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Key Points
- Cholesterol is a fat-like substance that is made
in your body. Cholesterol is also in some foods that you eat. Your body needs
some cholesterol to work the right way. Your body makes all the cholesterol it
needs.
- Too much cholesterol in the blood is called high
blood cholesterol or hypercholesterolemia.
- High blood cholesterol increases the chance of
having a
heart
attack or some other symptom of heart disease, like chest pain (angina).
- Lowering cholesterol is important for
everyoneyoung, middle-aged, and older adults, and both men and women.
- Eating too much saturated fat, trans
fat, and cholesterol raises the level of cholesterol in your blood.
- Too much cholesterol in your blood can build up
in the walls of arteries. This is called plaque.
- There are no signs or symptoms of high blood
cholesterol. Many people don't know that their cholesterol level is too high.
- High blood cholesterol is diagnosed by checking
cholesterol levels in your blood.
- A blood test called a lipoprotein profile
measures the cholesterol levels in your blood and is the recommended test.
- It is important that everyone age 20 and older
get their cholesterol checked at least once every 5 years.
- Many people are able to lower their cholesterol
levels by eating a diet low in saturated fat, trans fat, and cholesterol,
increasing physical activity, and losing weight if needed (the TLC program).
- Some people will need to take medicines
prescribed by their doctor to lower their cholesterol in addition to following
the TLC program.
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Treatments Links
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