Answers To Your Questions About Cholesterol

Have questions about cholesterol? Here are the answers to some of the most basic questions that you will have regarding this very important subject!

What is Cholesterol?

• Cholesterol is a fat-like substance (lipoproteins)found in your blood. Your body makes its own cholesterol and when you eat foods that have lots of fat or cholesterol, you can have too much cholesterol in your blood.

• Cholesterol can build up on the inside the blood vessels of your heart. If too much cholesterol builds up, then the blood cannot flow through to your heart. This can cause a heart attack or a stroke.

Good vs. Bad Cholesterol

Not all the cholesterol in your blood is bad for you. There are three kinds of blood cholesterol that you should know about: HDL (good cholesterol), LDL (bad cholesterol) and triglycerides.

• HDL, or high density lipoprotein attaches itself to cholesterol and “escorts” it through your liver and out of your body.

• LDL, or low density lipoprotein, are the ones that clog your arteries and if the level is too high, can cause heart disease.

• Triglycerides are the chemical form in which most fats eaten in food as well as in the body. Triglycerides in blood are made from fats eaten in foods or made from other energy sources like carbohydrates. Unused calories are converted to triglycerides and stored in fat cells. Essentially, they act like cholesterol and are directly linked to heart disease.

What can you do?

There are things that you can do to lower your cholesterol.

• Cut back on foods with lots of fat such as fatty meats, fried foods, whole milk, fatty cheeses, butter, margarine, oils, lard, and creams.

• Cut back on food with lots of cholesterol, such as egg yokes and whole eggs.

• Eat more fruits and vegetables.

• Cut back on fatty snacks and desserts, such as candy, cookies, doughnuts, muffins, pastries and pies.

• Exercise at least 30 minutes most days.

• If you are overweight, try to lose weight. Try to lose weight by cutting back on the amount that you eat. Even a small amount of weight loss can help lower your bad cholesterol, and you will also help your health in other ways.

• Ask your doctor if you need to take medicine to help lower your cholesterol. Triglycerides are another form of fat in your blood. They can also raise your risk for heart disease. Levels that are borderline high (150-199 mg/dL) or high (200 mg/dL or more) may need treatment.

What are the warning signs of high blood cholesterol?

• Most people do not have any warning signs of high cholesterol levels.

• Sometimes cholesterol can build up in the blood vessels of your heart and cause chest pains.

How do you find out if you have high cholesterol?

• Go to the doctor and ask for a cholesterol test. The test will let you know how much good (HDL) and bad (LDL) cholesterol you have.

• The doctor will tell you the number for your total cholesterol level.

• Your total cholesterol number should be under 200.

Reminder:

Good cholesterol (or HDL) cholesterol helps to keep the arteries from clogging and protects from heart disease. A good HDL level (on average) is considered to be 60mg/dL or more.

Bad cholesterol (or LDL) cholesterol causes a buildup up in your arteries - causing blockages and heart disease. A good LDL level is under 100mg/dL

About the Author:

Demystifying Cholesterol can help you learn about lowering cholesterol safely in 30 days! Their guide gives you all the tools you need to live a healthier life with lower cholesterol levels.