Don’t Be A Sap: Use Tree Resin To Lower Cholesterol

By: Lac Tran -



Chances are that if you’re not from India or the Middle East, you’ve never heard of guggul. Guggul is a supplement widely used in India as a natural high cholesterol treatment. It is made of tree resin from the mukul myrrh tree that grows in India and the Middle East. In India, guggul is used to lower cholesterol in Ayurvedic medicine as well as in prescription medicine. India is where almost all the research on guggul for high cholesterol has been undertaken.

Guggul as High Cholesterol Treatment: The Evidence

Guggul has a long history of use as a natural treatment in India and other parts of Asia. What kinds of ailments has guggul been used to treat and prevent?

- arteriosclerosis and congestive heart failure
- obesity
- inflammation
- lung ailments
- skin ailments
- seizures
- stomach ulcers
- arthritis
- high cholesterol

Research studies in India have confirmed that guggul is often effective as a high cholesterol treatment, recording a range of responses for high cholesterol from 11 to 27 percent drops. Yet it is significant to note that the subjects in the Indian studies generally followed a low-fat, high-fiber, whole-grain, high-in-vegetables diet, unlike the standard American fare. In the single U.S. study on guggul for high cholesterol, when the subjects ate their usual high-fat, low-fiber, refined-flour, low-in-vegetables diet, and took guggul, it did not help in their high cholesterol treatment.

This evidence strongly suggests that we may need to try eating smarter to lower cholesterol naturally, and not just take Guggul on its own.

Smart Supplement Usage of Guggul

In the U.S. and elsewhere, guggul is sold over the counter. The recommended form of guggul to take is called guggulipid. Its use is increasing as a high cholesterol treatment in the West as people learn more about it.

Guggul is sometimes effective for treating high cholesterol caused by low thyroid levels. Low thyroid levels are a causative factor of high cholesterol. If you have low thyroid, have your doctor carefully monitor these levels if you are taking guggul.

Guggul can interfere with or sharply raise blood levels of medications such as diltiazem (Cardizem), propanolol (Inderal), statins, thyroid stimulating hormones, birth control pills, or blood thinners. Don’t take guggul in pregnancy or with inflammatory bowel syndrome or liver disorders. Before you start mixing guggul with any other medication, check with your doctor.

If you have been diagnosed with mild to moderately high cholesterol and have not yet been prescribed medication to lower cholesterol, your doctor may approve guggul combined with lifestyle changes to lower cholesterol naturally. If you take medication to lower cholesterol, you will definitely need to check with your doctor before adding guggul to your regimen.

How Does Guggul Lower Cholesterol?

There are several possible mechanisms by which guggul treats high cholesterol. In studies in India, guggul lowered total cholesterol, LDL (“bad” cholesterol), and triglycerides (blood lipids). Some researchers believe it stimulates the thyroid to lower cholesterol. It is also believed that guggul may stimulate the liver to remove cholesterol from circulation in the bloodstream and thus lower cholesterol levels in the body.

Occasionally, people have a high cholesterol syndrome that does not respond to prescription medication, and the doctor is stumped about what to do. In India, if no contraindications apply, this kind of patient is often prescribed guggul and it is found effective. Guggul is also used to prevent high cholesterol. Consider discussing guggul with your doctor to lower cholesterol.

More Articles

High Cholesterol Can Kill

... products such as hot dogs, hamburgers, bacon, sausage, bologna and salami. Eat more chicken and turkey (with skin removed) and more fish. Choose turkey, lean roast beef, lean ham and water-packed albacore tuna fish for sandwiches. Prepare more meals that use meat sparingly. Soups, stews, stir-fry meals ... 

Statin Dangers: This Cholesterol-Lowering Fad Has 7 Side Effects That Can Imperil Your Life

... increase in congestive heart failure in people taking statins. One report states that a cardiologist studied 20 patients with normal heart function. After six months on a low dose of statins, two-thirds of the patients had abnormalities in the heart's filling phase, when the muscle fills with blood. 4. ... 

Cholesterol: Good Or Bad?

... substance in which cholesterol is carried into the blood and is the primary cause of the fatty build up that causes problems in the arteries. High Density Lipoprotein (HDL) is the good cholesterol. Think of the 'H' as being the happy cholesterol or good natured. This cholesterol carries the cholesterol ... 

Cutting Cholesterol

... easy to do, and you'll be amazed at how quickly the amounts can add up, even at an average mealtime. Daily exercise is another simple and effective means of cutting cholesterol. Take a brisk walk every day. Ride your bike to work. Play with the kids. Use the stairs instead of the elevator. These are all ... 

Cholesterol Information - Medication, Lifestyle And Food

... about cholesterol - foods, lifestyles and medications. For the most, these facts are associated with products you can buy, in other words, commercials - tv, radio and print. On the other hand, what cholesterol information is actually pertinent to avoid heart disease and live a healthy life and where can ... 

Manage Your Cholesterol With Natural Vitamin Supplements.

... statins to healthy patients as a preventative due to the potential side effects of the drugs. If you find you are consuming a lot of cholesterol in your diet, I would recommend a diet change and supplementation of the vitamins listed above to maintain a healthy heart. With the help of our doctors and ... 

The Problem With Red Yeast Rice

... know the Chinese have used red yeast rice both as a food and a medicine since about 400 A.D. The substance has been useful as a food preservative and food colorant, as well as a spice. In fact, it is red yeast rice that gives Peking duck its red color. You can make red yeast rice by fermenting cooked ... 

Information On Cholesterol - An In-Dept Health Guide.

... nowadays than there were in the past? Well, the plain and simple truth is, there are. Today, particularly people from across the world grapple with various heath afflictions. From heart disease, Cancer, to fatal STDs; it just seems like there is no end to the dismal list. One of the greatest health issues ... 

Why High Cholesterol (And High Choline) Foods May Be Good For Your Blood

... should be exercised, however, in the treatment of the FNB recommendation which appears to have been set at the lowest level necessary to avoid liver damage. And it may be noted also that the 700 mg figure for the lower end of the range of normal intake seems perilously close to the 550 mg a day regarded ...