WebMD... Have you been diagnosed with high cholesterol? Is lowering your cholesterol a goal? The first step is to find out what cholesterol is. Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance made in the liver and other cells. It’s also found in certain foods, such as dairy products, eggs, and meat. Did You Know?
Under the Affordable Care Act, many health insurance plans will cover preventive care services, including blood pressure and cholesterol screenings, at no cost to you. Learn more.
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Your body needs some cholesterol to function properly. Its cell walls, also known as membranes, need cholesterol to produce hormones, vitamin D, and the bile acids that help you digest fat. But the body only needs a limited amount of cholesterol. When there’s too much, health problems, such as heart disease, may develop.
Health Check: Is High Cholesterol Putting Your Health at Risk? Cholesterol and Heart Disease
When there’s too much cholesterol is present, plaque -- a thick, hard substance -- may form in your arteries. When plaque deposits form, the build-up narrows the space through which blood flows. Over time, this buildup causes hardening of the arteries, also known as atherosclerosis. This can lead to heart disease.
When not enough blood with oxygen gets to the heart muscle, you may have chest pain called angina. If the blood supplying part of the heart with oxygen is completely blocked, you will have a heart attack.
Types of Cholesterol
Cholesterol travels through the blood attached to a protein. The combination protein and cholesterol is called a lipoprotein. There are three types of lipoproteins in your blood: high density, low density, and very low density. The specific type depends on how much protein there is in relation to fat.
Low density lipoproteins (LDL) is also called "bad" cholesterol because it can cause plaque buildup on the walls of arteries. The more LDL there is in the blood, the greater the risk of heart disease. High density lipoproteins (HDL) is also called "good" cholesterol. It helps the body get rid of LDL. Maintaining a higher level of HDL is good. If your HDL level is low your risk of heart disease goes up. Very low density lipoproteins (VLDL) is similar to LDL in that it contains mostly fat and not much protein. Triglycerides, another type of fat, is carried in the blood by VLDL. Excess calories, alcohol, or sugar in your body are converted into triglycerides and stored in fat cells throughout your body.
What Factors Affect Cholesterol Levels?
A variety of factors can affect cholesterol levels. They include:
Diet. Saturated fat and cholesterol in the food you eat increase cholesterol levels. To lower your cholesterol level try to reduce the saturated fat and cholesterol in your diet. Weight. In addition to being a risk factor for heart disease, being overweight can also increase cholesterol. Losing weight can help lower your LDL and total cholesterol. And it can also increase the level of HDL. Exercise. Regular exercise can lower LDL and raise HDL. You should try to be physically active for at least 30 minutes on most days. Age and Gender. As you get older, cholesterol levels rise. Before menopause, women tend to have lower total cholesterol levels than men. After menopause, though, women's LDL levels tend to rise. Diabetes. Poorly controlled diabetes increases cholesterol levels. Having control of your diabetes can cause your cholesterol levels to fall. Heredity. Your genes partly determine how much cholesterol your body makes. High blood cholesterol can run in families. Other Factors. Certain medications and medical How Much Cholesterol Is Too Much?
Everyone over the age of 20 should get their cholesterol levels measured at least once every five years.
Your doctor may recommend a non-fasting cholesterol test or a fasting cholesterol test. A non-fasting test will show total cholesterol and HDL cholesterol. A fasting test, called a lipid profile or a lipoprotein analysis, will measure your LDL, HDL, and total cholesterol. It will also measure triglycerides.
Knowing your cholesterol numbers is important because they are one part of an equation that helps your doctor determine your risk of having a heart problem or a stroke over the next 10 years. Once that risk is known, you and your doctor can work together to come up with a plan for reducing it. Part of that plan may include lowering your level of cholesterol.
How Can I Lower My Cholesterol and Risk of Heart Disease?
A few simple changes can help lower your cholesterol and your risk for heart disease:
Eat low-cholesterol foods. The American Heart Association recommends limiting your average daily cholesterol intake to less than 300 milligrams. If you already have heart disease, you should limit your daily intake to less than 200 milligrams. You can significantly reduce the cholesterol in your diet by avoiding foods high in saturated fat and foods with large amounts of dietary cholesterol. Quit smoking. Smoking lowers HDL ("good") cholesterol. This trend can be reversed if you quit smoking. Exercise. Exercise increases HDL in some people. Even moderate-intensity activities, if done daily, can help control weight, diabetes, and high blood pressure -- all risk factors for heart disease. Take medication your doctor prescribes. Sometimes making changes to your diet and increasing exercise is not enough to bring cholesterol down. You may also need to take a cholesterol-lowering drug.
How Is High Cholesterol Treated?
The main goal in lowering cholesterol is to lower LDL and raise your HDL. There are two key ways to lower cholesterol: eat a heart-healthy diet and take cholesterol-lowering drugs.
Doctors determine your "goals" for lowering LDL based on your chance of having a heart problem or stroke in the next 10 years. To determine that risk, your doctor will consider several factors including:
Your cholesterol numbers Your age Your smoking habits Your blood pressure Your use of blood pressure medicines
The doctor will also consider whether or not you already have heart disease or diabetes.
Once your risk is known, you and your doctor together will work out a strategy for achieving and maintaining a healthy level of cholesterol in your blood. That strategy could focus just on healthy lifestyle choices. But it could also include taking a medicine that will lower cholesterol.
If you are at risk for heart disease and need medicine, your doctor will want your cholesterol to decrease by 30-50%.
What Drugs Are Used to Treat High Cholesterol?
Cholesterol-lowering drugs include:
Statins Niacin Bile-acid resins Fibrates
Of these, statins are the only drugs proven to prevent heart attacks. These medications are most effective when combined with a low-cholesterol diet.