Heart disease: Doctor explains how to reduce risk
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Heart disease describes a range of conditions that target the heart or blood vessels. It’s usually triggered by a build-up of fatty deposits inside your arteries – atherosclerosis – or blood clots. One of the risk factors for developing atherosclerosis is high cholesterol. Research shows how a certain condiment can help.
High cholesterol is one of the risk factors for developing heart disease.
Cholesterol, also known as a fatty substance, builds up in blood vessels over time, making you prone to severe health problems.
From heart disease to stroke, the substance can be silent yet dangerous.
The NHS explains that high cholesterol doesn’t cause many symptoms.
Luckily, something as simple as wholegrain mustard can be beneficial for your cholesterol, a study by Tracklements in association with Cardiff Metropolitan University reports.
And by lowering your cholesterol, you can lower your risk of heart disease as well.
The research explains that a heaped teaspoon of wholegrain mustard is all you need to achieve healthy cholesterol levels.
They add that this amount is the equivalent of 10 grams.
Their research saw 86 percent of participants experience “a significant drop” in their cholesterol levels in 12 weeks.
On average, wholegrain mustard was able to slash cholesterol levels by 10 percent.
The study reports: “With an average decrease of 10 percent in blood cholesterol levels across the sample group, it indicates a promising downward trend for those at a greater risk of developing heart disease.”
This is because having too much of the fatty substance can lead to heart disease.
So, targeting this initial problem may also help cut your risk.
The study saw a decline in blood cholesterol levels over 12 weeks in 64 percent of its participants.
Their findings suggest that people with high cholesterol can benefit from having one heaped teaspoon of wholegrain mustard each day.
The 10 percent decrease is the same cholesterol reduction you can enjoy when sticking to a low-fat diet, the research explains.
When it comes to diet and heart disease, the NHS stresses the importance of healthy choices to prevent the deadly condition.
One thing they recommend is cutting down on saturated fats, found in fatty meat, lard, cream, cakes and biscuits.
Fats like this can also raise your “bad” cholesterol levels, further boosting your risk.
The health service adds to cut down on salt and sugar while increasing your intake of fibre, wholegrain foods, fruit and vegetables.
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