Cholesterol and your Health

What is Cholesterol

Cholesterol is in simple terms can be defined as a soft, waxy, fatty material that is created by your liver.  Cholesterol serves an important function, as it is found in the makeup of every cell of our body.  Our bodies need cholesterol to sustain healthy cell walls, create vitamin D, create hormones and to create bile acids.

You must remember that the food you eat does play a major part in the amount of cholesterol found in your body.  Your liver will inevitably create more cholesterol than the body actually needs if you continuously eat large amounts of food that contains high saturated fat.  Your body also absorbs cholesterol directly from food that contains cholesterol.

Cholesterol is predominately found in animal based foods, but when food is processed it can make other forms of foods to contain cholesterol.  Fried foods using both vegetable oils and animal fat do contain cholesterol.  Saturated fat is predominately found in animal based foods.

Good and Bad Cholesterol

Cholesterol on its own cannot be dissolved your blood.  Tiny particles called lipoproteins deliver cholesterol to and from the blood cells.  There are two lipoproteins that work with cholesterol, low-density lipoproteins (LDL) and high-density lipoproteins (HDL).

LDL cholesterol is normally referred to as “bad cholesterol”.  LDL carries cholesterol into the blood stream to the tissues to be stored and used by the body.  The reason LDL is referred to as “bad cholesterol” is because it can build up and clog your arteries.

HDL cholesterol is normally referred to as “good cholesterol”.  HDL carries cholesterol in the blood stream from the tissues to the liver.  The liver then repels cholesterol from the body.  High HDL levels tend to protect you against heart attack and stroke.

Your blood cholesterol levels can be affected if you are overweight, don’t exercise, have inherited health traits, being older and your gender.  Women after menopause tend to have higher cholesterol than before menopause.  Women also tend to have a higher HDL level than men.  This would explain why women under the age of 80 usually experience lower rates of heart disease and stroke than men.

Cholesterol Levels

A high cholesterol level is considered to be anything above 200 mg/dL for your total cholesterol (LDL + HDL).  This is not the only figure that you should be looking at.  You need to have a HDL level greater than or equal to 45 mg/dL to minimise the risk of heart disease.

Cholesterol Levels Table

Your Health and High Cholesterol

High cholesterol is often called the invisible killer, as many people are not aware that they have high cholesterol and often ignore the dangers associated with it.  Having high cholesterol can lead to serious health problems if left untreated.  It is vital to do everything that possible to keep and maintain your cholesterol levels at a healthy level and to regularly check your cholesterol levels.

You can get your cholesterol checked by your medical physician (doctor), who will get you to fast for at least twelve hours to test your blood.  Your HDL, LDL, and triglyceride levels are checked with this test.

Anyone can suffer from high cholesterol, however a patient's background will have an influencing factor on whether you will be at risk with more serious health complications.  A patient with high blood pressure, who smokes, is overweight, or has a background that might lead to possible heart condition might increase the risk of developing a heart condition due to high cholesterol. That is why such a test is so crucial.

While the acceptable cholesterol levels may vary between individuals, only your doctor will be able to tell you how your results compare.  If you have been diagnosed with high cholesterol, you should work with your doctor and make changes to your lifestyle to help lower your cholesterol.  This may involve changing your lifestyle and your diet that is cholesterol-friendly.  Coupled with proper exercise, your health will improve.  Don't let high cholesterol be a silent killer, so take the required steps to protect yourself.