Feb 11, 2025 Maintaining healthy cholesterol levels is a great way to keep your heart healthy. It can lower your chances of getting heart disease or having a stroke. I am Angelina Davis, manager of Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehab at United Hospital Center, and I am here to help you to know your numbers when it comes to cholesterol and blood pressure.
1). Before you help us to get to know our numbers, what should we know about our cholesterol?
The American Heart Association recommends that all adults ages 20 and older should have their cholesterol and other traditional risk factors checked every four to six years, as long as the risk remains low. If certain factors put you at high risk, or if you have a history of heart disease, your health care professional may ask you to get checked more often. Work together with your medical professional to determine your risk for cardiovascular disease and stroke and create a plan to help reduce your risk.2). Help us to understand our test results and how should these results be interpreted?
Your blood test results will show your cholesterol levels in milligrams per deciliter of blood, or mg/dL. The Lipid panel will include HDL (good) cholesterol, LDL (bad) cholesterol, triglycerides, and total blood cholesterol. Total cholesterol and HDL cholesterol are among numerous factors your health care professional can use to predict your lifetime or 10-year risk for a heart attack or stroke. Your health care professional will also consider other risk factors, such as age, family history, smoking status, diabetes, and high blood pressure.3). What are the ideal target guidelines for low heart disease risk when it comes to cholesterol?
The American Heart Association recommends that your total cholesterol be less than 200. Various research studies on LDL(bad) cholesterol have shown “lower is better”. It is recommended to keep your LDL cholesterol less than 130 but optimally less than 100. The HDL (good) cholesterol should ideally be 60 or higher and your triglycerides, the most common type of fat in your blood which your body actually produces on its own and is also very indicative of the food you eat, should be less than 150.This content was originally posted on the WDTV News website here.
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