Many people think of heart disease when it comes to high cholesterol, but there may be a different health risk associated with elevated cholesterol levels. Knowing and understanding the link between the liver and cholesterol levels can help you avoid damage to your vital organs and work to improve your overall health.
High Cholesterol
In order to determine your risk factor for heart disease and liver problems, your doctor measures your total cholesterol numbers, then compares them to a standard range to determine the severity of your level. For the average person, borderline cholesterol is between 200 and 239 mg/dL. Once your cholesterol goes over 240 mg/dL, you are considered to have high cholesterol.
Cholesterol and Liver Function
According to Penn State University, the liver plays an essential function in cholesterol, which in turn plays an essential role for the maintenance of your entire body. One of the liver's main functions is to produce cholesterol, which is a type of fat found in the blood. The liver utilizes the food you eat to produce the cholesterol, then uses it to build hormones and cell membranes throughout the body. Because the two are linked, high cholesterol sometimes leads to problems of the liver and vice versa.
Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver
Fatty liver is a condition in which the liver accumulates too much fat and can lead to serious complications if left untreated, including scarring and eventual liver failure. High cholesterol is a risk factor for this disease, according to MayoClinic.com. While no actual medicinal cure exists, people with fatty liver are often encouraged to modify their eating habits in order to reduce the amount of fat consumed on a regular basis as well as exercise and lose weight to get rid of fat in the body and lower cholesterol.
Statins
Statins are a type of medication commonly prescribed to help people keep their cholesterol numbers low in order to reduce the risk of heart disease. However, in some people, they can have the undesirable effect of causing significant liver problems, according to MayoClinic.com. Since liver problems are hard to detect and often feature unnoticeable symptoms, your doctor may have you take frequent blood tests in order to determine your liver health if you're on a statin.
Prevention/Solution
The best way to avoid any link between high cholesterol and liver problems is to keep your cholesterol numbers in check. Reduce the amount of saturated fat you eat on a regular basis. That means staying away from red meat as much as possible and switching to leaner sources of protein such as chicken breast, fish, nuts and beans, as well as increasing the amount of fiber you get in your diet, according to the American Heart Association.
