JEDDAH — More people are aware of the consequential effects of fasting during Ramadan, especially with people suffering from chronic diseases like diabetes, etc. Keeping this in mind, more households are moving toward high quality products and healthy cooking oil. Unchecked cholesterol level would adversely affect productivity, in the long run. A new medical study undertaken by a team of cardiologists examined changes to cholesterol levels during Ramadan. The findings suggest that the fasting and eating behavior during Ramadan helps reduce cholesterol levels. For obese people and particularly for diabetics, Ramadan fasting represents an excellent opportunity to initiate healthy lifestyle changes and to lose weight. It gives a real motivation for self-management, which is highly needed during this period of the year. Moreover, the change in eating patterns, which occurs during this month, breaks previous habits.
High cholesterol increases risk of heart disease and heart attacks. Cholesterol can be improved with medications, but first make lifestyle changes to improve cholesterol, medical experts say, noting that if a person is already taking medications, these changes can improve their cholesterol-lowering effect.
Dr. Saud Al Sifri, consultant endocrinologist and head of Internal Medicine at Al Hada Military Hospital in Taif, told Saudi Gazette on the sidelines of the symposium organized by MSD, that modifying lifestyle is an effective way of regulating blood cholesterol level.
Choose healthier fats. Saturated fats, found primarily in red meat and dairy products, raise total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, the "bad" cholesterol. Choose leaner cuts of meat, low-fat dairy and monounsaturated fats — found in olive and canola oils — for healthier options.
Dr. Al Sifri said eating healthy diet – with less saturated and trans fat (formed by the partial hydrogenation of vegetable oil) and reducing red meat intake by 30% – will lower the cholesterol in the blood.
Trans fats affect cholesterol levels by increasing the "bad" cholesterol and lowering the "good" cholesterol. This bad combination increases the risk of heart attacks. Trans fats can be found in fried foods and many commercial products, such as cookies, crackers and snack cakes. Besides, observing 30 minutes of brisk walking, three to four days a week, and reducing body weight by five to seven percent will further keep the cholesterol level in check, he noted.
The symposium discussed the results of the study titled “Improve-It” launched in the US sponsored by Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp. (MSD) which examined the outcomes in patients with acute coronary syndrome. It showed that intensive statin therapy, as compared with moderate-dose statin therapy, incrementally lowers LDL
(bad) cholesterol levels and rates of nonfatal cardiovascular events. Improve-It is a landmark study in that it is the first clinical trial to show a benefit of adding a nonstatin lipid-modifying agent to statin therapy. Ezetimibe, the added agent in this trial, works by reducing the intestinal absorption of cholesterol, a distinct mechanism that is unrelated to that of statins.
The real implication of Improve-It is to suggest that all reductions in LDL levels, regardless of mechanism, are of equivalent benefit. Thus, a patient who is currently being treated with 40 mg of simvastatin would be expected to benefit just as much from a higher-intensity statin regimen (e.g., 40 to 80 mg of atorvastatin or 20 to 40 mg of rosuvastatin) as from the addition of ezetimibe, assuming equivalent reductions in LDL cholesterol levels.
LDL cholesterol is considered the “bad” cholesterol because it contributes to plaque, a thick, hard deposit that can clog arteries and make them less flexible. If a clot forms and blocks a narrowed artery, heart attack or stroke can result. Another condition called peripheral artery disease can develop when plaque buildup narrows an artery supplying blood to the legs.
Cardiovascular diseases have emerged as the leading cause of death in most countries in the Middle East, causing 45% of early deaths in the Gulf region, and women are not spared despite the common belief that this concerns more men. Heart diseases are blamed for 24 percent of all deaths in the Kingdom whereas 55 percent of the Saudi population is prone to face high cholesterol blood levels, Saudi medical experts said, quoting data released by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Moreover, Dr. Abdulhalim Kinsara, assistant professor of cardiology at King Saud University and consultant cardiologist, section head adult cardiology at the National Guard Hospital in Jeddah, said symptoms of heart disease are common after the age of 40, where those experiencing diabetes and kidney failure are more vulnerable to such diseases which make it imperative to conduct regular check-ups. — SG
