High cholesterol – the other silent killer

CHOLESTEROL IS a waxy, fat-like substance throughout the body. It is not bad, unless you have too much of it. Your body needs it to build cells and make vitamins and some hormones, but too much cholesterol can pose a problem.

Cholesterol comes from two sources, namely, your liver, which makes all the cholesterol you need. The remainder of the cholesterol in your body comes from foods from animals. For example, meat, poultry and dairy products all contain dietary cholesterol.

Those same foods can also be high in saturated and trans fats, which can increase the cholesterol in your body. Some tropical oils, such as palm oil, palm kernel oil and coconut oil, contain saturated fat that can increase bad cholesterol. These oils are often found in baked goods.

According to Dr Rivane Chybar Virgo, medical doctor and health and wellness coach, for some people, this added cholesterol means they go from a normal cholesterol level to one that is unhealthy.

“Cholesterol circulates in the blood. As the amount of cholesterol in your blood increases, so does the risk to your health. High cholesterol contributes to a higher risk of cardiovascular diseases, such as heart disease and stroke. That is why it is important to have your cholesterol tested, so you can know your levels,” Dr Chybar Virgo said.

There are two types of cholesterol – LDL cholesterol, which is bad, and HDL, which is good. Too much of the bad kind, or not enough of the good kind, increases the risk cholesterol will slowly build up in the inner walls of the arteries, such as those that feed the heart and brain.

“Cholesterol can join with other substances to form a thick, hard deposit on the inside of the arteries. This narrows the arteries and makes them less flexible and develop a condition known as atherosclerosis. This can lead to a blood clot forming, which can block one of these narrowed arteries, causing a heart attack or stroke,” Dr Chybar Virgo said.

If you have a family history of high cholesterol, you are more likely to have high cholesterol. You may need to get your cholesterol levels checked more often than people who do not have a family history of high cholesterol. Everyone’s risk for high cholesterol goes up with age. This is because as we age, our bodies cannot clear cholesterol from the blood as well as they could when we were younger. This leads to higher cholesterol levels, which raise the risk of heart disease and stroke. Until around age 55 (or until menopause), women tend to have lower LDL levels than men do. At any age, men tend to have lower HDL cholesterol than women do.

“You cannot control some risk factors for high cholesterol, such as your age or your family history. However, you can take steps to lower your risk for high cholesterol by changing things you can control,” Dr Chybar Virgo said.

Your behaviours and lifestyle choices can increase your risk for high cholesterol. Eating a diet high in saturated fat and trans fat may contribute to high cholesterol and related conditions, such as heart disease.

“Not getting enough physical activity can make you gain weight, which can lead to high cholesterol. Smoking damages your blood vessels, making them more likely to collect fatty deposits. Smoking may also lower high-density lipoprotein (HDL, or good) cholesterol levels. If you do not smoke, do not start. If you do smoke, learn more about tobacco use and ways to quit. The good news is that healthy behaviours can lower your risk for high cholesterol,” Dr Chybar Virgo said.

Fortunately, many of these lifestyle factors can be changed. Even individuals with familial hypercholesterolemia can reduce their risk of heart disease and stroke with appropriate and timely treatment.

High cholesterol does not usually cause symptoms. You can only find out if you have it from a blood test. Therefore, it is important to get evaluated by a healthcare professional regularly, as they can monitor your cholesterol levels with routine blood tests.

keisha.hill@gleanerjm.comSOURCE: Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Health Talk Sundays.