Cholesterol: The Good and The Bad

The culprit to a fair number of heart issues is cholesterol; but not all cholesterol. The good cholesterol, HDL, or high-density lipoprotein, helps keep the bad cholesterol, LDL, or low-density lipoprotein, from sticking to artery walls and causing blockages.

Blood cholesterol helps your body build cells, make vitamins and certain hormones. This cholesterol comes from your liver and your body makes all of the cholesterol it needs.

Dietary cholesterol comes from foods, mostly animal products like meat, eggs, cheese and milk. Too much of this cholesterol can cause problems.

Triglycerides are a type of fat in your body and if the amount is too high, it can contribute to cholesterol build up.

Luckily there are tests that can be done to monitor cholesterol levels. This test is called a lipid profile and measures your HDL, LDL, Triglycerides and Total Cholesterol.

Keeping track of those levels and working with your healthcare provider are important steps in preventing heart attack and stroke.

There are things we can do to help keep the good cholesterol up, and the bad cholesterol down:

• Eating a healthy diet including veggies, fruits, whole grains, legumes, lean protein; and limiting sugary food and drinks, red meat, salty and processed foods.
• Keeping physically active
• Knowing your fats, and eating fewer saturated fats and more unsaturated fats
• Staying away from nicotine

Check with your provider to see if you need testing, how often, and what you should do to keep your cholesterol in check.