What are the natural ways to manage cholesterol?
Q: My father is 52 years old and weighs 57 kg. He recently underwent a bypass surgery. His blood pressure is 130/90 and he is on regular medications. The doctors say that recovery is good and they have reduced the medicine dosage. He does not smoke or drink. Since the doctors have reduced the medicines, we thought of following natural ways to keep the cholesterol in check. With this effect, he consumes half tablespoon of fenugreek seeds soaked overnight in water regularly. However, he has lost weight since then. He was 64 kgs before the surgery 1 year back. Will fenugreek seeds have any negative effect on him? Is it safe to consume fenugreek seeds? Is there a need to increase his weight too, as long as he consumes Fenugreek seeds?
A:You did not tell me as to what the patient's height is, so it is not possible to calculate the patients ideal body weight. However, if he is not going grossly underweight and feeling weakness, he may continue to be a little less than his ideal weight to avoid excess pressure on the heart and chances of increasing blood pressure, blood cholesterol, etc. Instead of the Fenugreek seeds, I would rather advice you to give the patient 1 clove of garlic (to be swallowed) in the early morning with a glass of water, then give him a cup of green tea. As a prevention strategy stick to skimmed milk for milk and milk product intake. Fenugreek is good for the body and has many healing effects. But in this case, Garlic suits better.