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Want to
Live to 100 – Raise Your HDL Cholesterol
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While
diet and exercise are key to most people's health,
there have always been those lucky few who can
do whatever they want and still live to 100. Now
genetics research is showing why. A new study
suggests that centenarians retain a naturally
heart-healthy cholesterol level throughout their
lives--and they pass the gift on to their children.
In
general, high blood levels of HDL (''good'') cholesterol
are believed to protect the heart from disease. “But
no one has shown it's important to longevity,''
A study by Dr. Nir Barzilai of the Albert Einstein
College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, just changed
that.
Dr.
Barzilai's study of 27 centenarians and their
elderly children suggests that long-lived individuals
have a genetic trait that keeps their HDL levels
high, regardless of fatty diets, inactivity and
smoking. They're really protected no matter what
they do,'' said Barzilai--although, he noted,
most had remained thin throughout life.
The
study also revealed a difference between the sexes:
In order to live to a ripe old age, men may need
high HDL levels and low levels of LDL (''bad'')
cholesterol. Women, on the other hand, just need
to have high HDL. This, according to Barzilai,
could help explain why women are more likely to
make it to 100--even in families in which longevity
is par for the course.
Since
high LDL and low HDL levels are heart-disease
risk factors, Barzilai said he believes the high
levels of HDL and low LDL these centenarians enjoy
protects them from the number-one cause of death
in the U.S.
SOURCE:
Journal of the American Geriatrics Society 2001;49.
If
you don’t have this lucky gene, but want
to raise your HDL and lower your LDL naturally,
click here: Cholestred
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