Understanding Cholesterol
Pick up just about any newspaper or magazine these days and you will probably find mention of cholesterol. Everyone seems to be concerned with lowering his or her cholesterol level, and most people would like to know how they can do this. It is first helpful to know how cholesterol is produced and used by the body.
Cholesterol is a crystalline substance that is technically classified as a steroid. However, becaue it is soluble in fats rather than in water, it is also classified as a lipid, as fats are. It is found naturally in the brain, nerves, liver, blood, and bile of both humans and vertebrate animals. This is why persons who wish to decrease their cholesterol levels are told to stay away from meat and other foods containing animal products or derived from animals.
Despite its current unsavory reputation, cholesterol is actually necessary for the proper functioning of the body. About 80 percent of total body cholesterol is manufactured in the liver, while 20 percent comes from dietary sources. It is used by cells to build membranes, and it is also used in sex hormones and in the digestive process. Cholesterol travels from the liver through the bloodstream to the various tissues of the body by means of a special class of protein molecules called lipoproteins. The cells take what they need, and any excess remains in the bloodstream until other lipoproteins pick it up for transport back to the liver.
There are two main types of lipoproteins: low-density lipoproteins (LDLs) and high-density lipoproteins (HDLs). LDLs are often referred to as “bad cholesterol”; HDLs as “good cholesterol.” An analysis of the function of each will explain why. Low-density lippoproteins are heavily laden with cholesterol, because they are the molecules that transport cholesterol from the liver to all the cells of the body.
Hish-density lipoproteins, on the other hand, carry relatively little cholesterol, and circulate in the bloodstream removing excess cholesterol from the blood and tissues. After HDLs travel through the bloodstream and collect the excess cholesterol, they return it to the liver, where it may once again be incorporated into LDLs for delivery to the cells. If everything is functioning as it should, this system remains in balance. However, if there is too much cholesterol for the HDLs to pick up promptly, or if there are not enough HDLs to do the job, cholesterol can form plaque that sticks to artery walls and may eventually cause heart disease.
The precise ways in which lipoproteins perform their functions are not known, nor is it known whether or how they work with other elements in the body. It is known that persons with high HDL levels and relatively low LDL levels have a lower risk of heart disease. In those who already have clogged arteries or have had a heart attack, an increase in HDL levels and a decrease in LDL levels can result in improvement of arterial obstruction.
The National Cholesterol Education Program has set the “safe” level of total serum cholesterol (including both LDL and HDL) at 200 milligrams per deciliter of blood (mg/dl). A reading above 200 indicates an increased potential for developing heart disease. A level of 200 to 239 is borderline, and those with levels over 240 are considered to be at high risk.
The normal HDL level for adult men in the United States is 45 to 50 mm/dl, and that for women is 50 to 60 mg/dl, may protect against heart disease. An HDL level under 35 mg/dl is considered risky. So if you have a cholesterol reading of 200, with HDL at 80 and LDL at 120, you are considered at low risk for heart disease. On the other hand, even if you have a total cholesterol level well under 200, if your HDL level is under 35, you would still be considered at increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease. In other words, as your HDL decreases, your potential for heart problems intensifies, even if your total is on the low side.
Because LDLs are so undesirable, it is imperative to realize the effect of diet on cholesterol levels. It is only logical that we should decrease our intake of animal products and therefore decrease our overall cholesterol levels. However, dietary cholesterol is only a part of the story. There are other substances that affect cholesterol levels. Saturated fats, for example, have been shown to increase cholesterol levels even more than dietary cholesterol does- so even if a food product label proclaims “No Cholesterol!” the product may still have a negative effect on your cholesterol level. There are other substances that raise cholesterol, too. Sugar and alcohol both raise the level of natural cholesterol (that which the body produces). Although we do need this substance, we do not need to overproduce it, which is what happens when we consume sugar and alcohol. Stress also results in an overproduction of natural cholesterol. Therefore, preventing (or fighting) heart disease requires a comprehensive approach that includes avoiding the consumption of animal products, saturated fats, sugar, and alcohol, and eliminating stress.
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