Perhaps you are unaware, but there are foods you can consume that will lower your cholesterol. Sterols and stanols are wax-like nutritional components that have gained media recognition for such ability. Sterols help form the structure of cell walls throughout the body and in nature. They're kind of like the essential glue that helps hold nature together. You may have seen or even consumed sterol fortified foods from the grocery. Researchers and anthropologists believe that early humans consumed far more of them than we do today with our processed diets and that this was good. Early humans were less likely to have such maladies as elevated LDL (low-density lipoproteins) and the artery-clogging type of blood fats called triglycerides because the plant phytosterols were "recognized" by the body as identical to the much consumed animal-based lipids. They served by getting mixed in with and subsequently in the way of the absorption of the more dangerous animal fats.
Another One Rides The Bus
Once, a few years ago, a cardiologist explained to me about the functionality of these sterols. Using an analogy, he asked that I imagine a bus routing riders (who, in this example, are LDL/animal fat molecules) from the intestinal tract into the bloodstream. Then imagine that the driver accepts only the LDL as passengers. However, some of the plant sterols so closely resemble the LDL that the driver lets them on board assuming that they are LDL. These sterols occupy seats intended for the LDL, so some of the animal fat intended for transport doesn't make it into the bloodstream. As one observer has noted, plant sterols "gum up the works" for the artery clogging LDL.
The Express Route
So how about adding that fortified margarine to your diet for better health? The major problem with sterol fortified fats from the grocer's is that one would need to consume quite a bit of these products as a sole source in order to get enough of the recommended sterol amount. These products may be fine to add to the diet in place of where one might use saturated fats, but do so with the awareness that these products still contain some amount of dangerous trans-fats which have been shown to be artery clogging. Adding these extra fat calories in large amounts tends to negate the benefits.
Your Vascular Transportation Authority Easy Rider Card
Two of the highest sterol concentrations in whole foods are found in raw wheat germ and sesame seeds. These can provide up to 195 mg of phytosterols per serving. Unbeknownst to them, Paleo hunter-gatherer humans spent many thousands of years laying the groundwork for genetic conditioning that may have programmed us to function best on whole and raw foods. They were likely eating grubs for protein along with nuts, seeds, berries, and foliage until there was an animal kill. They were also likely engaged in some vigorous stop/start, day in/day out physical activity as well, further positively affecting their blood fat profiles. These vegetable based sources are still reliable as preventive-health maintenance, although cultivation has likely robbed these foods of some of their former protein, fiber, and micronutrient content.
Newer Routes
According to a Harvard Medical College study, you need to be getting in the range of 2 grams (that's 2,000 mg) of sterols daily in order to see a significant drop in your LDL. This, according to experts, translates into a 15-20% risk reduction in vascular disease. One solution may be to add sterol containing fiber supplements as an adjunct to healthy eating and a regular exercise regimen. Fiber and phytosterols work together well. Soluble fiber has the ability to carry the artery clogging fat and bile acids out of the digestive tract such that they don't enter the bloodstream. The sterols compete with and help block the existing "bad fat". A complete supplemental fiber product will likely contain a sterol complex including beta-sitosterol, campesterol, and sigmasterol, along with a matrix of soluble fiber agents such as gums, pectins, and glucans. Check the ingredient labels before purchasing.
