Take a fresh look at your lifestyle.

Why you should check your blood cholesterol now

Joy Anyim

There is a whole lots of factors to consider when it comes to staying healthy. What we eat and how our body reacts to them is a must watch.

One of such things to consider is your blood cholesterol level.  The cholesterol level of a human being can either be good, bad, high or low.here is a whole lot of factors to consider when it comes to staying healthy. What we eat and how our body reacts to them is a must watch.

Simply put, the cholesterol is a waxy fat-like substance that is found in all the cells in a human body. Your body needs some cholesterol to make hormones, vitamin D and substances that help food digestion.

Although the body makes all the cholesterol it needs, some foods also have cholesterol.

Too much cholesterol in the blood can combine with other substances in the blood to form plaque.

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Plaque can cause coronary artery disease, that is your coronary artery becomes narrow or even blocked.

When cholesterol in the blood is high, it can also lead to chest pain, heart attack  or even stroke, which, if not well managed, may result in death.

Therefore, to avoid the risk of having any of the health conditions associated with a high cholesterol, a broad knowledge of blood cholesterol is needed.

In knowing your cholesterol level, you have to be acquainted with the following:

  1. HDL: Stands for high density lipoprotein. It is sometimes called good cholesterol. It comes from other parts of the body to the liver, and the liver takes it out.
  2. LDL: Means low density liporteon. It is sometimes called bad cholesterol because it contributes o the build up of plaque in the arteries.
  3. VLDL: Stands for very low density liporotein. It is also called bad cholesterol that contributes to the build up of plaque. However, VLDL and LDL are different.

What then causes high cholesterol?

  • Unhealthy eating habits can cause high cholesterol. Eating lots of bad fat like saturated fats found in some meat, dairy products, chocolate, baked foods and deep fried and processed foods. Trans fat also found in some fried and processed foods; these fats raise the cholesterol level or cause bad cholesterol.
  • Lack of physical activities, such as no exercise or sitting at a spot for very long time without any active body movement can cause high cholesterol.
  • Smoking, especially in women, increases the bad cholesterol and reduces the good cholesterol.
  • Genetic factors also cause high cholesterol. People with a family history of such may also have same.
  • Some medicines or medical conditions may cause high cholesterol.

Factors that raise the risk of high cholesterol

Some factors raise the risk of high cholesterol, some of which are:

  1. Age: Your blood cholesterol tends to be high, as you grow older. Although it is quite unusual to have young persons with high cholesterol, but it happens.
  2. Heredity: It can run in the family.
  3. Weight: Being over weight or having obesity raise your cholesterol level.
  4. Race: Person from certain race may have an increased risk of high cholesterol.

Health problems that may arise from high blood cholesterol

If a Person has large deposits of plaque in the arteries, an area of the plaque can rupture, causing blood clot. If the clot is large, it can block flow of blood in a coronary artery. It can also block the flow of blood to the brain and limbs, which can also result in more serious health challenges.

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Medical conditions such as stroke, heart attack, chest pain, peripheral arterial disease, are linked to high cholesterol.

How to diagnose high cholesterol

The only way to diagnose if a Person has high blood cholesterol is to carry out a blood test to measure the cholesterol level. When to do a blood cholesterol test depends on the age, risk factor and family history.

It is, however, recommended that for persons of 19-years and below, the first test should be between ages  nine to 11. Children should also have the test every five years.

In a case where there is a family history, children may have to start the test from two years old.

For persons of 20 years and above, the test can be done every five years. Men ages 45 to 65 and women ages 55 to 65 should have it every one to two years.

Adults who have never checked their blood cholesterol level should do so because most times, high blood cholesterol does not manifest with any symptom or sign.

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