5 Facts About Blood Cholesterol That You Need To Know

Illustration of quail eggs (Pexels / Klaus Nielsen)

JAKARTA - There are two kinds of cholesterol in the blood, namely LDL and HDL. Which ones are good and bad, if they accumulate, it can cause plaque on the artery walls? Get to know the following facts so you can sort out which one is good for health.

According to the American Heart Association, cholesterol is a substance the body needs to function to build cells and produce vitamins and hormones. Food sources that contain cholesterol include red meat, full-fat dairy products, and poultry.

Cholesterol is needed by the body, but the three foods that are often consumed above also contain high saturated fat and trans fat. Both types of fat will accumulate cholesterol in the liver.

Well, what you need to be careful about in addition to these three things is palm oil and coconut oil.

High cholesterol levels in the blood trigger various diseases

Unregulated diet that increases cholesterol levels in the blood. The effect can trigger various other diseases. Although some experts argue that high cholesterol can increase cardiovascular risk.

But according to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Instritute (NHLBI) states that high blood cholesterol levels play a role in triggering the risk of atherosclerosis, carotid artery disease, coronary artery disease, heart attacks, strokes, and peripheral artery disease.

How each type of cholesterol works

There are two types of cholesterol, namely HDL (High Density Lipoprotein) which is known as good cholesterol and LDL (Low Density Lipoprotein) as bad cholesterol. If too much bad cholesterol is in the blood circulation, it will become plaque and accumulate on artery walls.

Arterial mannequin illustration (Unsplash / Robina Weermeijer)

The buildup of bad cholesterol on the artery walls is called atherochlorosis. If it continues, the effects can narrow the arteries and increase the risk of heart attack, stroke, and peripheral artery disease.

High cholesterol is not determined by body weight

Although people who are overweight are more likely to have high cholesterol numbers, normal weight people can also experience it. That means weight is not a measure and it is recommended to regularly check cholesterol levels in the blood.

Factors that affect cholesterol in the blood

High cholesterol numbers are influenced by three factors, namely heredity, smoking habits, and diet. The first factor, heredity, is known as familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) which genetically makes a person susceptible to high LDL levels.

Launching Everyday Health, Tuesday, March 9, the second factor has no direct effect, but smoking can reduce HDL levels. While the third factor, what you eat determines the level of cholesterol in the blood.

Blood cholesterol test

Regarding cholesterol in the blood, there are 4 types of tests, namely the total cholesterol test, HDL cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and triglycerides.

Illustration of blood test (Unsplash / National Cancer Institute)

Total cholesterol is obtained from increasing HDL and LDL levels plus 20 percent of the triglyceride levels in your body. Normal cholesterol level does not exceed 200 mg / dL, high cholesterol 239 mg / dL. Normal HDL cholesterol levels are 40-60 mg / dL and normal LDL cholesterol is below 100 mg / dL.

If you have a high LDL of 130-159 mg / dL, it is classified as high and needs to be addressed immediately. For normal triglyceride levels of less than 150 mg / dL, avoid reaching more than 200 mg / dL as it can endanger your health.

The way to keep cholesterol in balance is by eating healthy foods, exercising, quitting smoking, and controlling blood pressure.