When is your cholesterol too high?
Whether your cholesterol is too high does not depend on a fixed threshold for everyone. The significance of your result is assessed in combination with your personal risk of cardiovascular diseases.
This assessment takes into account factors such as age, gender, blood pressure, smoking, and the ratio between total cholesterol and HDL cholesterol. Therefore, the desired cholesterol value can differ from person to person. Two people with the same cholesterol level can thus have different risk profiles.
The difference between LDL and HDL cholesterol is also important. LDL is often referred to as the 'bad cholesterol'. Prolonged elevated LDL cholesterol can contribute to fat deposits in the vessel walls. HDL is called the 'good cholesterol' and plays a different role in cholesterol transport in the body.
Therefore, do not only look at the total cholesterol level. The ratio between the different values and your other risk factors together determine how a result is assessed. A doctor can indicate which target value matches your risk profile.
Do you notice anything from a high cholesterol level?
Elevated cholesterol is usually determined with a blood examination and not based on specific complaints. It is mainly the possible consequences of prolonged elevated cholesterol that can cause symptoms. You cannot determine your cholesterol level based on how fit or healthy you feel. Even without noticeable symptoms, your cholesterol can be elevated. This is an important reason why blood examination is needed to accurately assess your values.
Such an examination can measure, among other things, total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and HDL cholesterol. The result is then viewed in conjunction with other factors that influence the risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Do you want to know your own values? With laboratory examination, different cholesterol levels in the blood can be determined.
What are the risks of prolonged high cholesterol?
Prolonged high LDL cholesterol can contribute to arteriosclerosis and thereby increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases. This process develops gradually, often over years. In arteriosclerosis, also known as atherosclerosis, fatty substances accumulate in the vessel wall. This changes the vessel wall and blood vessels can become narrower. This may restrict circulation.
Atherosclerosis can lead to conditions such as angina pectoris, a heart attack, and stroke. The level of risk varies per person. Cholesterol is one of several risk factors, alongside factors like blood pressure, smoking, and age.
Having a high cholesterol level does not automatically mean you will develop a heart or vascular disease. However, prolonged exposure to high LDL cholesterol is detrimental. Knowing your status early allows more room to tackle modifiable risk factors.
What are the causes of high cholesterol?
High cholesterol can be related to lifestyle, but also to hereditary factors. Often, multiple factors play a role simultaneously. A common misconception is that high cholesterol mainly results from consuming too much cholesterol. The majority of the cholesterol in your body is produced by your body itself, including in the liver. Dietary cholesterol has only a limited influence on the cholesterol levels in your blood.
The composition of your diet is important. Particularly saturated fat and trans fat can be unfavorable for your cholesterol levels. A lack of physical activity can also play a role. For elevated triglyceride levels, many refined carbohydrates and sugars are also relevant.
Hereditary factors: familial hypercholesterolemia
High cholesterol can also be hereditary. In familial hypercholesterolemia (FH), genetic predisposition plays a significant role and the increased cholesterol level cannot be explained solely by lifestyle.
In the Netherlands, a nationwide population study for FH was conducted between 1994 and 2014. In those twenty years, 28,000 patients were identified. According to the RIVM, someone with untreated FH is about four times more likely to die prematurely from cardiovascular diseases than someone without FH.
Do cholesterol levels remain high despite a healthy lifestyle, or do cardiovascular diseases occur at a young age among close relatives? Discuss this with a doctor. In FH, medical follow-up and medication may be necessary.
10 tips to lower your cholesterol
A healthy lifestyle is an important first step to preventing or lowering high cholesterol or triglyceride levels. These 10 tips can help you specifically focus on diet, exercise, smoking, and alcohol.
Tip 1: Replace saturated fats with unsaturated fats
Limit products high in saturated fats, such as fatty meats, full-fat cheese, and whole dairy products. Opt more often for unsaturated fats from, for example, nuts, oily fish, and liquid cooking and frying products.
Tip 2: Limit trans fat
Trans fat has an adverse effect on your cholesterol levels. It can be found in certain highly processed and fried products. Opting more often for fresh or minimally processed products helps to limit your intake.
Tip 3: Eat enough fiber
Regularly opt for fiber-rich products, such as whole grain products, vegetables, fruits, and legumes. This way, you increase the amount of fiber in your daily diet.
Tip 4: Limit refined carbohydrates and added sugars
A high intake of refined carbohydrates and sugar is particularly relevant when your triglycerides are elevated. Therefore, opt for whole grain products more often and limit products with a lot of added sugars.
Tip 5: Work towards a healthy weight
Are you overweight? Then working towards a healthy weight can be part of reducing your cardiovascular risk. Choose dietary and exercise adjustments that you can maintain.
Tip 6: Exercise regularly
Exercise doesn't have to consist solely of intense sports. Walking, cycling, and moving more frequently during your workday also count and fit within a lifestyle aimed at a lower risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Tip 7: Quit smoking
Smoking increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Quitting is therefore especially important if you have other risk factors, such as elevated cholesterol levels.
Tip 8: Limit alcohol
Moderate or no alcohol consumption fits within a healthy lifestyle. If you regularly drink alcohol, drinking less can be a concrete step towards improving your overall risk profile.
Tip 9: Look at your overall diet
There is no single cholesterol-lowering food that solves a high level. It's the whole picture that counts: enough vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and legumes, with less saturated fat, trans fat, and highly processed products. Products with added plant sterols or stanols can be an option but do not replace a healthy diet.
Tip 10: Choose changes you can maintain
You don't have to overhaul your lifestyle all at once. For example, start by choosing unsaturated fats more often and exercising more. A feasible change that you maintain is more valuable than a strict regime that stops quickly.
When is medication needed for high cholesterol?
Whether medication is needed depends on your overall risk of cardiovascular disease, not just your cholesterol level. For low to moderate risk, lifestyle adjustments are often the first step; for a high or very high-risk profile, a doctor may consider medication.
Statins are among the most commonly used cholesterol-lowering drugs. They are prescribed to reduce cholesterol levels when the risk profile justifies it. Not everyone with high cholesterol needs them.
A doctor assesses your cholesterol levels, other risk factors, and any existing cardiovascular diseases. Based on this, it is determined whether medication is appropriate, which drug is used, and in what dosage.
Are you already taking cholesterol-lowering medication? Never adjust it yourself, but discuss any changes with your doctor.
Curious about your own cholesterol levels?
You can specifically determine your cholesterol levels with a blood examination; how you feel doesn't indicate how high they are. The result gains significance in combination with other factors that determine your risk for cardiovascular diseases.
With laboratory tests, various blood values can be measured, including cholesterol levels. If you also want broader insight into your heart and cardiovascular risk factors, cardiological examination can provide additional information.
Curious about your own values? Discover what a blood examination at Prescan can tell you.
Basic Laboratory Examination
- Blood- and urine analysis
- Follow-up physician
