Bradley Walsh is working out ‘full time’ after high cholesterol scare

High cholesterol: Nutritionist reveals top prevention tips

We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info

Warned by his doctor that he was at high risk of developing heart problems, Bradley Walsh had to take steps to get in better shape. “I’m back boxing training now. Full time. I’ve done about a stone-and-a-half in weight,” Walsh stated. The 62-year-old admitted he was a “time bomb” as he had “too much cholesterol”, which he recognised is a “silent killer”.

Walsh revealed: “My heart guy said, ‘Look, Brad, you need to get fit’.”

Having too much cholesterol is a serious health risk, which can be attributed to:

• An unhealthy diet
• A sedentary lifestyle
• Being overweight
• Smoking
• Drinking alcohol.

High cholesterol doesn’t usually cause any symptoms until the levels are extremely high.

A blood test, arranged by the doctor, can determine cholesterol levels; total cholesterol measured as five or below is considered “healthy”.

Yet, if cholesterol levels are not healthy, the health risks can include strokes and heart attacks.

The British Heart Foundation (BHF) suggests ways to lower dangerous cholesterol levels, which range from being more active and cutting down on alcohol.

There can be another type of high cholesterol, known as familial hypercholesterolaemia, which can still occur even if you lead a healthy lifestyle.

There may be visible manifestations of familial hypercholesterolaemia, which can include tendon xanthomata.

These are “swellings made from cholesterol on the knuckles of your hands, your knees or the Achilles tendon at the back of your ankle”.

Then there’s xanthelasmas, which are “small, yellow lumps of cholesterol near the inner corner of your eye”.

Some people who have the inherited condition might develop corneal arcus, which is a “pale white ring around the coloured part of your eye”.

If you identify with any of these symptoms, it’s recommended to book a doctor’s appointment.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Bradley Walsh (@bradderswalsh)

If you do not have familial hypercholesterolaemia, but have elevated cholesterol due to an uhealthy lifestyle, sometimes medication might be needed.

Doctors typically describe statins to reduce cholesterol, but there are other treatments available.

“Your doctor will let you know if you need to take any other drugs which help control your cholesterol levels,” the BHF says.

As for Walsh, he said: “I’m not on statins but what my heart guy said was, ‘Look, Brad, if you start training, all that [cholesterol] will drop. You need to get fit’.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Bradley Walsh (@bradderswalsh)

And that’s what Walsh has been doing. On top of boxing, he has been jogging to keep fit.

“I got the 5K done,” he stated. “I thought, ‘I’m going to keep going.’ I thought I’d done maybe four times that – I looked at the watch, it was about 8K…”

During his fitness regime, his weight loss has not been linear, as he revealed.

“I’ve lost a bit, put a bit on,” he admitted. “From my heaviest to my lightest was about three stone.”

Episode two of Bradley Walsh: The Laugh’s On Me is showcasing on Sunday, December 18 at Channel 5 at 9pm.

Source: Read Full Article