High cholesterol appears to be in the minds of all these days. We see listings of television advertising on medicines you can take to reduce our level of cholesterol. Hear our doctor about reducing our cholesterol level. What exactly is the cholesterol? How is collapsed? Why is it bad for you? Is there some other way that prescription drugs to bring it down?
First, cholesterol is a lipid which is produced naturally by the body to keep cell membranes. In fact the body produces all cholesterol you need for its functions. Our cholesterol level is raised when one of our cholesterol overproduction bodies or take excess cholesterol from the food we eat.
High levels of cholesterol are bad for you, because this excess cholesterol can build up in the arteries, causing diseases of the heart and heart attack. High cholesterol is also responsible for stroke. These three conditions can be debilitating and in some cases, fatal.
How do you know if your cholesterol is high? Your doctor may perform a blood test to determine the level of cholesterol in the blood. Sometimes your doctor may want you to take a blood test in fasting, which means that it will test the level of cholesterol in the blood after without eating for a certain number of hours.
High cholesterol is medically defined as more than 240 mg / DL total. Your doctor can also divide your cholesterol level in LDL and "bad" cholesterol, HDL or "good" cholesterol. If your HDL cholesterol is over 40 mg / dl is considered ideal. Its level of LDL cholesterol, however, should be less than 100 mg / dl. Any reading of this puts it in a higher risk of heart disease or heart attack. HDL cholesterol is considered good because it is this type carried out of the flow of blood to the liver where it is degraded and expelled from the body. LDL cholesterol, however, is the type that accumulates in the blood vessels and the arteries.
If your doctor believes that cholesterol is high, there are several things you can do to reduce this level. These things include eating a healthy, low fat diet and exercise regularly. Not only the healthy diet and exercise helps to reduce cholesterol you, can also help to reduce weight, which in turn decreases the chances of heart disease. If you are a smoker should take into account the stop. In addition, limit their consumption of alcohol and sugar. To prove these things if your cholesterol level is still not ideal, can put your doctor in reducing cholesterol drug prescription. Remember, however, the cholesterol medications can damage the liver, which should be used only after of the other options have been exhausted.
As you can see, cholesterol has an important impact on your total body health. Even can be life threatening if not handled. Ask your doctor for a cholesterol test. If your cholesterol level is not in normal ranges, take measures to bring it down.
