Results tagged “lipids” from Foodspace

Cholesterol: Don't know what it is, but it's bad stuff, right? Not exactly.

Cholesterol is a type of waxy lipid - a fat. Thus, it doesn't dissolve in water, and it makes a great barrier (along with other fats) for each and every cell membrane in our body. So it's a divider. But wait, it's also a uniter (it plays both sides against the middle. It can't help itself). We use cholesterol to make bile, and without bile, you can't digest fat. It's an emulsifier. That means it brings fat and water together (think salad dressing - the oil and other stuff are held together with emulsifiers. You'll see if you read the package. Be not afraid). Anyway, bile gobbles up fat and holds it in droplets where enzymes can come along and break it down so we can cushion our organs, insulate ourselves and scream about the efficient fat storehouse that is our rear end.

Bile is made in the liver and stored in the gall bladder. Consume or make too much cholesterol, pack on the pounds by eating too much fat, or lose weight too quickly, and you could make some crunchy little gallstones. Gallstones are made of cholesterol. If you have a gallstone, you suddenly have no trouble at all locating this organ: It's tucked right under the liver on the right hand side. Sometimes this necessitates removing the gallbladder. When the gallbladder is removed, the liver still makes bile and you can still digest fat.
More after the jump...