Cholesterol

Produced naturally in your liver, the lipid cholesterol is a waxy substance necessary for the formation of vitamin D, cell membranes and hormones.

Cholesterol cannot travel around the body alone, and so the body makes lipoproteins from fat and proteins, in order to carry cholesterol (along with triglycerides) from place to place.

There are two types of lipoprotein; low-density lipoprotein, or LDL, and high-density lipoprotein, or HDL.

When you have too much cholesterol carried by low-density lipoproteins, known as LDL cholesterol, this can be very bad news for your body.

The excess can begin to build up on the walls of your arteries and lead to blood clots. These clots can cause a heart attack or stroke.

While too much LDL cholesterol is bad news for your body, HDL cholesterol is considered to be a good thing.

The bloodstream’s prefect, HDL, keeps your cholesterol levels in check by guiding troublemaking LDL back to the liver, to be removed from your system, after it has completed its job.

This keeps LDL cholesterol from lurking around in your arteries causing damage.

While LDL cholesterol is building up in your arteries, you are unlikely to have any symptoms.

And by the time it shows itself it can be too late.

That is why it is very important to have your cholesterol levels checked by the doctor on a regular basis once you are over 40, if you are overweight or if heart problems run in your family.

This involves a simple blood test available on the NHS.

You can make sure your cholesterol levels stay healthy through a healthy diet, low in trans fats and saturated fats and high in fibre and lean protein.

This means minimising high cholesterol foods, including red meats and fatty, processed foods and avoiding fried foods, takeaways and baked goods.

Unsaturated fats can even help to lower cholesterol, so adding avocados, oily fish and raw nuts to your diet can really help you stay healthy.

Plenty of exercise is also important, as is giving up smoking and keeping your weight down.

You may also choose to take a supplement formulated for healthy cholesterol levels.

Any supplements rich alpha linoleic acid or ALA can help you maintain healthy cholesterol levels. You will need to ingest 2g of ALA per day to achieve this beneficial effect.  

Other supplements thought to help you maintain healthy cholesterol levels include garlic, available in an odourless tablet, and conjugated linoleic acid, or CLA.