High blood cholesterol may be an indicator of risk for stroke and heart disease and stroke, the leading cause of death in the U.S., according to the National Cholesterol Education Program. A simple lipid profile --- a blood test that measures the different types of cholesterol in your body --- can indicate if you are the one in six adults with high cholesterol.
Cholesterol Basics
Your body needs some cholesterol to digest fats, absorb fat soluble-vitamins, produce vitamin D and hormones and manufacture cell walls; and is found in every cell in your body. However, excess cholesterol can build up in your bloodstream and start to accumulate in your arteries, forming plaque. This plaque hardens, narrowing your arteries and restricting blood flow, depriving your heart of oxygen-rich blood. Occasionally, a piece of plaque can break away from the wall of your artery and cause a blood clot, completely blocking blood flow and causing a heart attack. A lipid profile will measure your total cholesterol, your "good" HDL cholesterol, your "bad" LDL cholesterol and your triglyceride levels.
Acceptable Cholesterol Levels
Your total cholesterol number is the sum of your high-density lipoproteins, or HDL, and low-density lipoproteins, or LDL levels. The higher your HDL levels, the better --- HDL cholesterol actually helps your body remove excess cholesterol by transporting to the liver, where it is turned into bile or excreted. Women need at least 50 mg/dL and men need at least 40 mg/dL to help protect against heart disease, but the ideal is at least 60 mg/dL of HDL.
By contrast, you want your LDL levels to be low --- this is the type of cholesterol that becomes plaque. A level of 100 mg/dL is ideal, but 100 to 130 mg/dL is acceptable. If you have a history of heart disease or other risk factors, such as diabetes, you want to aim for LDL levels of 70 to 100 mg/dL; LDL levels above 160 mg/dL are considered high. Overall your total cholesterol should fall below 200 mg/dL. Total cholesterol levels between 200 and 239 are borderline and anything over 240 mg/dL is high.
Triglycerides
Calories consumed but not used for energy are converted into a type of fat called triglycerides, to be stored in your fat cells for use as energy in between meals. High triglyceride levels are associated with an increased risk of obesity, diabetes and coronary artery disease. The American Heart Association suggests that triglyceride levels remain below 150 mg/dL. Levels between 150 and 199 mg/dL are borderline; levels over 200 mg/dL are high and any reading over 500 is very high.
How to Lower Your Cholesterol Levels
Lifestyle modifications may be enough to treat high cholesterol levels without the use of drugs. Maintaining a healthy body weight, restricting dietary cholesterol and saturated fat intake, eating foods high in omega-3 fatty acids, adding soluble fiber to your diet, regular exercise, smoking cessation and limiting alcoholic beverages will all help to lower high cholesterol.
Sometimes, lifestyle changes aren't enough. As you get older, your cholesterol levels naturally increase. Women tend to have higher cholesterol levels post-menopause than earlier in their life. Genetics also influence your cholesterol levels --- high cholesterol may be hereditary. In these cases, your doctor may prescribe cholesterol-lowering medication to help reduce your risk of heart disease.
