationship between consumption of plant sterol esters (especially -sistoserol, campesterol, and stigmasterol) and reduction in the risk of developing heart disease"; 2) "plant sterol esters reduce blood total and/or LDL (the "bad" cholesterol) levels to a significant degree"; 3) blood HDL(the "good" cholesterol) levels are not decreased by the consumption of plant sterol esters; and 4) these benefits can be obtained by individuals with either elevated blood cholesterol levels or normal healthy blood cholesterol levels. Also, the blood cholesterol-lowering response occurs no matter what else is consumed in the diet.

There is New Scientific Research that States, "Phytosterols Lower LDL-Cholesterol"

The conclusions reached by the US Food and Drug Administration have been echoed in the new research findings that have been published since the government's decisions. For example, a study published in the Journal of Nutrition showed that regardless of the nature of the diet, the cardiovascular health of men and women with blood LDL cholesterol concentrations within the "normal" range (blood LDL cholesterol concentration less than 100 mg/dL) received additional support from the addition of phytosterols to their daily diets.3 Similar benefits were experienced in another study of men and women with initially elevated blood cholesterol concentrations.4 Studies consistently have shown that phytosterols taken in the amount of 2 to 3 grams per day can reduce LDL (low density lipoprotein) cholesterol levels by about 10%.5 In addition to their beneficial effects on blood lipid levels, phytosterols also have the ability to normalize the inflammatory response of the immune system.

An all-inclusive meta-analysis analyzing the results of 84 clinical trials using phytosterols was published early this year (2009). The authors came to the conclusion that phytosterols can significantly lower LDL cholesterol levels, according to their research analysis. The ability of phytosterols to reduce LDL concentrations is dose-dependent. The researchers also found that if about two grams of phytosterols is taken on a daily basis, LDL cholesterol levels reduce by approximately 10 percent.

Phytosterols can be added to the diet as peanut oil, extra virgin olive oil, sesame oil, soybean oil, raw or roasted peanuts, hazelnuts, macadamia nuts, flax seed, cashews, almonds, pecans, pistachios, sunflower seeds, walnuts or as a high-quality dietary supplement.

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2 comments:

  1. Heart is the most important organ of the body, so it must be taken care properly.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Very informative artice.

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