(Hyperlipidemia · Cholesterol)

In this condition factsheet:

• The facts on High Cholesterol


• Causes of High Cholesterol


• Symptoms and Complications of High Cholesterol


• Diagnosing High Cholesterol


• Treating and Preventing High Cholesterol

The Facts on High Cholesterol

Cholesterol is a fatty substance your body needs to rebuild its cells and to make certain hormones. It's carried throughout your body in your bloodstream. Your body only requires a small amount of cholesterol.

When there's too much cholesterol in your bloodstream, you have high cholesterol. This is quite a common condition. Cholesterol levels generally rise with age. High cholesterol can increase your risk of heart disease, stroke, and peripheral vascular disease.

Most of your body's cholesterol (about 80%) is made in your liver. The rest comes from your diet. Dietary cholesterol is found in foods from animal sources, such as eggs, meats, and dairy products. There are two important types of cholesterol you should know about:

• low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or "bad" cholesterol
• high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or "good" cholesterol

Most of the LDL, or "bad," cholesterol circulates in the blood and remains unused. Normally, the liver removes this "extra" cholesterol, but many people have more LDL cholesterol than the liver can handle. LDL cholesterol promotes buildup of harmful plaque (fatty deposits) in the walls of the arteries.

HDL gets its "good" name by picking up LDL cholesterol from the arteries and tissues and carrying it back to the liver, where it can be broken down.

Ask an Expert! Worried about your cholesterol level? Do you know how high cholesterol affects your heart? Here is your chance to ask a doctor about high cholesterol.

Causes of High Cholesterol

Many factors determine whether your LDL cholesterol is high or low, including:

• age (cholesterol levels increase with age)
• alcohol consumption
• diet
• gender (men have higher cholesterol)
• heredity
• level of physical activity
• weight

Another cause of high cholesterol is eating foods that are high in saturated fats and cholesterol. Other factors that can increase your cholesterol levels include an inactive lifestyle and being overweight. In some cases, high cholesterol is an inherited genetic condition, called familial hypercholesterolemia. This condition puts you at an increased chance of developing heart disease at an early age.

Some medical conditions, such as diabetes, hypothyroidism, liver disease, and kidney disease can raise cholesterol levels.

Symptoms and Complications of High Cholesterol

LDL cholesterol in the bloodstream can settle as fatty deposits on the inside of your blood vessels. These build up over time to become scars, called plaques. LDL cholesterol also stimulates extra cell growth in the lining of the arteries, reducing their diameter. Plaque can damage and clog the arteries, including the coronary arteries feeding the heart. This process is called atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) and can result in angina (chest pain), heart attack, or stroke. High levels of LDL cholesterol cause more plaque buildup and increase the risk of a heart attack.

High cholesterol usually has no obvious symptoms. Like high blood pressure, it's a "silent" condition that offers no early warning. Most people first discover the problem during a routine blood test and physical exam. They often find they have high blood pressure as well. There is an association between the two.

You can get symptoms from the complications of high cholesterol. These include angina and pain in the calves caused by narrowed arteries to the legs. The main complications of high cholesterol are heart disease and stroke.

Last reviewed: May 4, 2010

Did you find what you were looking for on our website? Please let us know.