Despite all the recommended dietary supplements like Chia Herb, Flax seed, and fish oil, heart disease continues to be prevalent and continues to kill. These are the most current facts about heart disease in the United States:
- Almost 75 million Americans over 20 years old have hypertension. That is 34% of the population.
- Almost 36 million Americans over 20 years old have high cholesterol levels.
- More than 17 million Americans have been diagnosed with diabetes and more than 6 million more are undiagnosed.
- 66% of adults are either overweight or obese. That is more than 144 million people.
Clearly there are huge problems that need to be addressed and health professionals are doing what they can, including First Lady Michelle Obama’s recent “Let’s Move” initiative aimed at reducing childhood obesity. While that is a positive step in the right direction, at the end of the day, no one can be responsible for your health other than you.
If you have tried various commercial diets and still have not lost the weight you wanted, don’t feel badly about it. Losing weight is very hard to do and most commercial, or “fad” diets, are not designed to lose weight and keep it off over the long term. To lose weight and keep it off, there are no magic pills, berries, cookies, or frozen food plans that will do the job. What will do the job is consuming fewer calories than you burn off and beginning an effective exercise routine to help burn off those calories. The link between cholesterol and diet is well established and a sensible daily diet is key to lower cholesterol.
It is important that you set yourself goals, write them down, and check your progress weekly. It is also important that your goals be realistic; if your ultimate goal is to lose 50 pounds it might be a better idea to set your first goal at 5 or 10 pounds. The satisfaction you feel from achieving the first goal will make the next ones that much easier!
The same goes for exercise. You do not need to invest in a home gym or even join one. All you need to do in the beginning is get more physical activity than you do now. That can be as easy as taking the stairs rather than the elevator, or parking at the far end of the lot instead of hunting for the space closest to the door. Once your body has adjusted to the new routine, you can increase the amount of activity.
If this all seems too simple it is because we have been conditioned by advertising to think that every problem needs a drug or pill or program to solve and that just is not the case. Do your homework and design a diet and exercise program that will work for you. Start it, chart your progress, don’t beat yourself up if you cheat occasionally, stick to it over time and you are guaranteed to see results.
While you are doing your research don’t forget to include healthy foods and logical dietary supplements to ensure your body is getting all the necessary nutrients to operate effectively. And emerging science indicates that one of the most important substances we need are omega-3 fatty acids in the right ratio with omega-6 fatty acids.
This is where the dietary supplements are so valuable. Supplements like Chia herb, flax seed, and fish oil are all considered excellent sources of omega-3 fatty acids and are frequently recommended by medical professionals as aids to lowering cholesterol levels. The key to these supplements is to add them to your daily diet and stay with it. Over time these supplements, when used with a heart healthy, low cholesterol diet and reasonable exercise, can lower your overall levels of cholesterol significantly
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