Cholesterol

 

Cholesterol:

Circulation is the important to life!! What would you do without circulation? Die? Yep me too! There are 2 things that your circulation depends on 1. No plaque or cholesterol and 2. The ability to constrict and dilated your arteries.  Nitric oxide is important for the dilation.

 

1.       In order to prevent plaque buildup in the arteries, one should avoid foods high in cholesterol. Plant based foods contain no cholesterol. Did you hear that right? Let me repeat it…PLANT BASED FOODS CONTAIN NO CHOLESTEROL! That’s right none! The only foods with cholesterol are the animals or bi-products of animals with the exception of egg whites.

Egg whites	0
Mayonnaise	8
Tuna	26
Ice cream	29
Butter	31
Clams	57
Crabs	64
Egg	213
Chicken breast no skin	73
Pork	76
Beef	80
Chicken with skin	82
Oyster	84
Sardines	120
Shrimp	165
Beef kidney	365
Beef liver	410
Caviar	500
Beef brains	1697

Tidbit of information…. Once cholesterol is exposed to air it is oxidized, more harmful to our body than non-exposed to air. Soooo… I guess it is ok to drink cow’s milk but only if you go straight to the source before it is oxidized! Oh wait, then it is not sterile and has many germs that may not be so good for you. Guess it is still not a good idea.

 

2.       Nitric oxide-vasodilates the blood vessels, cause blood vessels to enlarge, prevents blood from sticing together, and inhibits plaque formation. High cholesterol inhibits the production of nitric oxide. Just one meal can prevent nitric oxide from forming and helping the vessels to dilate.  Arginine is a substance that helps the body to produce nitric oxide.

Nuts	1.3g
Tofu	1.3
Walnuts	2.3
Lima beans	2.4
Kidney beans	2.6
Garbanzo beans	3.6
Lentils	4.2
Soy	5.3
Pumpkin seeds	6.2

 

Nursing tidbit: vasoplegic syndrome occurs when patients are on the cardiopulmonary bypass as a result of too much nitric oxide. Methylene blue is given as an antidote. methylene binds to the nitric oxide the unbind it from the hemoglobin. This in turns allows the body to oxygenate and the vessels to constricts like they need to. It turns the urine blue/green for weeks.