What causes high cholesterol?
High cholesterol occurs when you get too much cholesterol through your diet, your body makes too much cholesterol, or your body is not able to get rid of enough cholesterol. Cholesterol is present only in foods that contain animal products. Eating a diet high in saturated fats and animal products can be a source of too much cholesterol. This is called secondary hypercholesterolemia.
In some cases, high cholesterol is caused by a genetic condition that is passed down through families. This is called primary or familial hypercholesterolemia, which is characterized by a defect in how your body removes low-density lipoprotein (“bad” cholesterol) from the blood, in addition to increased production of cholesterol.
What are the risk factors for high cholesterol?
A number of factors are thought to increase your chances of developing high cholesterol. Common risk factors include:
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Middle-age and older, particularly being past the age of menopause in women
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Diabetes
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Diet high in saturated fats, trans fats, and animal products
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Family history of high cholesterol (familial hypercholesterolemia)
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Obesity and being overweight
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Sedentary lifestyle, physical inactivity, or not getting enough exercise
Reducing your risk of high cholesterol
There are a number of things you can do to help reduce your risk of developing high cholesterol and its potentially life-threatening complications. One of the most important things you can do is have your cholesterol levels checked. Once you know your cholesterol level, your health care provider can help you set goals and make lifestyle changes including:
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Getting regular exercise
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Increasing the amount of monounsaturated fats, polyunsaturated fats, and fiber in your diet
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Maintaining a healthy weight
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Not smoking or quitting smoking
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Reducing the amount of saturated fats, trans fats, and dietary cholesterol that you eat
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Treating high cholesterol levels with medications as recommended by your health care provider
SYMPTOMS
What are the symptoms of high cholesterol?
Typically, there are no symptoms of high cholesterol. This means that you may not know if your cholesterol levels are high. However, a simple blood test, called a lipid panel or cholesterol screening, can determine your cholesterol levels. Knowing your levels helps you know if you are at risk of heart disease, heart attack, and stroke. Your health care provider will help you understand what your test results mean, what your levels should be, and how to control your level of cholesterol to reduce your health risks....
Read more about high cholesterol symptoms
TREATMENTS
How is high cholesterol treated?
Your health care provider may recommend treatment of high cholesterol with lifestyle changes alone or in combination with medications to actively lower your cholesterol level. Lifestyle changes include eating a healthy diet, maintaining a healthy weight, getting adequate physical exercise, and quitting smoking. However, you may also need treatment with medications. Medications used to treat high cholesterol include:...
Read more about high cholesterol treatments
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Related Health Centers:
Anemia,
Angina,
Cholesterol,
Heart Attack,
Heart Disease,
Heart Failure,
Hypertension,
Stroke,
Triglycerides
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Related Health Topics:
Claudication,
Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT),
Peripheral Vascular Disease,
Aneurysm
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