What do Cholesterol Levels Mean

By going to the doctor and getting a simple blood test to check your cholesterol, you can find out what your levels of cholesterol are. When you go to get your cholesterol checked, it will be checked for all levels of your cholesterol. Your test will come back showing the levels of your cholesterol and what they could mean for your health. Your doctor will take all your information about your age, family history, smoking and your blood pressure into account. This will tell your doctor what your risk of heart disease will be from the cholesterol levels that you have. The levels of cholesterol that will be checked will be your total blood cholesterol level, your HDL cholesterol level, your LDL cholesterol level and your triglyceride level. These are all very important levels of your cholesterol. And each one will mean something different for you.

What you Should do about High Cholesterol

There are several things you can do to help your high cholesterol. First thing go see a doctor. If you go see your doctor and he has prescribed medication for your high cholesterol, take it regularly even if you don’t think it is working for you. Sometimes you can feel like your medicine is not doing anything to help you, but it is working. Your medicine and the proper diet and exercise routine will all work together to lower your cholesterol. It you have trouble maintaining a healthy body weight, talk to your doctor or a dietician to set you up on a weight lose plan to help you take the weight off and keep it off. Eat a variety of fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains to help maintain a healthy weight and lower your high cholesterol.

Avoid Foods that are High in Cholesterol and Fat

Trying to avoid foods that are high in cholesterol can be difficult. Most of the foods that taste the best to us are probably high in cholesterol. Most high cholesterol foods contain saturated fats and cholesterol. Saturated fats are very bad to raise your cholesterol. Saturated fats should be taken out of your diet and replaced with foods that are good for you containing less fat. Eating too much saturated fat can increase your risk of having a heart attack. And can be the main reason why people have high cholesterol. You should watch how much saturated fats are in the foods that you eat. If you have high cholesterol you need to cut out all of the saturated fats from your diet.

High cholesterol foods are not good for anyone to eat. They can be found in most animal products such as meat, fish, eggs, poultry and some milk products. Processed and prepared foods can also be very bad for you. They are easy and convenient to prepare. That is one reason we like them so much. But they can contain high amounts of cholesterol and saturated fats. Cookies and pastries are also high cholesterol foods that we tend to eat a lot of each day. It is good to try and stay away from foods that are high in cholesterol and fats. Look at the labels when you buy your food to check how much fat and cholesterol they have in them. Be more selective about the foods that you buy. Only buy the foods that you know are good for you.

Certain Risk Factors for High Cholesterol

There are certain risk factors for people who have high cholesterol. About fifty percent of all adults have found out that they have cholesterol levels over 200. A big portion of adults have unhealthy levels of cholesterol. Younger adults are starting to get high cholesterol levels. Because of their diets of high fat and low fiber. And the way they live their lifestyle can play a part in it. The levels of cholesterol over all have been some what declining over the years due to medications that have been prescribed by doctors to lower your cholesterol.

Your risk factor can be different depending on if you are a man or a women. The major cause of death in men is heart disease. Men have been known to develop heart disease earlier then women do. And are at greater risk. Through studies it has been suggested that high cholesterol can contribute to high blood pressure in men. For women coronary artery diseases is the number one killer. At certain times in a women’s life she will have higher cholesterol levels then a man does. In her twenties and early thirties and also after menopause her cholesterol levels will be higher. There is some evidence that suggests that the HDL levels are higher in women then they are in men. Children can also have high cholesterol levels. The cause of this is not really known. Some people think being overweight can make children be at a higher risk. And having unhealthy cholesterol levels can play a part too.

The Symptoms and Diagnosis of High Cholesterol

There are usually no symptoms that come with getting high cholesterol. That is the scary part when you don‘t know. You may not even know you have high cholesterol unless you were to go to a doctor and have it checked out. When symptoms do decide to arise they can turn in to angina or a heart attack fast. Because of the plaque that can build up in your arteries. That is why it is so good to go to your doctor often and have your cholesterol level checked. You may need to change the way you live, and start taking better care of yourself. Or be put on a medication if your cholesterol levels are severe.

To diagnosis high cholesterol you will need to go to your doctor and get a blood test. To get a reliable reading of your cholesterol your doctor may ask you to not eat or drink anything for up to twelve hours before you get tested. He may also ask you to avoid exercising for up to twenty four before your test. If the test is inaccurate he will require you to take a second test. But may have you wait a while before taking the second test. There are home test that you can get and test your cholesterol but they may not be as complete and accurate as your doctor would give to you.

Easy and Simple Ways to Lower your Cholesterol

There are all kinds of ways that we can lower our cholesterol. These are some easy and simple ways that will lower your cholesterol with less effort. Drinking two glasses of orange juice each day can help you. Buy orange juice that has cholesterol lowering ingredients in it. There are different brands of orange juice on the market with these ingredients in them. Orange juice taste good, it is good for you and can help to lower your cholesterol. Eat more small meals during the day instead of two or three big meals. Studies have found out that people who eat several small meals during the day had lower cholesterol levels then people who ate twice a day. Drinking a glass of red wine each day at dinner time has been known to have beneficial effects on cholesterol.

What we eat can make all the difference in lowering our cholesterol. Use good whole grain bread. Fix all your sandwiches and meals using whole grain bread. Eating whole grains are good for lowering cholesterol. Certain substances found in coffee can increase your cholesterol level, but if you use paper coffee filters each time you make coffee the filters will trap these compounds. When cooking and preparing meals use olive oil. Studies have found that using olive oil can reduce your LDL cholesterol level. Drinking a few glasses of black tea each day has also been known to lower cholesterol in people. Adding cinnamon to your diet has also been said to lower cholesterol.