Chitosan
Chitosan is a sugar that is obtained from the hard outer skeleton of marine animals such as shellfish, crab, lobster and shrimp. Chitosan has been used in various industries. Chitosan has been used in water purification plants to absorb greases, oils, metals and toxic substances. Chitosan has been used in the cosmetic and fabric industry also. Chitosan also helps lower cholesterol level in our body.
Cholesterol and your health
Cholesterol serves many functions in our body. It is used to produce the steroid hormones such as estrogen, testosterone and other hormones required for normal development and functioning. Cholesterol is also used by liver to make the bile acid, which breaks down fat. When we eat food that contains fat, a bile is released into the intestine, some of which is absorbed back into the body and some is excreted in the feces. If your blood cholesterol level is too high, cholesterol could deposit in the arteries, forming a plague that can block blood flow in the artery.
Maintaining healthy cholesterol level
There are many ways to manage your cholesterol level, but the key is to raise HDL (high-density lipoprotein) cholesterol and lower LDL (low-density lipoprotein) cholesterol which deposits on the wall of arteries. Raising HDL keeps cholesterol circulating in blood without attaching to arterial walls, and even snatches up some cholesterol already stuck at the wall. Filling up on fibre which keeps your body from absorbing cholesterol can also help lower cholesterol level.
Chitosan helps lower cholesterol
Many mechanisms have been proposed to explain the alleged cholesterol lowering effect of chitosan. Chitosan has been shown to alter bile acid composition. Cholesterol is required to produce the bile acid, and this is one of the main mechanism by which our body removes excess cholesterol. Chitosan has been shown to combine with the bile acid. The combined product was excreted into the feces, prompting the body to replenish our bile level using cholesterol.
