Cholesterol

Cholesterol is a frustrating health problem because you can't see it and you can't feel it, but if it builds up in your arteries, the damage it causes can be devastating. By narrowing blood vessels and weakening artery walls, cholesterol is one of the primary causes of strokes, heart attacks, and sudden death. Cholesterol is not water soluble, and does not circulate easily in the blood stream. In fact, cholesterol drops out of the blood and onto vein and artery walls surprisingly fast. Not all cholesterol is bad for us. In fact, some cholesterol is extremely important for our health, because the body needs it to function properly. We use it to form hormones, vitamin D, and bile salts, which help the body digest the fat that we eat.

Cholesterol is a type of fat that is part of all animal cells. It is essential for many of the body's metabolic processes, including hormone and bile production, and to help the body use vitamin D. Cholesterol is naturally produced by the liver and located in cell walls. Lipoproteins, a combination of lipids (fats) and proteins, are made in the liver and carries cholesterol, fats and fat-soluble vitamins, among many other substances, to different parts of the body that need it for energy and repairs. There are two sources for cholesterol: endogenous (made by the body itself) and exogenous (consumed and found in foods). It is manufactured by the liver of all warm-blooded animals, and in humans it is a crucial component of several body structures and functions.

Cholesterol is carried by two types of proteins. A high level of low-density lipoproteins (LDL) increases the risk of heart disease because it leaves the fat on the inside walls of the blood vessels and deposits it in body tissues. Cholesterol is not the major culprit in heart disease or any disease. If it becomes oxidized it can irritate/inflame tissues in which it is lodged in, such as the endothelium (lining of the arteries). Cholesterol is carried in the bloodstream as lipoproteins. Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol is the "bad" cholesterol because elevated LDL levels are associated with an increased risk of coronary artery (heart) disease.

Levels of blood cholesterol begin to go up in both men and women, at around age 20. Women, before the onset of menopause, have cholesterol levels which are lower than that of men of around the same age. Levels over 200 mg/dl are associated with a higher risk of heart attacks, strokes, and other health problems.