Cholesterol is a soft, waxy substance
present in all parts of the body including the nervous
system, skin, muscle, liver, intestines and heart.
Sources
of Cholesterol:
- Saturated fat: Saturated fat is a type of fat
usually found in animals and is not suitable for
humans. Most of your cholesterol is made by your
liver from saturated fat in your diet
- Egg, meat, poultry, fish, shellfish and dairy
products are also the resources of cholesterol
Dangers of excessive cholesterol
A good balance in cholesterol level keeps our
body healthy. And too much of it will hamper the health.
- Extra cholesterol will force the arteries to narrow.
It results in poor blood circulation due to large
cholesterol contents in the artery walls
- It can cause heart problems if the artery supplying
blood to the brain is blocked by the excessive cholesterol
in the walls
- Heart diseases can give birth to other diseases
as well
Desired Level
The desired blood cholesterol level is, less than 200
mg/dL (200 milligrams per deciliter). At this level,
you are safe of any cholesterol risk factors. You will
be surprised to know that in USA more than half of the
adult population has cholesterol levels above the desired
level. The danger of coronary heart disease increases
once you cross this level. 200-239 mg/dL is the boundary
for risky heart attacks. If your total blood cholesterol
level is 240 or more, you are in the high-risk category,
with typically twice the risk of heart attacks as those
people with a cholesterol level of 200 mg/dL or less.
So how can you control cholesterol? It is advisable
to eat food that is low in saturated fat. We should
also include reasonable amount of polyunsaturated fat
and monounsaturated fat in our daily calorie intake.
For children too these calorie intakes matter.
Two important factors, HDL (High Density Lipoprotein)
and LDL (Low Density Lipoprotein) requires special mention
here. The first one is considered good cholesterol and
the second is termed bad cholesterol. So we need to
know the desired measures of HDL and LDL.
Less than 100 mg/dL is the desired level for LDL and
60 mg/dL is the preferred HDL. Keeping the right balance
reduces the risk of heart attacks.
According to a research conducted in hospitals, [Chicago],
250,000 patients suffered from heart attacks in the
last two years, which is a certainly a matter of concern.
These statistics show that cholesterol related diseases
are significantly increasing. And there is a great need
for cholesterol awareness amongst us, explaining its
risks and various treatments available for this chronic
condition.
