“I knew it was sugary, but 16 GRAMS OF SUGAR? In one serving??? I couldn’t believe it.”

The more I’ve learned about nutrition, the more appalled I’ve become with the food industry. Nowadays, people are much more health conscious than they used to be. Because of that, you’d think there’d be fewer harmful ingredients in processed foods, or even less processed foods overall.

But just walk into a grocery store and you’ll see that’s not the case. There are tons of processed foods out there. And despite researchers, doctors, and registered dietitians telling us to eat more whole, natural foods, we tend to keep buying these man-made products.

Why? Well that’s an easy one.

“Why does my body do this every night?? I’m a curious person, so I needed to figure this out.”

The other night I was sitting on the couch and it hit me: an intense urge to eat something sweet before going to bed.

I’m no stranger to this feeling. Every single night, despite my best intentions, I have a strong craving for a dessert after dinner. Sometimes I’m also hit by the desperate need for something salty.

On this particular night, I turned to my boyfriend and said, “I want to eat something so badly but I’m not at all hungry. WHY?! What is happening? Why does my body do this every night??”

I’m a curious person, so I needed to figure this out. And figure out if there’s actually a good way to stop. Because eating when you’re hungry is one thing, but eating sugary, greasy foods when you’re not hungry is just plain not good for you.

Why are so many of us plagued by late night snacking?

“If you make the appropriate changes, you can lower your cholesterol and your risk for these serious health problems.”

I think cholesterol is the epitome of changing healthcare recommendations over time. And how health guidelines can sometimes just be plain wrong. Seriously, this topic can be so confusing because of all the conflicting information out there.

So I’m here today to bring you the latest information on cholesterol from the most-trusted­ resources. What that means is this post is based on scientific research findings and is the best we have right now. That’s not to say the recommendations won’t change again. They very well could. But I’m going to share with you why these guidelines do absolutely make sense and what the medical field has found to be working.

Why is this topic important?

Because high cholesterol can severely worsen your health by increasing your chance of developing cardiovascular disease. The more plaque in your coronary (heart) arteries, the more likely you are to have a heart attack. And the more plaque in your arteries, especially your carotid arteries (the ones in your neck that supply blood to your brain), the more likely you are to have a stroke.