Hdl Vs Ldl Cholesterol: What You Should Know
What is the Difference Between HDL and LDL Cholesterol?
Cholesterol is a pliable substance that helps you make cell membranes, hormones, and vitamin D. Located in your blood, it is produced by your liver and comes from the foods you eat. Along with cholesterol, other fats like triglycerides are particles located in your bloodstream and are called lipoproteins. The most common lipoproteins are high-density lipoproteins and low-density lipoproteins . If youre wondering which is good cholesterol, HDL or LDL, the information provided below can help you understand the differences between the two and how to manage this aspect of your health.
HDL is commonly called good cholesterol because maintaining a healthy level can protect you against heart attack and stroke. While traveling in your blood, the HDL prevents blockages in your arteries by absorbing LDL and carrying it to your liver to be broken down and flushed from your body. Even though your liver produces HDL naturally, it can only eliminate about a third of the LDL in your bloodstream.
As mentioned, LDL cholesterol is normally referred to as bad cholesterol because it is the raw material of fat and plaque that clogs your arteries. LDL can stick to the arterial walls causing them to narrow, which is a condition called atherosclerosis. This buildup also increases your risk for more serious health issues like heart attack, stroke, and peripheral artery disease .
How Can You Calculate HDL and LDL Cholesterol Levels?
What Is Cholesterol Ratio
Your cholesterol ratio is the ratio of your total cholesterol to your HDL cholesterol level. Cholesterol ratio can be easily calculated and is often abbreviated TC/HDL-C. This ratio is so commonly used, and has been so extensively studied, that it is fairly routine for most labs to do the calculation for you and to report this along with your other cholesterol findings. Depending on what laboratory your doctors office uses, you may or may not see your cholesterol ratio reported along with your other results. To calculate it on your own, just divide your total cholesterol by your HDL.
Food Containing Good And Bad Cholesterol
The foods rich in good cholesterol include onions and Omega-3 fatty acids like flax oil, canola oil, fish, foods rich in fibre like grains, oats, bran and soy. To decrease your LDL, avoid high-cholesterol foods that are rich in trans fatty acids, refined carbohydrates such as white sugar and flour, cholesterol-rich foods such as egg yolk, liver, kidney dairy products like cream cheese, and alcohol.
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How Can I Increase Hdl
It is probably easier to lower LDL levels than raise HDL, just because diet is not as effective, although there are some things you can do.
If you are a smoker, then quitting is your first step towards higher HDL.
Changing your diet is another good place to start though, reducing the amount of fat you consume will be kinder on your heart and HDL levels, high amounts of fiber help too.
Reducing sugar is another step that will see your HDL creep up.
What Are The Different Types Of Cholesterol
There are two types: high-density lipoprotein and low-density lipoprotein . As a general rule, HDL is considered good cholesterol, while LDL is considered bad. This is because HDL carries cholesterol to your liver, where it can be removed from your bloodstream before it builds up in your arteries. LDL, on the other hand, takes cholesterol directly to your arteries. This can result in atherosclerosis, a plaque buildup that can even cause heart attack and stroke.
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What Is The Difference Between Good And Bad Cholesterol
Cholesterol a waxy substance that builds in the arteries is not completely harmful, despite its reputation for being bad for you. In fact, some of it can even improve your health when consumed in the right amounts.
The physicians at the USC CardioVascular Thoracic Institute at Keck Medicine of USC can measure your good cholesterol and bad cholesterol levels, and help you adopt healthier eating and living habits so you can achieve the best balance of both.
Comparing And Contrasting A Direct Ldl Cholesterol Test And A Lipid Panel
A lipid panel includes LDL cholesterol and additional tests. The standard lipid panel measures total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, and triglycerides. A special formula is then used to calculate LDL cholesterol.
A lipid panel test is routinely prescribed and used much more frequently than direct LDL cholesterol testing. However, it only provides calculated LDL cholesterol results up to a certain level of triglycerides. Once triglycerides levels exceed this cut-off, direct LDL measurements are recommended to obtain accurate LDL cholesterol results.
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Should My Child Have A Blood Lipid Test
A lipid screening is a test to look at the levels of the fats in the blood. In the past, doctors felt that children and teens were not at risk for high cholesterol levels. But we now know that children and teens are at risk. This is due to things such as:
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Being inactive from too much screen time and not enough exercise
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High-fat or high-sugar diets
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Obesity
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Family history of high cholesterol levels
Children and teens with high cholesterol are at higher risk for heart disease as adults. Keeping blood cholesterol levels in the normal range reduces this risk.
Cholestrol Hdl Vs Ldl
LDL cholesterol is often referred to as bad cholesterol. If there is too much LDL cholesterol in the blood, it builds up in the walls of the blood vessels, causing them to narrow and stiffen. A buildup of LDL cholesterol reduces blood flow and can increase the risk of a heart attack or stroke.
HDL or good cholesterol can move LDL cholesterol from the blood to the liver, which breaks it down for disposal as waste. HDL cholesterol is called good cholesterol because it lowers the level of cholesterol in the blood. High HDL is linked to a reduced risk of heart attack and heart disease.
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When High Cholesterol Is Good
There are two main types of cholesterol in the body, and only one of them is usually considered to be a risk to heart health.
Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol contributes to the fatty buildup that can clog the arteries. When this buildup clogs or narrows the arteries, a heart attack or stroke is more likely to occur. With LDL cholesterol, lower is better.
HDL cholesterol is useful for the heart. HDL cholesterol may remove LDL cholesterol from the blood and transport it to the liver, where it can be processed and eliminated. A higher HDL number is desirable because it usually signals a lower risk of heart disease.
What Factors Affect Cholesterol Levels
A variety of factors can affect your cholesterol levels. They include:
- Diet: Saturated fat, trans fat and cholesterol in the food you eat increase cholesterol levels. Try to reduce the amount of saturated fat, trans fat and cholesterol in your diet. This will help lower your blood cholesterol level. Saturated and trans fat have the most impact on blood cholesterol.
- Weight: In addition to being a risk factor for heart disease, being overweight can also increase your triglycerides. Losing weight may help lower your triglyceride levels and raise your HDL.
- Exercise: Regular exercise can lower total cholesterol levels. Exercise has the most effect on lowering triglycerides and raising HDL. You should try to be physically active for 30 minutes on most days of the week.
- Age and sex: As we get older,cholesterol levels rise. Before menopause, women tend to have lower total cholesterol levels than men of the same age. After menopause, however, womens LDL levels tend to rise and HDL can drop.
- Heredity: Your genes partly determine how much cholesterol your body makes. High blood cholesterol can run in families.
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What Are Ideal Cholesterol Levels
Ideal cholesterol levels will differ based on many factors. However, it’s important to understand your specific health goals and what your cholesterol target should be so that you can understand lab reports and make healthy choices to maintain or change your cholesterol numbers.
“‘Normal cholesterol’ is a relative term and depends on a person’s overall health, age, and sex,” says Hsia.
Typically, men and women 20 years and older should target:
- Total cholesterol: from 125 mg/dL to 200 mg/dL
- LDL cholesterol: less than 100 mg/dL
- HDL cholesterol: 40 mg/dL or more for women 50 mg/dL or more for men
What You Can Do To Manage Ascvd
To manage ASCVD and lower the risk of a heart attack or stroke, it is important to:
Go to all follow-up appointments with your doctor
Follow any diet and exercise instructions from your doctor
Talk to your doctor about your health history and how often you need to have your LDL-C checked
Make sure you are taking your medicine as directed by your doctor
Ask a friend or loved one, or find a support group to help you stay on track
Finding a balance of treatment options and lifestyle changes can be difficult, but you don’t have to do it alone. Partnering with your doctor is important in managing ASCVD. Doing so is a big step toward lowering your LDL-C and lowering your risk of heart attack or stroke.
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Take A Look At Your Lifestyle
You can make lifestyle changes to improve your cholesterol numbers.
Your body naturally produces all the LDL cholesterol it needs. An unhealthy lifestyle makes your body produce more LDL cholesterol than it needs. This is the cause of high LDL cholesterol for most people.
Behaviors that can negatively affect your cholesterol levels include:
- Unhealthy diet
- Smoking or exposure to tobacco smoke
- Being overweight or obese
How to prevent and treat high cholesterol.
What Is Ldl Cholesterol
Low density lipoprotein is a type of lipoprotein, which helps in the transportation of cholesterol in our body. This is often referred to as a bad cholesterol type since it can get deposited on blood vessel walls as thick and dense plaques and attracts macrophages which will eventually obstruct the vessel lumen causing Atherosclerosis.
Increased LDL levels markedly increase the risk of coronary artery disease.
Every person who is suspected to have Hypercholesterolemia should get a lipid profile done once in every month, which will reveal a laboratory measurement of LDL cholesterol in the body.
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Hdl Versus Ldl Cholesterol
There are two main types of cholesterol: high-density lipoprotein and low-density lipoprotein . Lipoproteins are made of fat and proteins. Cholesterol moves through your body while inside lipoproteins.
HDL is known as good cholesterol because it transports cholesterol to your liver to be expelled from your body. HDL helps rid your body of excess cholesterol so its less likely to end up in your arteries.
LDL is called bad cholesterol because it takes cholesterol to your arteries, where it may collect in artery walls. Too much cholesterol in your arteries may lead to a buildup of plaque known as atherosclerosis. This can increase the risk of blood clots in your arteries. If a blood clot breaks away and blocks an artery in your heart or brain, you may have a stroke or heart attack.
Plaque buildup may also reduce blood flow and oxygen to major organs. Oxygen deprivation to your organs or arteries may lead to kidney disease or peripheral arterial disease, in addition to a heart attack or stroke.
Centers for Disease Control , over 31 percent of Americans have high LDL cholesterol. You may not even know it because high cholesterol doesnt cause noticeable symptoms.
The only way to find out if your cholesterol is high is through a blood test that measures cholesterol in milligrams per deciliter of blood . When you get your cholesterol numbers checked, youll receive results for:
To treat high cholesterol, doctors often recommend these lifestyle changes:
Understanding The Test Results
A full lipid profile can be an important part of your childs health information. It shows the levels of each type of fat in the blood. These include LDL, HDL, triglycerides, and total cholesterol. Your child’s doctor can tell you what the results should be for your child. In general, healthy levels are:
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LDL of less than 130 mg/dL
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HDL of greater than 35 mg/dL
Some children and teens have families with high cholesterol or early heart disease. In these cases, the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute advises these levels for cholesterol:
Total cholesterol
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Hdl Vs Ldl: Good Vs Bad Cholesterol
The two type of cholesterol of which many people identify as the good and bad versions both have a purpose in your body. But what is it about them that mean people are talking about HDL vs LDL: Good Vs Bad Cholesterol?
We are going to take a look at what each of these are, and why they have the reputations they do.
How To Increase Hdl Cholesterol
Although HDL levels are driven by family genetics, you can improve HDL levels in three key ways:
- If you are a smoker, research clearly shows that quitting smoking can increase HDL.
- Adopting a heart-healthy diet low in fat and high in fiber can also modestly raise your HDL.
- Aerobic exercise can also have positive effects on HDL. Have trouble exercising? Find a buddy research shows it helps motivate you. That exercise can be as simple as increasing the amount of walking you do each week.
Lastly, although primarily used to decrease high LDL, some statin medications may potentially increase HDL levels moderately. Any medical treatment option should be discussed with your doctor. Importantly, high HDL does not protect you from the untoward effects of high LDL.
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What Are Normal Levels Of Cholesterol
Normal levels of cholesterol are different depending on your age and sex. These guidelines show desirable total, non-HDL,LDL and HDL levels by age and sex.
Table 1: Target cholesterol levels by age and sex
Age and sex |
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cholesterol
cholesterol
People aged 19 years and younger Men aged 20 years and olderWomen aged 20 years and older
The table above spells out the numbers for normal cholesterol levels. The table below shows you cholesterol levels that are higher than normal. High cholesterol numbers vary by age group and sex, and may be different for those who have heart disease. These guidelines represent high cholesterol numbers for those who do not have heart disease.
Table 2: High total, non-HDL and LDL cholesterol levels by age and sex
Age and sex |
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People aged 19 years and younger |
Borderline: 170-199 mg/dL
High: Greater than or equal to 200 mg/dL
Borderline: 120-144 mg/dL
High: Greater than or equal to 145 mg/dL
Borderline: 110-129 mg/dL
High: Greater than or equal to 130 mg/dL
High: Greater than or equal to 239 mg/dL
Near optimal or above optimal: 100-129 mg/dL
Borderline high: 130-159 mg/dL
Very high: Greater than 189 mg/dL
High: Greater than or equal to 239 mg/dL
Near optimal or above optimal: 100-129 mg/dL
Borderline high: 130-159 mg/dL
Very high: Greater than 189 mg/dL
LDL cholesterol levels
If you do not have heart disease or blood vessel disease, and you are not at high risk for developing heart disease, the optimal number is less than 100 mg/dL.
Triglycerides
Comparing And Contrasting A Direct Ldl Cholesterol Test And A Non
A non-HDL cholesterol test uses a formula to estimate the levels of all types of bad cholesterol, including cholesterol inside low-density lipoproteins, intermediate-density lipoproteins, very low-density lipoproteins, and lipoprotein particles.
Calculating non-HDL cholesterol requires measuring total cholesterol and HDL cholesterol. The amount of HDL cholesterol is then subtracted from total cholesterol.
Unlike a direct LDL cholesterol test, a non-HDL cholesterol test does not provide a specific result for LDL cholesterol. In addition, non-HDL cholesterol levels are calculated, which is in contrast to a direct LDL cholesterol test that involves an actual measurement of LDL cholesterol by the laboratory.
While non-HDL cholesterol can be a useful tool for assessing cardiovascular disease risk, most patient care guidelines focus on LDL cholesterol levels.
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Estimating Hdl Via Associated Cholesterol
Clinical laboratories formerly measured HDL cholesterol by separating other lipoprotein fractions using either ultracentrifugation or chemical precipitation with divalent ions such as Mg2+, then coupling the products of a cholesterol oxidase reaction to an indicator reaction. The reference method still uses a combination of these techniques. Most laboratories now use automated homogeneous analytical methods in which lipoproteins containing apo B are blocked using antibodies to apo B, then a colorimetric enzyme reaction measures cholesterol in the non-blocked HDL particles.HPLC can also be used. Subfractions can be measured, but clinical significance of these subfractions has not been determined. The measurement of apo-A reactive capacity can be used to measure HDL cholesterol but is thought to be less accurate.
High HDL level, optimal condition considered correlated against heart disease |
High LDL with low HDL level is an additional risk factor for cardiovascular disease.
How Much Does The Test Cost
Various costs can be associated with a direct LDL cholesterol test. These include charges for an office visit, the blood draw procedure, and the laboratorys analysis.
The exact cost of these charges typically depends on whether you have health insurance and where the testing is performed. Some or all costs may be paid by insurance if the test is ordered by your doctor. Your insurance provider can clarify any expected out-of-pocket costs such as deductibles and copayments.
If you do not have health insurance, you can talk with your doctor or a hospital administrator about the costs of testing for the uninsured. You can also ask about any programs for reduced-cost services or payment plans.
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