lower cholesterol

Keep Up the Good Work

With the national obsession to lower cholesterol in full swing, the need to push HDL or “good” cholesterol levels higher is becoming a dangerously obscured message.

A recent study clearly shows that a low HDL level could invite more than a heart attack, it could also increase your risk of having a stroke due to blood clotting in the brain — even if the rest of your cholesterol equation is good. So clearly, lowering LDL levels and triglycerides alone are not enough to keep you healthy.

One of the benefits of HDL cholesterol is its anti-clotting activity.

It acts like a roto-rooter of your blood vessel walls, “cleaning out” the excess LDL cholesterol built up there.

Of course, big pharma has a solution on the horizon you guessed it, more drugs. The emerging recommendation will be to take one pill to lower your LDL level, and another soon-to-be-approved drug to raise your HDL level and lower your triglycerides. Presumably, this would also double the already high cost many people are paying for their current statin drugs.

But there’s really no need to resort to this cholesterol cocktail when there are natural alternatives that produce better results with fewer side effects.

One of the most effective is policosanol. Policosanol is a derivative of sugar cane wax and beeswax that has been studied extensively in Cuba and other parts of the world, and appears to be highly effective. In one study comparing the anti-clotting activity of policosanol vs. Pravachol, a leading statin drug, policosanol was the clear winner. In fact, Pravachol actually made clotting worse in one measure of the study.

And in a study that focused specifically on post-menopausal women, policosanol lowered LDL levels by 25 percent and raised HDL cholesterol by 29 percent compared to the placebo group.

Check out the January 2002 issue of Nutrition & Healing for more details on policosanol — and remember to pay attention to raising your HDL level, no matter how low your LDL and triglyceride levels are.

Compounding the glutathione issue

Q: I’ve read in past issues that you recommend nebulized glutathione for COPD. Are you still getting good results with this treatment? And if so, where can I get it? I live nowhere near your clinic in Seattle!

JVW: Yes, we’re continuing to get great results with this treatment for COPD, emphysema, and even some asthma patients. Many of my colleagues in natural medicine are picking up on this treatment and getting good results as well.

It can be a little tricky to obtain. Since glutathione oxidizes quickly and can deteriorate rapidly, it must be provided in single-dose vials. I recommend that you work with both a natural physician and a compounding pharmacist to ensure you get the proper dose and delivery system. We generally prescribe 60 milligrams of glutathione nebulized and inhaled twice daily.

To locate a compounding pharmacist near you, visit the International Academy of Compounding Pharmacists website at www.iacprx.org.

What are triglycerides?

Triglycerides are a major form of fat that can come from the foods we eat and are also manufactured by your body.

While most of your fat cells are stored in your tissues, triglycerides can also be found in your bloodstream. High triglyceride levels in the bloodstream can lead to pancreatitis, and can also be accompanied by other factors that increase the risk of heart disease, such as low HDL cholesterol levels. This is why any assessment of your cholesterol levels should include a screening for your triglyceride level as well.

Yours in good health,
Amanda Ross
Managing Editor
Nutrition & Healing

Sources:

Curb JD, et. al. “High density lipoprotein cholesterol and the risk of stroke in elderly men: the honolulu heart program.” Am J Epidemiol. 2004; 160(2): 150-157

Psaty BM, et. al. “The association between lipid levels and the risks of incident myocardial infarction, stroke, and total mortality: the cardiovascular health study.” J Am Geriatr Soc 2004; 52(10): 1,639-1,647

“Cholesterol-lowering action of policosanol compares well to that of pravastatin and lovastatin.” Cardiovasc J S Afr 2003; 14(3): 161

Mirkin A, et al. “Efficacy and tolerability of policosanol in hypercholesterolemic postmenopausal women.” Int J Clin
Pharmacol Res 2001; 21(1): 31-41.