What is cholesterol?

Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance found in all your body’s cells. It’s the key ingredient to making new cells. Your body produces lots of cholesterol that helps the organs to work properly. But if you have too much LDL cholesterol in your blood, it can create sticky hard substances like plaque on the walls of your arteries and narrow or even block them. This puts your health at risk because these plaque blockages can lead to coronary artery disease or even heart failure.

The liver in our body produces cholesterol through a complex biochemical process. Then, travels through the blood on proteins called lipoproteins. There are two types of lipoproteins. “LDL” and HDL”. The bad cholesterol is referred to as the low density of lipoprotein. It plays a role in our body system that transports cholesterol from the liver to the body tissues. In cases where there is too much LDL cholesterol in the bloodstream, it builds up on the wall of arteries and forms plaques. Eventually leads to heart disease or stroke. On the other hand, good cholesterol is referred to as high-density lipoprotein which is beneficial for overall health. It plays a significant role in collecting and removing excess cholesterol through the bloodstream that builds up plaques from the arteries and other body tissues back to the liver.

Cause of high cholesterol.

High cholesterol is measured by the amount of it in your bloodstream anywhere between 200mg/ ld and 239mg/ ld is considered normal. People who have high cholesterol are measured at 239mg/ld. or higher. Naturally, the body produces all the LDL cholesterol it needs. An unhealthy eating habit can make your body produce more LDL cholesterol than it needs. This is the cause of high LDL cholesterol for most people. Heredity can play a role in some people, some people inherit genes from their mother or father that cause them to have too much cholesterol. Family Hypercholesterolemia is highly caused by the degree of LDL cholesterol in the bloodstream. So these people are at higher risk of having heart disease or even stroke.

What are the treatments for high cholesterol?

The main treatments for high cholesterol are heart-healthy lifestyle changes and if necessary as well as taking medication can help. These lifestyle changes are to be followed and done regularly if you’ve been told you have high cholesterol. Measuring 239mg/dl or above. It’s imperative to take action right away. Most people will ignore it and don’t get any treatments until it worsens. I found out that I had high cholesterol after my doctor’s appointment for bloodwork. He also mentioned my sugar level was extremely high and that I could be prediabetic. So I did a little bit of research. My research shows the importance of a healthy diet and regular exercise. And lowering the level of LDL in my bloodstream while maintaining a higher HDL. I had to be accustomed to a new lifestyle for a long time. The lifestyle changes included:

• Eat Heart Healthy Food.
• Daily Exercise and Physical Activities.
• Limit Drinking And Quit Smoking.
• Medication.

What are triglycerides

Triglycerides are the most common type of fat in the body. Their job is to store excess fat from your diet. Elevated triglycerides and low HDL with High LDL can also increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. So it’s important to keep your triglycerides low. It helps when you eat healthy food with low saturated fat.