So why do we have cholesterol, what does it do?
Cholesterol is essential to human health. Cholesterol is used in the body to make ALL our hormones. Indeed, people on cholesterol lowering drugs find it difficult to deal with stress, have poor sex hormone function and can suffer from chronic fatigue.
Mother’s milk provides over 50% of its calories as fat, most of it saturated and provides the highest level of cholesterol than any other food. If cholesterol is so bad, why would Mother Nature do this? If cholesterol is so bad, why don’t babies get clogged arteries? If cholesterol is so bad, how have we survived as a species for millions of years?
In France, where they eat large amounts of saturated fat in the form of butter, eggs, cheese, liver, cream and paté 145 out of every 100,000 men die of heart attacks compared to 315 in the USA.
Our blood vessels can become damaged in a number of ways. This includes irritations by free radicals or viruses or when they become structurally weak. When this damage happens cholesterol is sent from the liver (where it is produced) to repair the tissue.
What else does Cholesterol do?
- Gives our cell membranes stiffness and stability
- Is a precursor to vital corticosteroids which helps us deal with stress and protects us from heart disease and cancer.
- Is a precursor to the sex hormones like testosterone, estrogen and progesterone
- Is a precursor to vitamin D, vital for healthy bones, nervous system, growth, mineral metabolism, muscle tone, insulin production, reproduction and immune function.
- Bile Salts are made from cholesterol which is essential for the digestion and assimilation of dietary fats.
- Cholesterol has been shown to be an antioxidant protecting us from free radical damage which can cause heart disease and cancer.
- Cholesterol is required for proper function of serotonin receptors in the brain. Low cholesterol has been linked to aggressive and violent behaviour, depression and suicide.
- Mother’s milk contains cholesterol which helps to ensure proper growth and development of the brain and nervous system.
- It helps to maintain the health of the intestinal wall which protects it from leaky gut syndrome.
Cholesterol is not the cause of heart disease, but a powerful antioxidant which helps to eradicate the free radicals in the blood and repair damaged tissues.
Tune in next time to find out more truth about cholesterol…