Heart disease remains the number one killer in the world. The World Health Organisation statistics indicate that every year more than 12,000,000 people die as a result of heart attacks or brain attacks (strokes). Particularly at this time of the year our health authorities and the Heart Foundation of Jamaica seek to focus our attention on the problem of heart disease. This is largely due to a disease of the blood vessels called atherosclerosis.

Modern medicine in concert with the pharmaceutical industry has identified elevated blood levels of cholesterol as a major risk factor for this problem. A vast industry has now evolved from the manufacture and prescription of potentially dangerous drugs designed to lower cholesterol levels in the blood. But, let us examine the facts about cholesterol and cholesterol lowering drugs.

FACTS ABOUT CHOLESTEROL

Cholesterol is essential to life and is found in every cell in your body. It is a natural health promoting substance. The body used it to create other important substances like several hormones and vitamin D.

Over 70 per cent of the cholesterol measured in your blood is produced by your liver and very little comes from cholesterol consumed in your food.

There is nothing intrinsically dangerous with elevated blood cholesterol. Cholesterol is at best a very secondary risk factor in atherosclerotic disease. The real risk factor is the weakness and instability of the walls of the blood vessels. This is mainly due to deficiencies in vitamins, minerals and other nutrients in our diets. In many ways an elevated cholesterol level is nature's effort to patch up the weakened areas in diseased blood vessels. Without adequate nutrients, this effort is ineffective. The real problem is faulty nutrition and poor lifestyle choices.

Atherosclerosis is virtually unknown in the animal kingdom even among animals like bears that have extremely high levels of cholesterol. A major reason is that these animals, unlike man, can manufacture their own vitamin C. They never become deficient in vitamin C, their diet is healthier and their blood vessels remain healthy and strong.

FACTS ABOUT CHOLESTEROL LOWERING DRUGS

There is a multibillion-dollar market for modern cholesterol lowering drugs and new versions are continually coming on the market.

These drugs lower cholesterol mainly by interfering with the liver's ability to produce cholesterol. They harm and impair the liver. They can also damage your muscles (the heart is a muscle) causing pain and weakness. These drugs also deplete the body of an essential nutrient, co-enzyme Q 10, that is necessary for a healthy heart. These side effects were reported over 10 years ago by researchers at the University of Texas.

In the '70s, the World Health Organisation had to stop research on cholesterol lowering drugs because of side effects.

In 1996, the Journal of the American Medical Association published an article showing that most of the cholesterol lowering drugs on the market cause cancer in test animals at dosages currently prescribed to perhaps millions of people.

NATURA TO DRUGS

A balanced nutritional plan: Just reducing your intake of fats is not good enough. Excess of sugars and starches can elevate cholesterol levels. I recommend a dietary programme called the Cellular Nutritional Programme.

Regular exercise, weight control and adequate stress management is also very important.

Supplements: Vitamins C, E, niacin, B complex, omega 3 fatty acids in fish oils, garlic, curry, soy and soluble fibre are all extremely useful in allowing the body to maintain optimal cholesterol levels, while at the same time keeping the blood vessels healthy.

A natural derivative from the sugar cane plant, first developed in Cuba, marketed under the name Arteriomixol, has been shown to be a saf to the conventional drugs, especially when combined with the natural approaches outlined above.

I urge my readers to avoid the quick fix approach to dealing with common health issues like an elevation of cholesterol levels. Just taking a drug is not usually a complete answer. Regard your symptoms as warnings and commit to changing the way you treat your body. It knows how to fix most things if you give it the right support.