Although today the word cholesterol is full of negative connotations associated with poor diet, obesity and cardiovascular problems, in reality it is a necessary element for our body. The important thing is to know what it is, how it works and when it is injurious to health. Cholesterol is not nothing but a type of fat, a lipid involved in many important physiological processes such as cellular, digestive, and in the synthesis of hormones, among other functions.
Our liver is capable of producing the cholesterol necessary for the body. However, through food, can receive an additional quantity of this substance which, in many instances, is detrimental to health, especially for the heart. The origin of the increase in blood is derived mainly from the increase in saturated and trans fats in the diet.
‘Good’ cholesterol and ‘bad’
With this simple dichotomy, many physicians try to educate their patients of the risks to health involves an unbalanced diet rich in fats. To that cholesterol reaches the cells, before shipment is carried through the blood supply. To this end, two lipoproteins, LDL, low density, associated with ‘bad cholesterol’ and HDL, or high density, which is identified with the ‘good cholesterol’.
The problem of bad cholesterol or LDL is that, in excess, it accumulates in the arteries and impedes the movement of oxygen through the blood, making it difficult to work the heart and brain. The accumulation of these fats in the blood vessels called arteriosclerosis. Apart from the risks of stroke, other serious cardiovascular diseases linked to excess fluid.
For its part, the good cholesterol, or HDL, is not only necessary for the body, it is recommended to increase their numbers in blood when there is risk of arteriosclerosis, because it helps to synthesize the bad cholesterol that accumulates in the artery walls.
Medical management
It is very important to have a thorough monitoring of blood cholesterol levels, especially in the case of healthy adults, to be reviewed at least every five years. It is measured in milligrams per deciliter and accounted for the total amount of cholesterol is transported in lipoproteins such as LDL, HDL, and others.
A blood test is sufficient to evaluate the amount of this substance. Those who already suffer from a clear atherosclerotic box should perform these checks once or twice a year.
One of the most common causes of hypercholesterolemia (excess cholesterol ‘bad’) is in the lack of good cholesterol or HDL, which is essential to encourage synthesis of LDL in our liver. Smoking, alcohol consumption, obesity and physical inactivity are common causes of non-HDL.