Be Aware Of High Cholesterol!

Cholesterol is a type of fat in your blood. Cholesterol is a necessity to your body. Your body produces enough cholesterol to sustain itself. You also obtain cholesterol from the food that you eat. Excess cholesterol builds up in your artery walls which lead to blockages, and claudication. There are two forms of cholesterol, LDL the bad cholesterol and HDL which is the good cholesterol.

Risk Factors Associated with High Cholesterol:

• Gender: Women who have experienced menopause are more prone to higher cholesterol levels.

• Age: With age comes an increased risk of having high cholesterol.

• Family history: The risk of you having high cholesterol increases if you have an immediate male family member such as brother or father that was affected by heart disease before the age of 55 or an immediate female family member such as a mother or sister that was affected by heart disease before the age of 65.

• Smoking: smoking lowers the level of good cholesterol in your body, smoking also damages the artery walls which allows the buildup of fatty deposits.

• Unhealthy eating habits: Food items that are high in sodium and fats put you at risk of high cholesterol.

Symptoms of High Cholesterol:

High cholesterol does not have any symptoms, detection of high cholesterol is done by a blood test.

What happens when high cholesterol goes undiagnosed?

Chest pain: When arteries are damaged, you may experience chest pain.

Heart attack:Plaque clogs the arteries in your body. If the buildup of plaque blocks the blood flow to your heart, you will have a heart attack.

Stroke: A stroke will occur if the plaque blocks blood flow to your brain.

Preventing high cholesterol:

Healthy Diet: Enjoying a diet full of fruits, vegetables and whole grains can significantly reduce your chances of  developing high cholesterol.

Physical activity: Working out at least 30 minutes per day can reduce the risk factors associated with developing high cholesterol.

Treatment for high cholesterol:

There are several medications available to treat high cholesterol. However, the best treatment is to change unhealthy lifestyle habits such as losing weight, eating healthy, exercising, and limiting alcohol consumed.

Cholesterol is a type of fat in your blood. Cholesterol is a necessity to your body. Your body produces enough cholesterol to sustain itself. You also obtain cholesterol from the food that you eat. Excess cholesterol builds up in your artery walls which lead to blockages, and claudication. There are two forms of cholesterol, LDL the bad cholesterol and HDL which is the good cholesterol.

Risk Factors Associated with High Cholesterol:

• Gender: Women who have experienced menopause are more prone to higher cholesterol levels.

• Age: With age comes an increased risk of having high cholesterol.

• Family history: The risk of you having high cholesterol increases if you have an immediate male family member such as brother or father that was affected by heart disease before the age of 55 or an immediate female family member such as a mother or sister that was affected by heart disease before the age of 65.

• Smoking: smoking lowers the level of good cholesterol in your body, smoking also damages the artery walls which allows the buildup of fatty deposits.

• Unhealthy eating habits: Food items that are high in sodium and fats put you at risk of high cholesterol.

Symptoms of High Cholesterol:

High cholesterol does not have any symptoms, detection of high cholesterol is done by a blood test.

What happens when high cholesterol goes undiagnosed?

Chest pain: When arteries are damaged, you may experience chest pain.

Heart attack:Plaque clogs the arteries in your body. If the buildup of plaque blocks the blood flow to your heart, you will have a heart attack.

Stroke: A stroke will occur if the plaque blocks blood flow to your brain.

Preventing high cholesterol:

Healthy Diet: Enjoying a diet full of fruits, vegetables and whole grains can significantly reduce your chances of  developing high cholesterol.

Physical activity: Working out at least 30 minutes per day can reduce the risk factors associated with developing high cholesterol.

Treatment for high cholesterol:

There are several medications available to treat high cholesterol. However, the best treatment is to change unhealthy lifestyle habits such as losing weight, eating healthy, exercising, and limiting alcohol consumed.