Hey Reader

In the UK, October is National Cholesterol Month. Cholesterol is one of those topics that never seems to be out of the health news for very long. In my lifetime, we've been told numerous times that you had to avoid or limit dairy to reduce the risk of sky-high cholesterol. We get told to fear cholesterol, get medications to reduce it, and that it is categorically a scary thing that we all need to watch out for as we steer away from "bad" cholesterol foods and switch to the "good"... except, it's not that simple!

I will soon be getting my cholesterol checked as part of a robust human MOT. I'm closing in on 40 and, as such, I want to know if there is anything that needs to be monitored or tweaked. But, even if my cholesterol is high, it won't be concerning. Here's why.

Our brain needs cholesterol almost as much as our lungs need air. Cholesterol is involved in the communication process for neurotransmitters, such as dopamine and serotonin. It makes up the majority of myelin, the white fatty sheath that provides a protective coating on neurons to increase the brain's processing speed. Reduce your cholesterol and you reduce your brain function.

In a healthy, working human body, cholesterol will be distributed into the bloodstream, used to make cellular repairs, and then the spare is returned to the liver and broken down.

That's not to say that all cholesterol is harmless. Of course, cholesterol has a downside when out of balance, but having high cholesterol is not in and of itself a problem. The key cholesterol measurement is your cholesterol/HDL ratio. A ratio below 3.5:1 is considered very good. If you have a healthy balance of cholesterol, the actual number doesn't matter... and a higher number may even prolong your lifespan and cognitive ability in old age.

But before you start adding in extra eggs and butter, I'll leave you on a last nugget of information on the subject. Only a maximum of 20% of your cholesterol comes from your diet. And, like so many things, if you adjust your dietary intake, your body will adjust its processes to match!
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​Moments to Savour

• Something I loved: Listening to my 8-year-old and his best friend laughing up a storm as I wrote this email.
• Something I learnt: That people can shift their mindset to achieve massive and sudden change. A client of mine was determined she couldn't quit smoking... until we found a reason that for her was a trigger, leading her to insta-quit!
• Something I ate: Soups. The weather is definitely turning to Autumn, which makes it the perfect season for warming spice-rich soups.

Have an amazing week!
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Zoey Nutrition & Health Coach

PS You can now add yourself to the waiting list for Food Labelling Deciphered! You can also pre-order for a 33% discount!​

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