This is part III of “Are You Getting Enough Cholesterol?”, part I may be found here, and part II may be found here.

We’re looking at cholesterol, with the help of Chris Masterjohn. His site provides a wealth of material on the science and chemistry of cholesterol, and its impact on health and disease. In this third part, I extract a few interesting facts from Chris’s research, to share, and to inspire you to look further. My own two cents will be indicated by brackets.

-Low blood cholesterol is associated with higher risk of suicide, and by more violent methods than suicides with normal cholesterol levels.

-That those with Smith-Lemli-Opitz Syndrome, or SLOS, cannot properly synthesize cholesterol, and suffer from mental and physical retardation as a result. Those carrying a gene for SLOS, without “having” the disease, have lower synthesis rates than usual, and are at high risk of mental health issues like violence and suicide.

-High cholesterol foods are the only ones with arachidonic acid, the most essential fatty acid. AA can be synthesized from Omega 6 linoleic acid, common in plant foods- but the process is impossible for carnivores like cats, and difficult for omnivores like us. AA has a bad reputation as pro-inflammatory, and as a contributor to arthritis and reproductive ailments- yet it’s vital for hormone regulation. We don’t need much of this particular substance, but we need some! Children, pregnant women, bodybuilders and athletes, and sick people need more. AA deficiency is apparent in hair loss, dry skin and lesions, chronic fatigue and more. There is no AA found in plant foods.

-One reason we need sleep is to let our brain make cholesterol. We need it for learning and memory, and for neuron transmission. A quarter of our brain is made of cholesterol, which is the most important ingredient in forming synapses- i.e. learning, memory, and cognition.

-Cholesterol-lowering drugs cause memory problems, as do low-fat diets, by depriving the brain of cholesterol. Memory concerns are listed as a ‘side effect’ on statin drugs. Adding eggs to the diet improves memory and cognitive functioning.

-Cholesterol maintains fluid balance of cells and keeps them from “going to mush.”

-Cholesterol is the precursor of Vitamin D. Only animal foods contain Vitamin D. But don’t we get Vitamin D from the sun? Yes- because it synthesizes it from cholesterol. In turn, Vitamin D metabolizes calcium- keeping our bones and teeth healthy. It is also important in blood sugar regulation (which prevents metabolic problems, obesity, and diabetes, all of which lead to heart disease.) It’s vital to mental health, cancer prevention, and the immune system. Um, why are we told to avoid the sun, eat a cholesterol-free diet, and take cholesterol-lowering drugs? Clearly, it’s a recipe for disaster that we are already in the midst of. The president of the Vitamin D Council says most whites and nearly all black people are deficient in Vitamin D.

-Cod liver oil and lard are high in Vitamin D. We used to use both liberally. Now no one’s heard of cod liver oil and we avoid lard like the plague. (I might interject here that we always hear about the abundant long life and health of the Okinawans. And most of us think they are soy-gobbling vegetarians over there, because that’s what we are told is the reason for their longevity. But they eat raw fish, tons of pork, and use lard in everything.)

-We need cholesterol to make bile, which we need to digest our fat. If we don’t digest fat properly, we don’t get the nutrients we need from it.

-Looks like our friend cholesterol is the mother of our favourite hormones: “Cholesterol is the precursor to a hormone called pregnenolone, which has important functions itself, but is also the precursor to all other steroid hormones. Pregnenolone is converted to progesterone, a sex hormone, which in turn is converted into cortisol, which regulates inflammation and blood sugar, aldosterone, which regulates mineral balance and blood pressure, or testosterone, a type of sex hormone referred to as an androgen, which regulates libido, muscle mass, and plays other roles. In females, and to a lesser degree in males, testosterone is further modified, undergoing conversion to estradiol, a different type of sex hormone called an estrogen.” Ummm, pass the red meat and eggs please.

-Liver, and cod liver oils (and grass fed butter, though less) are high in cholesterol, and Vitamin A. Vitamin A is found only in animal foods. (It’s common knowledge that beta-carotene from vegetable foods is a precursor to Vitamin A, so vegans are fine, right? Wrong. To convert it, you need fat, and bile, and bile salts- you guessed it, cholesterol!) Vitamin A is vital to regulating fat tissue, blood sugar, oxidative stress, libido, sexual health, energy, and brain health. Liver foods are also high in B vitamins and a host of other good stuff.

-Get cracking. Eggs contain the perfect balance of amino acids, cholesterol, Vitamins A, D, E and K, selenium, magnesium, calcium…indeed, every known nutrient except for Vitamin C! Eggs would go a long way in solving the world’s problem of malnourishment and starvation (unlike the fairly useless grains, which clearly aren’t working.)

Thanks so much to Chris Masterjohn for his comprehensive work in sharing this vital wealth of information with us. This was just a small sampling of the facts- covered in depth at his site (www.cholesterol-and-health.com). There are even chemistry lessons you can take!  

This is part II of “Are You Getting Enough Cholesterol?”, part I may be found here, and part III will be posted on Monday.

Chris Masterjohn is pursuing his doctorate in molecular biology and he is a cholesterol activist. “Cholesterol has been one of the most maligned and misunderstood substances of the twentieth century. Eating foods high in cholesterol was long thought to raise blood cholesterol levels, something considered to be so dangerous that some of the most nutritious foods on the planet — like liver and egg yolks — were demonized as enemies of our arteries. Unfortunately the campaign against cholesterol has washed away from our daily menus many of the most important foods we should treasure for excellent health and vitality,” he states on his web site:

He claims foods high in cholesterol can keep you healthy- and save your life. And he spends much of his time telling us how and why. When I asked Chris why he became the spokesguy for cholesterol, he told me, “Quite simply science is a search for truth. I think when people see someone who cuts through the spin and gives an honest and balanced look at the original research, they respect that.”

Chris became a vegan in 1999 after reading Diet For a New America by John Robbins. He was influenced most profoundly by his desire for compassion and a healthy environment, but he knew perfect health would be a great bonus prize. “Surely a cholesterol-free diet that was also extremely low in saturated fat would make me the epitome of health,” he thought, and added tons of “superfood” soy. But his health declined rapidly. He was exhausted. He had extreme anxiety and panic attacks. And his teeth were rotting. He knew from the Robbins’ book that protein was the culprit in bone and tooth decay- didn’t protein “leach” calcium from the body? Yet despite his perfect diet, he developed 15 cavities and had two dead teeth.

Then Chris learned about dentist Weston Price’s anthropology travels to track the glowing health of vegetarian people across the globe. But what the good doctor found was the opposite of his expectation- the tribes and cultures with perfect teeth and health were meat eaters- sometimes with little else in their diet at all. When Chris put red meat back in his diet, the decay and all other health problems disappeared.

With his personal story and his scientific inquiry, Chris knows the perfect diet is “one that incorporates meat, shellfish, skin and bones, organ meats, fruits, vegetables, traditional saturated and monounsaturated oils, and freshly ground, risen grains.” He says, “Food should always be consumed with joy and thankfulness.

But if it’s not saturated fat and cholesterol- animal foods- causing disease as we are told, then what is?

“The theme that underlies most chronic degenerative disease is oxidative stress. In simple terms, this is the process of things going rancid, which happens when food ‘goes bad.’…Things are falling apart at the molecular level. The principle culprit in this process is the oxidation of polyunsaturated fats, which are found most abundantly in modern vegetable oils… The secondary culprit is excessive carbohydrate, which can be obtained by using refined sugars and flours.”

Yep- “heart healthy vegetable oils” and “low fat” processed foods- the very things our culture has been sold, hook, line and sinker.

But what about The China Study? I can’t really assume that ties to militant animal rights groups negates all of the research, can I? Chris and Dr. C argued about this issue through their Internet writings, and you can access the dialogues here: http://www.cholesterol-and-health.com/Campbell-Masterjohn.html. But I asked Chris for a nutshell response.

“The China Study did not find any convincing associations between the intake of animal protein and degenerative disease as Campbell claims, and even if it did, statistical associations never show causation. Campbell performed laboratory experiments showing that powdered casein, a protein preparation extracted from milk, promotes cancer in lab animals. But many substances in milk such as whey proteins and vitamins inhibit the growth of cancers. Rather than performing more research clarifying whether milk, yogurt, and cheese as whole foods actually promote rather than prevent cancer, Campbell generalized from his experiments that all animal foods promote cancer. He ignores the many populations that have subsisted on diets that include animal products for centuries without suffering from cancer, heart disease, and other degenerative diseases.”

But many vegans find they’ve never felt better and seemingly, studies show they’re right. What gives?

Chris explains that, “vegetarians tend to be more health-conscious…who practice other dietary or lifestyle modifications…” And people absolutely improve their diet when they switch to one with more fruits and veggies. But, “To truly address the issue, a study would have to take similarly health-conscious people and put some of them on a natural, whole foods diet that includes animal foods and the others on a natural, whole foods diet that excludes animal foods. Such a study hasn’t been done.”

Stay tuned for more fascinating facts about cholesterol in part three.  

by Lorette C. Luzajic

For the past century, it’s been in vogue to attribute disease to a high cholesterol diet, and so traditional, nutrient-dense animal foods have been given the short shrift. But where did this idea come from? Certainly not from traditional societies, or our hunting and gathering ancestors. No culture has ever eschewed animal foods except for religious reasons until recent history.

But why? Because the processed vegetable oil (soy) and sugar industries were expanding, and to make room for them in the marketplace, something had to go.

Butter was replaced by margarine- which we now know is toxic. Eggs were removed from the breakfast table to make way for sugary, starchy packaged cereals or white toast. Even worse, the demonized high-cholesterol egg was replaced with an ‘edible’ industrial product- Egg Beaters. Zero cholesterol! Choose health! But were we? Eggs contain perfectly balanced protein and every single vitamin and mineral known, except vitamin C. You may be surprised to learn that studies actually show egg eaters have fewer heart attacks and strokes. Eggs are a-okay again. Our grandparents knew this all along.

Yet some are still scaremongering us away from foods we need most. Colin T. Campbell’s infamous China Study boldly declared that the only ‘safe level’ of cholesterol in the diet was zero- hence, one should eat no animal foods at all.

Considering that mother’s milk is bursting with cholesterol- does nature not know best? Apparently not- we’re feeding our infants cholesterol-free soy formulas. We’re still buying “fat free” packaged foods stuffed with artificial plant oils and sugar. Though Campbell’s prescription for a vegan world sounded authoritative, a bit of research turned up an agenda pretty quickly, and it isn’t human health: Campbell is an elite advisory member of the Physician’s Committee for Responsible Medicine. The committee is linked by various professional and romantic liaisons to militant animal rights’ groups like PETA, and Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty, which has been declared a terror threat by the government! These groups are opposed to animals in food, research, or even as helpers, like seeing eye dogs. Not exactly an agenda I can trust to give me impartial health information- especially when the PCRM has been caught repeatedly, sending press releases announcing the exact opposite of data in reports and studies.

Zero cholesterol? Not if you want to thrive- or live, for that matter. Cholesterol is a vital nutrient. It’s needed to build cell membranes, regulate hormone health, and help produce natural steroids that protect us from stress, cancer, heart disease and mental illness.

It’s easy to forget that the panic over old-fashioned, healthy animal fats is generated by the junk food and junk oil industries. We’re told we’re sick because we’re eating too much animal fat- but we’re eating less. Before 1920, heart disease was rare. Now it’s the leading cause of death. We’ve gone from 18 pounds of butter per person to four- but we’ve increased our sugar and processed food by about 60%- and our vegetable fats by a whopping 400%.

It’s so confusing- who can we trust? And good cholesterol, bad cholesterol, cholesterol in food sources…what is cholesterol, exactly? We’re going to find out more from Chris Masterjohn, of Cholesterol and Health, in part two. He can help us sort out the good, the bad, and the ugly.

This is part I of “Are You Getting Enough Cholesterol?”, part II will be posted on Saturday, and part III will be posted on Monday.