Can Garlic lower your cholesterol level?

Lower Cholesterol Level

For many many years, garlic had a good reputation in dealing with heart. Garlic also has been part of the herbal medicines that dealing with all kind of conditions. Garlic and its effects to lower cholesterol level have been associated one another.

Garlic has been suggested by modern medical science to be one of the reasons to lower cholesterol level. It is proven that Garlic is an anti-oxidant. Which mean Garlic can help prevent the LDL Cholesterol (read: bad cholesterol) to oxidized, therefore it will reduced the abilities of the bad cholesterol to build up a clog in the arteries.

A lots of scientific researches have been conducted in the recent years to test how lower cholesterol level can be done by including garlic in everyday diet. The researchers involved comparation between groups of people take garlic supplements to a group of people take placebo. However the researches can not come with a conclusive result.

In some of the researches, a reduction is shown in total cholesterol level and in LDL Cholesterol level for those who take garlic. However in other medical researches also shown the cholesterol level difference between those who take garlic and those who take placebo were not really significant.

Even, a research published in 2007 have tested two garlic supplements which are Garlicin and Kyolic, and raw garlic as well. The result of the research stated that: "None of the forms of garlic used in this study, including raw garlic, when given at an approximate dose of a 4-g clove per day, 6 d/wk for 6 months, had statistically or clinically significant effects on LDL-C or other plasma lipid concentrations in adults with moderate hypercholesterolemia."

So Can Garlic lower your cholesterol level now?

While some researches can really show how effective garlic can be used to lower bad cholesterol level, still the overall result is inconclusive. In the 2007 research that had put a serious doubt over garlic reputation in lowering the cholesterol level. Therefore it is really not wise to put a definite conclusion that garlic is good to lowering the cholesterol level.

However, how can we explain those researches that really can show how garlic can lower the cholesterol level? Can we just say that they are using a flawed methodology? Well, let's just say that those researches had some validity background, how come the result were so different and how can we explain the different?

There is a possibility that the effectiveness of garlic in lowering the cholesterol level depends on some other factors which are still unknown. Since these factors are still unknown, it is difficulty to design a research that can eliminate those factors.

Another thing that's also possible is that garlic's effectiveness in lowering the cholesterol level only applies to a specific group of people in the population.

Therefore if you're concerned about your high cholesterol level, it is not advisable to turn to garlic straight away as an alternative medication to lower your cholesterol level. What always advisable is that you seek advice from your doctor. If your doctor approved it then you can start to take garlic supplement.

Lower Cholesterol Level

Lower Cholesterol Level with Whole-Grain Oat

If you are at risk of having a heart disease, you can reduce your chances of having one by having a diet that is rich in whole-grain oats, as whole-grain oats can help you lower your high cholesterol level.

It is has been so many times that oats touted as a heart healthy diet. However , the study to back up the claims that oats can reduce heart disease by lowering the cholesterol level only being conducted in the last two years.

The result of the study reflecting direct effects that by eating oatmeal can reduce the risk of having a heart attack or any kind of death related heart disease. More to that, the researchers also found that oatmeal food have an effects to lowering the high cholesterol level.

So if your diet is rich in whole-grain oat products and oatmeal, you will experience a lower in both of your total cholesterol level and your LDL Cholesterol level (read: Bad cholesterol).

The high total cholesterol level and the high LDL Cholesterol level are the main risk factors for one to have a heart disease.

Even thought, the researchers are showing a positive result, still the researchers say that the result should be taken with warnings. And the reasons are because most of the research were being funded by the companies which sell whole-grain product, and also the researches were conducted in a small scale and only been conducted in a short period of time (approximately less than eight weeks).

The study was being published by Cochrane Database of Systemic Reviews. In the study, the researchers reviewed ten researches about the effects to adults when they eat whole-grain foods. Eight of the researches are dealing with around 914 adults who are at risk of having a heart attack and whole-grain oats.

When the researchers summaries the result of the research, they found that the level of total cholesterol level and the LDL Cholesterol level in the people who eat whole-grain oats are lower compared to the people who ate refined grain foods. In average, the reduction for total cholesterol level was approximately 7.7mg/dL while the average of reduction fot LDL Cholesterol level was approximately 7 mg/dL.

Because of these result the researchers confident to say that there's a strong connection on eat whole-grain oats with lower cholesterol level, and can suggest the health care professionals to recommended whole-grain oats to be included in lower cholesterol level program.

However, the researchers also say that more adequately powered and a well design researches are still needed to be done as it is needed to evaluate the effects of consumption of whole-grain oats for long term period.

But in its website, the American Heart Association said that the fiber found in unrefined whole-grain foods can help lower your cholesterol level which is important in preventing heart disease and strokes, therefore, the American Heart Association had already recommend that whole-grain oats to be a heart healthy diet.