Over the course of an average lifetime, the human heart beats more than 2.5 million times. So it's worth taking care of your ticker!

Your heart pumps oxygen around your body

Beginning to beat not long after conception until the end of our life, the heart is one of the hardest working muscles in the body, with possibly the most important function – to pump blood containing oxygen and nutrients around the body to almost every single cell for survival.

Heart Breaker: The facts about fats and cholesterol

With now as many as one-third of adult Australians having elevated total cholesterol levels, keeping the vessels of the cardiovascular system healthy and free of dangerous accumulation of fat deposits is more important than ever. Cholesterol is a fatty substance predominantly produced by the body for the essential purposes of:

• maintenance of healthy cell membranes
• production of hormones
• conversion of vitamin D from sunlight and
• bile formation for fat absorption from the diet

A small amount of cholesterol comes from intake of saturated and trans fat foods through dietary intake.

Good and bad cholesterol?

The liver produces both HDL or ‘good’ cholesterol, and LDL or ‘bad’ cholesterol, and indeed we need both types for optimal health.

• HDL cholesterol is mainly responsible for moving cholesterol and other fats away from our organs, arteries and tissues for recycling by the liver, whilst
• LDL cholesterol carries cholesterol towards our organ and tissues, including the muscles and the heart

The Latest research indicates that HDL (high-density lipoprotein) may help protect against cardiovascular disease, whereas high levels of LDL (low-density lipoprotein) may contribute towards arterial build-up and the development of atherosclerosis. In particular, Lipoprotein (a) or LP (a) a particular sub-fraction of LDL, creates smaller, denser cholesterol particles that are more likely to clog arteries and increase the risk of heart attack or stroke.

How to improve your 'Heart-Health Numbers'

• Increase intake of oily fish such as sardines, salmon and mackerel and supplement with a high strength concentrated and clean source of omega 3 fish or krill oil from a sustainable source
• Add an aged garlic supplement and include fresh garlic in your daily diet to help reduce total and LDL cholesterol levels by as much as 8%*
• Use of bergamot extracts to lower total levels and reduce oxidation of LDL particles
• Increasing daily fibre intake through consumption of oats, vegetables, psyllium, chia seeds or a supplemental fibre extract
• Consume only heart healthy oils and fats such as olive oil and lecithin, avoiding omega 6 seed oils (canola, sunflower, rice bran etc.) which can be pro-inflammatory and promote oxidative damage to cardiovascular vessels
• Limit sugar intake from processed foods such as juices, baked goods, confectionary and cereals to prevent oxidative stress, production of LP(a) and build up of dangerous deposits of fat in the liver and arteries

Mr Vitamins recommends

References *https://www.niim.com.au/news/garlic-supplements-reduce-high-cholesterol-and-decrease-risk-heart-disease