I saw my cardiologist last week and we had been communicating, via e-mail, about the benefits of Vitamin D for diabetes and cardiovascular health [adequate vitamin D levels actually prevent the "foam cells" from ingesting more cholesterol and, finally, bursting and turning into a stroke or MI]. He had written back saying that he was now "a Believer". He found that testing his statin patients who complained about myalgias and chronic fatigue for 25-OH Vitamin D revealed that they were ALL low despite the fact that they were well nourished and had no apparent malabsorption issues. They all got better when their vitamin D levels were brought up into the normal range.More »

A new study from Iowa State University's Nutrition and Wellness Research Center (NWRC) may give men a way to combat high cholesterol without drugs -- if they don't mind sprinkling some flaxseed into their daily diet.

Suzanne Hendrich, an ISU professor in food science and human nutrition, led a study that examined the effects of flaxseed lignan in 90 people diagnosed with high cholesterol. The results showed that consuming at least 150 milligrams of flaxseed lignans per day (about three tablespoons) decreased cholesterol in men, but not women, by just under 10 percent over the three months that they were given the flaxseed.

While Hendrich admits that's considerably less than the expected outcome from cholesterol-lowering drugs -- approximately 10 to20 percent for three months, depending on the individual -- it's still enough to make flaxseed a more natural option for some men.More »