 and even amnesia after taking drugs to lower cholesterol. See Dr. Duane Graveline's book Lipitor: Thief of Memory.
- A study in 2003 by Pfreiger revealed that the brain uses cholesterol to build the synaptic connections between its neurons. In fact, the brain has special cells called glial cells which are specifically adapted to make cholesterol for neuronal connections. Without cholesterol, there would be no brain function.
- A lack of cholesterol can cause dementia. Current research is revealing that lower cholesterol levels are related to the development of Alzheimer's disease. Henry Lorin has written an interesting book on this subject called Alzheimer's Solved: Condensed Edition.
- People with higher levels of cholesterol live the longest. There are multiple studies which support this fact. This is especially true for the elderly.
- Some people suffer from a genetic defect which is called Smith Lemli Opitz Syndrome in which the body doesn't make cholesterol. These people suffer from debilitating health problems including growth retardation, digestive issues, and other serious body damage since cholesterol is essential to these body processes.
- Cholesterol is so important to your body that it will make it if you don’t eat enough. This self-regulation makes it very difficult to use a low fat diet alone to lower your cholesterol. The less cholesterol you eat, the more cholesterol your body makes. If you still want to lower your cholesterol, reduce your carbohydrate intake. Carbohydrates turn into sugar or glucose in the body, and cholesterol is made from glucose. Any basic biochemistry text will confirm this fact.
Elevated Cholesterol is Healthy, in Context..
There are multiple studies which provide evidence that even high cholesterol levels above 300 mg/dl are not the dire health problem the government, drug companies and other nutritional experts would have you believe.
However, high cholesterol can be a marker for insulin resistance, and is often associated with a chronically high carbohydrate intake. In these cases, the real culprit at the root of the heart disease is the inflammation caused by the elevated insulin and blood sugars associated with eating refined carbohydrates and too many carbs in general. The higher cholesterol indicates the body is trying to repair the damage done to the arteries by the high insulin levels.
Chronically high blood sugar and insulin are at the root of the inflammation associated with so many health conditions, including heart disease, and most autoimmune diseases. Dr. Ron Rosedale writes about this here.
Cholesterol levels, in the context of normal blood sugars and insulin, have never been linked definitively to heart disease in any study, and in fact, many recent studies discussing cholesterol Information have declared no relationship exists.
More Cholesterol Information
If your cholesterol levels are elevated, and your doctor has mentioned statin drugs, please read the following resources, so you can make an informed decision. Statin side effects are real and debilitating. It's my intent that the cholesterol information below will help you make the right decision for you.
- Dave Feldman's Cholesterol Code website
- Cholesterol information from Perfect Health on Levels and Mortality Rates
- Perfect Health Diet post on Cholesterol Information and Health: A great, well research article which shows that poor health and mortality rates increase as cholesterol levels drop.
- Hulley SB, Walsh JMB, Newman TB: Health Policy on Blood Cholesterol -Time to Change Directions. Circulation 86(3), 1026-1029 ( 1992)
- A Doctor Discusses the Dangers of Low Cholesterol
- The Statin Effects Study website
- THINCS: The International Network of Cholesterol Skeptics
- Spacedoc.net, a website by Duane Graveline, M.D.
- A study which reports that higher cholesterol levels help build muscle mass.
- Medical Consumers website.
- Cholesterol and Health
- What's Cholesterol Got To Do With It? - article by Gary Taubes
- Dr. Drug Rep: article in New York Times magazine
- Spacedoc.net Forums: Read anecdotal ev