Having high levels of cholesterol in the blood is a problem for many of us. A number of things may be to blame for this, and one of those is the type of food we eat. By eating some kinds of food we're risking an increase in levels of cholesterol, but luckily this is something we are able to easily control. Simply by varying our diet to one without saturated and trans-fats we could reduce the risk of high cholesterol. But does alcohol consumption have an effect on cholesterol, or should we just be aware of our food?

If I drink a glass of wine, might that increase my ldl cholesterol levels?

Many people like a drink with a meal but worry that it's going to aversely influence cholesterol. Some people have read that alcohol consumption might have bad consequences on our health. It seems, though, that moderate alcohol drinking has no outcome on cholesterol at all.

Moderate alcohol consumption is usually calibrated as one drink per day for girls and two for guys, but individuals drinking more than this may see raises in triglycerides and in cholesterol levels in the blood.

In fact, small quantities of alcohol have been shown to increase the HDL cholesterol whereas 3-5 drinks per day may create other health conditions in time. HDL cholesterol is more protein than fat, and this helps clear the bad cholesterol from the blood. A higher HDL cholesterol level can help reduce the danger of a heart attack and the best way of raising HDL cholesterol is through the diet.

Does coffee raise your cholesterol levels?

Esspresso coffee and many filtered coffees like French-press can increase cholesterol levels. But the oil compounds found in some coffee are missing from filtered coffee, therefore the effect is minimal.

Some investigation has suggested that Acrylamide, among the chemical substances present in coffee, could be carcinogenic in animals however the WHO does not accept these findings on account of insufficient evidence. Research is currently being done to find alternative methods of manufacturing coffee because the Acrylamide is a side effect of the roasting process. Other scientific studies have associated two oils formed when coffee is brewed, cafestol and kahweol, to increases in total cholesterol levels and also LDL cholesterol.

Will chocolate raise my cholesterol levels?

Contrary to popular belief, eating lots of chocolate won't raise blood cholesterol levels. Stearic acid is a constituent of chocolate, and this neutral fat does not increase cholesterol levels within the blood. In fact, the oleic acid in cocoa butter is exactly the same as that within olive oil that may have the effect of reducing total cholesterol. However, eating a lot of chocolate will make you fat.

Eating chocolate is virtually certain to make you gain weight as it is so full of calories. There are those, however, who claim a cup of drinking chocolate taken before a meal will reduce their appetite.