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Facts and Statistics
- High blood cholesterol is a major risk factor for heart disease.
- About 17% of adult Americans aged 20 years and older have high
total cholesterol (240 mg/dL or above).1
- The average blood cholesterol level in adult Americans is about
203 mg/dL.1
- In 2004, there were 6.5 million visits to doctors’ offices that
included a cholesterol test being done or ordered.2
- Among African Americans, about 16.6% of women and 12.5% of men
have high total cholesterol.2
- Among Mexican Americans, about 12.7% of women and 17.6% of men
have high total cholesterol.2
- Among whites, 17.4% of women and 17.0% of men have high
cholesterol.2
- The percentage of persons aged 20–74 years with high cholesterol
dropped from 33% in 1960–1962 to 17% in 1999–2002. During that same
time period, the average blood cholesterol levels in adults dropped
from 222 mg/dL to 203 mg/dL.2
- The National Cholesterol Education Program recommends that all
adults have their cholesterol checked once every 5 years.3
- In 2005, 73% of adults reported that that they had their
cholesterol checked within the previous 5 years, according to data
from CDC’s Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. Some 23%
reported that they never had their cholesterol checked.4
- According to data from CDC’s Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance
System (2005), 75.7% of whites, 73.7% of African Americans, and 52%
of Hispanics reported having had their cholesterol checked within
the previous 5 years.4
References
- National Center for Health Statistics. Health, United
States, 2005, with Chartbook on the Health of Americans.
Hyattsville, Maryland: 2004. Available at
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/hus.htm.
- CDC. Fastats: cholesterol (based on 2004 National ambulatory
medical care survey). Available at
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats.
- Third Report of the Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation,
and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults (Adult
Treatment Panel III). Available at
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/cholesterol/index.htm.
- CDC. Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. 2005
prevalence data. Available at
http://www.cdc.gov/brfss.
Page last reviewed: November 8, 2007
Page last modified: November 8, 2007
Content source: Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention,
National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and
Health Promotion
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