Cholesterol 101

I recently had some blood taken for my yearly checkup at the doctor. Today I received the results from my blood tests in the mail...and I have HIGH CHOLESTEROL. What the heck?

The tests read like this:
CHOL: 249
LDL: Optimal range=below 130, your levels=104mg/dl
HDL: Optimal ranges=above 40, your level=145mg/dl
Triglecerides: Optimal ranges: below 200, your level=68mg/dl

Depending on your risk factors, if healthy eating and exercise don't work after about 3 months, we might want to recheck your cholesterol levels to see if medicine may be required...(then there was a sheet attached telling me to follow the food guide pyramid).

Now, I don't know how much the average person knows about cholesterol, but if I hadn't taken a couple classes where I learned total cholesterol=HDL+LDL and a total cholesterol level over 200mg/dl was above the optimal range, I would have no clue why I was being given cholesterol lowering tips. The chart made it look like I was in good shape! But the fact of the matter is, even though my "good" cholesterol (HDL) is high and "bad" cholesterol (LDL) is low, I still don't need all that sludge floating around in my body.

So why did I get the dr. note? Why is cholesterol so bad? My pamphlet didn't tell me. If I were to write a pamphlet on cholesterol for patients, it would be much more informative:

Most people know that high cholesterol is a risk factor for heart disease. What most people don't know is WHY. There are 4 key players in the cholesterol level game:
LDL (BAD cholesterol)
HDL (GOOD cholesterol)
Total cholesterol (HDL+LDL)
Triglycerides (free floating fat)

LDL, which stands for low density lipoprotein is especially dangerous. It carries fat throughout our bodies and can injure our arteries, causing the arteries to form scar tissue and restrict blood flow, putting you at risk of high blood pressure and possibly a blood clot. Triglycerides have a similar role. That is why you want LDL and triglycerides to be low. On the other hand, HDL (high desity lipprotein) is the "good" guy, carrying cholesterol away from the body and to the liver, where it can help with digestion. That is why you want HDL to be high. You also want less cholesterol over all in your blood. Higher cholesterol levels mean more little balls of fat in your blood stream. This fat can clog your arteries and lead to blood clots. If those clots are near your heart, you could have a heart attack. If they occur near the brain, a stroke could happen. Therefore, it is important to keep these in check!

There are a number of factors that influence cholesterol levels, some of which you can control, and some of which you cannot:

You can control
-diet: cholesterol levels increase with diets high in saturated and trans fat and low in fiber
-physical activity: sedentary individuals are more at risk
-smoking: smoking increases cholesterol levels

You cannot control
-genetics: your family tree determines, to some extent, you cholesterol levels.

So what can you do?
1. eat soluble fiber found in oats (cheerios!), barley, nuts, flax seeds, apples, and carrots: Fiber binds to fat in the intestines, lowering total cholesterol
2. Eat monounsaturated fat found in olive oil and avocado: decreases LDL and increases HDL
3. Eat polyunsaturated fat found in cabnola oil, nuts, seeds, and fish oil: decreases total cholesterol
4. decrease saturated fats from animal sources and tropical oils like coconut and palm: helps lower LDL, triglycerides, and total cholesterol
5. decrease fast food and convenience foods (saturated and trans fats): helps lower LDL , triglycerides, and total cholesterol
6. Decrease cholesterol intake (this isn't quite as important as fat intake, but it's still a factor) found in eggs, meats, shellfish, and dairy: helps lower LDL, triglycerides, and total cholesterol.
7. Drink some wine (increases HDL)
8. Exercise: 30 minutes per day 5 days per week helps increase HDL and lower LDL.
9. Don't smoke : lowers total cholesterol
10. Hire a mad scientist to alter your DNA if you have a family hx of heart disease (just kidding)

So in a nutshell, eat a diet rich in minimally processed whole grains, fruits and veggies and low in meat and processed foods. Exercise regularly, don't smoke, and if you drink, go for red wine!

So there you have it. cholesterol 101. Stay tuned for my action plan to keep my triglycerides and LDL low and decrease my total cholesterol!