CHOLESTEROL TEST

What is Cholesterol?

Cholesterol is defined as a waxy, fat-like substance that occurs naturally in all areas of the human body. Your body needs some cholesterol to help it work properly and is required to establish proper membrane permeability and fluidity.

If you have an excess of cholesterol in your blood according to the chart, it can stick to the walls of the arteries. When cholesterol adheres to the artery walls it is called plaque. Plaque will gradually narrow your arteries and can even block them completely.

If an artery that supplies blood to the muscles in your heart becomes blocked, a heart attack can occur.

If an artery that supplies blood to your brain becomes blocked, a stroke can occur.

More that a million Americans die of heart disease each year. One of the major causes is high cholesterol levels in the blood.

The National Cholesterol Education Program suggests that total blood cholesterol level should be:

< 200 mg/dL normal blood cholesterol

200-239 mg/dL borderline-high

> 240 mg/dL high cholesterol.

This blood cholesterol chart shows what your blood cholesterol levels should be and includes low and high cholesterol level measurements – (See below for printable cholesterol level chart).

Eighty-percent of the cholesterol in your body is produced by your liver, and the rest comes from foods like meats, eggs and dairy products.

The biggest influence on blood cholesterol level is fats in your diet, not the amount of cholesterol you eat from food. Narrowing it down further what really matters is the “type” of fat you eat.

Their are two types of fats, “good fat” which are monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, lower your risk of disease such as heart disease and atherosclerosis.

“Bad fats” being saturated and trans fats will increase the risk for certain diseases. The key to healthy eating is to substitute the bad fats for good fats avoiding the trans fats. See: Guide to Good and Bad Cholesterol

Major dietary sources containing high cholesterol include cheese, egg yolks, beef, pork, poultry, and shrimp.

Cholesterol is insoluble in blood and is transported in the body’s circulatory system within lipoproteins. There is a large range of lipoproteins within blood, generally called, from larger to smaller size: chylomicrons, very low density lipoprotein (VLDL), intermediate density lipoprotein (IDL), low density lipoprotein (LDL) and high density lipoprotein (HDL). The actual cholesterol within all the various lipoproteins is identical.

LDL = bad cholesterol and HDL = good cholesterol

How is Cholesterol Measured?

The measurement of your blood cholesterol level and other blood fats is obtained with a simple blood test by your physician.

You will be advised to fast (not eat) for 12 hours before the blood test is performed. Blood is then taken and sent to a laboratory, where the number of milligrams of cholesterol in the blood is determined. Your physician will then provide you with the test results in accordance with their cholesterol level chart..

The American Heart Association recommends that adults aim for a total cholesterol level below 200 milligrams per 100 milliliters of blood serum.

Testing Cholesterol Levels in the Blood – How often Should You be Tested?

Professionals typically perform cholesterol test among the battery of health check-ups. They do so because the levels of cholesterol in your blood may considerably have an impact on your heart and overall health. To evaluate your blood cholesterol, your physician is going to perform a blood test known as a lipid panel, as well as lipid profile. It is recommended to not eat or drink anything, apart from water, for approximately 9 hours before the exam. This will ensure correct evaluation results.

It is recommended by the American Heart Association to test cholesterol every 5 years for people aged 20 years or older.

Cholesterol level testing should be more frequent if a person: is a man over age 45 or a woman over age 50, has total cholesterol of 200 mg/dL or more, has HDL (good) cholesterol less than 40 mg/dL, or is at risk of heart disease and stroke.

Reducing your Cholesterol Level

If you have had your cholesterol level tested and according to the cholesterol chart you are told you have high blood cholesterol you should look at ways of lowering your cholesterol levels including jogging, walking and any activity that concerns exercising more, eating a variety of fruits and vegetables, and cholesterol lowering treatments. It has been said that Yoga may reduce the effect of cholesterol in your body.

Research has also shown that flaxseed and niacin have been proven to lower cholesterol. Red rice extract has also shown that it has cholesterol lowering properties.

Lately a new natural product on the market called red marine algae has been claimed to be an effective means of reducing the cholesterol levels in the blood.

Normal cholesterol levels for men and women

A cholesterol test generally determines 4 distinct numbers: Total cholesterol, LDL, HDL, and triglycerides. Cholesterol being a fat, it is not soluble in water. So it cannot circulate freely in the blood. But, the fact is that nature has devised a way to make water soluble cholesterol, and transport it through the blood. This is by lipoproteins. The LDL or Low-density lipoprotein and the HDL or high-density lipoprotein are the 2 fundamental “cholesterol types”. The LDL is known to be negative (bad) when in excess. Therefore, minimizing it will be much better. HDL known to be positive (good), is better when elevated. In addition, the lipid panel appraises the triglycerides (whole fat in a person’s body). They have an impact on the health in the same manners like cholesterol. At last, the total cholesterol (sum of HDL, LDL and 20 per cent of triglycerides) is integrated as well in the results.

Cholesterol chart: Total, LDL, HDL, Triglycerides

It would be more convenient for everybody to interpret their cholesterol test results if only they could provide just one number as a result. Unfortunately, there exist multiple cholesterol types, as well as various ideal numbers for each. Some cholesterol is considered good, while other cholesterol is considered bad. Consequently, their respective numbers have to stay over or under a particular level, based on the particular type. A chart of cholesterol levels enables you to completely grasp, besides the meaning of those multiple figures, the positive and the negative or unhealthy ranges.

The chart here displays all 4 cholesterol numbers: HDL, LDL, triglycerides and also total cholesterol. It also displays the good ranges, along with risk zones pertaining to each one. The ideal measurements for the total cholesterol are below 200. As for triglycerides, it is below 150. HDL should be 50 plus, under 35 is very risky. Finally, LDL should be below 130. These numbers are in the unit of mg/dL (milligrams per deciliter of blood) in the USA. But, they can be in mmol/L (millimoles per liter) unit used in Europe, Canada, and other countries. Along with these pointers, it typically shows that a total cholesterol above 240, and triglycerides more than 500 is high risk. The chart furthermore indicates the borderline between ideal and risky zones. Keep in mind that these figures are standards and that the chart can be different based on the reference.