Heart Health: Causes of High Cholesterol

Cholesterol is just one type of fat in the body called lipids. Other lipids are triglycerides and fatty acids. If you have too much "bad" cholesterol in your body it means you have too much LDL in your blood. LDL is the "bad" cholesterol, which is a low-density lipoprotein.

The Mayo clinic has said that your body makes 80% of the cholesterol and the other 20% comes from the foods you eat. Although your body does need cholesterol, if you have too much cholesterol, it will build up in your arteries and the build up will slowly narrow your arteries, which will make it harder for the blood to flow through them. This may lead to a heart attack or stroke.

There are many causes of high cholesterol. There are some causes that you can't control and some that you can control. There are a few causes of high cholesterol that you can't control that are your genetics, and age. If you parents, grandparents, sisters or brothers have high cholesterol then there is a good chance that you might have high cholesterol too. Also, as you get older, your age affects how much cholesterol your body makes, which will increase, as you get older.

Causes of High Cholesterol: Weight

If you are overweight, this probable cause of your high cholesterol. What happens is when you are overweight; it may raise your triglycerides and lower your "good" HDL level. If you try to loose weight, you may be able to lower triglyceride levels and raise the "good"HDL level.

Causes of High Cholesterol:Diet

Your diet can affect your cholesterol level. Cholesterol comes from animals, so a good rule of thumb if it doesn't come from an animal you are safe as far as the food having cholesterol. The foods that have saturated fat are the ones that cause high cholesterol and should be taken in moderation. The animal based foods are beef, poultry, veal, processed foods such as sausage, bologna, salami, and hot dogs), egg yolks, butter, whole milk dairy products (milk, cream, cheese, and ice cream). The plant-based foods are coconut and coconut oil, palm oil, and palm kernel oil. Tran Fats can also raise your cholesterol levels. You can find trans fat in many commercially baked goods, margarine, and snack foods such as cookies and crackers, processed foods, fried foods. It is important to look at the labels and if you see the words "hydrogenated" and "partially hydrogenated" in the ingredients, then these foods are loaded with trans fat and saturated fat. It is very important that you limit as much dairy and animals products in your diet to help keep your cholesterol level low.

Causes of High Cholesterol: Alcohol

If you are drinking too much alcohol, this could be a possible cause of your high cholesterol. Although a little alcohol is known to increase your "good" HDL cholesterol, Alcohol is known to not decrease the "bad" HDL cholesterol. Also, if you drink too much alcohol, this will lead to high blood pressure, which raises the triglyceride levels.

Causes of High Cholesterol: Smoking

Smoking is known to reduce your "good" HDL cholesterol level. It is really important to stop smoking if you have been diagnosed with high cholesterol. There are many products on the market, such as Nicoderm to help you quite smoking.

Causes of High Cholesterol:Stress

Stress doesn't increase your cholesterol levels, but what happens when we are under a lot of stress; we tent to change our many habits. We tend to eat fatty foods, drink alcohol and smoke, which are causes for high cholesterol.

*The information contained in this article is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice nor is it intended to be for medical diagnosis or treatments. Always consult your doctor before taking any medical advice or if you are concerned about your physical well being.

Sources:

http://cholesterol.emedtv.com/cholesterol/high-cholesterol-foods-p2.html

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/high-blood-cholesterol/DS00178

http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/heartdisease/risk/029.html

http://www.careurheart.com/heart-care-articles/causes-of-high-cholesterol.htm