"Lowering Stress, Lowering Cholesterol
Many cardiologists say stress is an under-recognized
factor contributing to high cholesterol.
Mr. Edginton heeded the doctor’s advice. Now 69 years
old, Mr. Edginton is down to one teaching job and some scaled-down
responsibilities in professional organizations. His level of so-called bad
cholesterol, or low-density lipoprotein (LDL), has dropped to 62 milligrams per
deciliter from 121 mg/dL in 2012. (The latest cholesterol-treatment guidelines,
from 2013, no longer set specific targets; his doctor says 50 to 70 is
reasonable for Mr. Edginton, who had two previous heart attacks.
Of all the factors contributing to high cholesterol, many
cardiologists say one often goes unmentioned in advice for patients: stress.
Yet chronic stress from a tough job, a strained relationship or other
anxiety-producing situations can play a role—along with poor diet, smoking and
lack of exercise—in causing lipid concentrations to rise, they say. Cholesterol
deposited by LDL can accumulate in the arteries, a condition known as
atherosclerosis, which can reduce blood flow.
“Stress will make your cholesterol go up,” says Stephen
Kopecky, a preventive cardiologist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester , Minn.
Understanding the effect of stress on cholesterol is
becoming more important as people’s lives increasingly are crammed with
obligations, and digital technology makes switching off harder than ever,
cardiologists say. Nearly 28 percent of U.S.
As millions of Americans tackle high cholesterol, experts
say one of the most significant risk factors — stress — is often overlooked.
Christopher Edginton was taking medication and trying to
improve his diet when his cholesterol shot up anyway four years ago.
His doctor suggested a new approach. 'He said you’ve got
to get rid of some things you’re doing, some of the stresses in your life.'”"
Nothing could be further from the truth than what was
reported in the CNN news above. Stress is an enemy of holistic living, which
involves alignment of the body, the mind, and the soul.
Firstly, stress is the underlying cause of many human
diseases and disorders. Apart from elevating cholesterol, stress restricts the
flow of life energy within the whole body system; this life-giving energy flow
is responsible for the transmission of oxygen and nutrients to different parts
of the body to maintain its overall optimum health.
Secondly, stress is an attack on the mind, which is
directly and indirectly connected with the body. Anxiety and depression often
result from stress.
The imbalance of the body and the mind may create many
health issues and problems that lead to the dependence on medications --
another enemy of holistic living.
Exercise and other natural therapies, such as meditation,
may target the after-effects of stress; they, however, do not deal with the
causes of stress. The stressors in everyday living come from the ego-self --
or, more specifically, from the attachments that create the ego-self. Let go of
attachments to career money, and relationship, among other things in the
material world. Letting go of the ego-self is the way to go -- the only way to
get rid of stress.
Having said that, letting go is difficult, if not
impossible, without Tao wisdom, the wisdom of Lao Tzu, the ancient sage from
China more than two thousands years ago.
Stephen Lau
Copyright©2018 by
Stephen Lau
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