What You Should Do If You Have High Bad Cholesterol?

We always hear from colleagues or friends that their bad cholesterol levels are high and they are advised not to take food that may add more cholesterol into their bodies. But, how many of us will treat this seriously? Most of us will just think that "I feel nothing wrong and I should not have high bad cholesterol in my body!"

In reality, a person with high bad cholesterol rarely shows any symptoms or signs, until something really bad happen.

Bad cholesterol is a risk factor for heart disease. In fact, many heart attack patients have been diagnosed to have high level of bad cholesterol. Nevertheless, not many of us know what our cholesterol levels are. Such ignorance may cause us undesirable consequences when we reach our senior years.

A study done in Singapore found that 70 percent of Singaporean at risk of heart disease are still not able to keep their low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or what we call bad cholesterol, at healthy level.

There are two reasons for this:

• Patients are reluctant to increase their dosage of prescribed medication

• Unhealthy lifestyle

Regular annual health check-up is a must to monitor one's cholesterol levels and risk scores. When necessary, early intervention can be initiated before the condition leads to a full-blown heart attack. For instance, quitting smoking, losing weight and exercising regularly can be most beneficial for those in their 20s, 30s and 40s, as this halts the progress of bad cholesterol and helps cut the risk of heart disease when one reaches one's 50s.

There is no ideal LDL-cholesterol level. It may vary with different groups of people. For example, those who fall within the high-risk group (people with cardiovascular disease and diabetes), the ideal figure should be 100 mg or below. Those in the intermediate and low-risk groups should maintain their LDL levels at 130 mg and 160 mg respectively.

But, some of you may wonder why LDL-cholesterol is harmful? Let's see how a consultant cardiologist answers this question.

LDL is important for normal brain function and the production of hormones, but our body requires only low amount of it. Most of us have higher amount of LDL than our body requires.
About two-thirds of the cholesterol in our body is produced by the liver but the amount produced is determined by our genes. This can explain why some people have higher levels of cholesterol than others.

While there is nothing we can do to regulate genetics, we can still manipulate on the remaining one-third of the equation through our diet. Fatty foods that can raise cholesterol levels should be reduced or avoided, depending on your condition. These include bacon, sausages, egg yolks, cookies and pastries, etc.

We should have a 'low-fat' diet that incorporates white-meat poultry, fish, fresh fruits, vegetables, and soluble fibers such as oats, citrus fruits, berries and apples.

Besides healthy diet, medication can also be used to reduce bad cholesterol levels if one's condition requires it. Drugs like statins can help reduce cholesterol levels for those who are at risk of heart disease. Medication blocks either the absorption of cholesterol from the intestines or the cholesterol-producing enzymes in the liver.

Unfortunately, most doctors and patients are unwilling to increase their dosage of statin treatment fearing the possible side effects of the drug on one's liver. However, some doctors feel that this is an unfounded fear. If side effects do develop from the use of statins, these can be detected by a doctor and the patient will be monitored. For patients who do not experience any side effects, they can continue taking for life.

In conclusion, when one's bad cholesterol reaches a level that requires medication, he or she should co-operate with the doctor by taking the medication as instructed. In addition, he or she should supplement medication with active and healthy lifestyle in order to limit intake of cholesterol and burn off those extra calories.

Remember, prevention is better than cure! Taking care of our cholesterol levels is like buying health insurance for the future!

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