A Couple of Beers May Help to Lower Cholesterol Levels

Good news has arrived for those of you who enjoy a cool beer every once in a while. A study currently being conducted at the University of Western Ontario has concluded that a couple of beers may produce the same effects as wine in lowering cholesterol levels. Thirty minutes upon drinking the beer, researchers noted a decrease in the level of oxidized low density lipoprotein (LDL), a type of cholesterol that has been linked to causing atherosclerosis. The researchers suspect that the barley that is used to make the beer may have something to do with lowering of the LDL levels. Barley contains polyphenols, which have been linked to lowering cholesterol levels in other foods. But don't get out that keg yet...the scientists also found that after about three beers, the cholesterol-lowering effects of beer are diminshed, and can actually promote the oxidation of LDL. These results will be published in the December issue of Nonlinearity in Biology, Toxicology and Medicine.