Cholesterol And Triglycerides Tests: What To Think About

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What To Think About

• Having a high cholesterol level increases your chances of having a heart attack. The higher your cholesterol, the greater your chances. An elevated total cholesterol level in younger people is particularly significant, since the narrowing of the coronary arteries usually takes many years to develop.
• Lifestyle changes (such as diet changes, weight loss, and exercise) may help lower blood cholesterol levels and increase HDL ("good") cholesterol. Some people have better responses to diet and lifestyle changes than do others. Lifestyle changes might include:
  • Reducing saturated (animal) fats and cholesterol in the diet while increasing fiber and complex carbohydrate.
  • Losing weight. An improvement may occur if you lose as little as to .
• Moderate consumption of alcohol can also increase HDL cholesterol.
  • Moderate alcohol consumption means no more than 2 drinks per day for men or 1 drink per day for women; 1 drink is of beer, of wine, or of liquor.
  • The benefits of alcohol consumption must be balanced against the increased risk of alcoholism, high blood pressure, heart problems such as atrial fibrillation and heart failure, and cirrhosis.
• The National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) has developed a risk assessment calculator to estimate your risk of having a heart attack or dying from coronary artery disease (CAD) over 10 years. This tool is designed to estimate risk in adults age 20 and older who do not have heart disease or diabetes. Use the Interactive Tool: Are You at Risk for a Heart Attack? to calculate your risk of coronary artery disease.
• Talk with your doctor about other things that raise your risk for heart problems. Your doctor may change your goals for cholesterol levels if you have other risk factors for coronary artery disease, such as:
  • Smoking.
  • High blood pressure.
  • Diabetes.
  • Low HDL cholesterol (less than 40 mg/dL)
  • Family history of early CAD.
  • You are a man and older than 45, or you are a woman and older than 55.
• Talk to your health professional about which cholesterol screening is best for you. Medical experts disagree about routine screening for lipid disorders.
  • National Cholesterol Education Panel (NCEP) guidelines for cholesterol screening
  • U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) guidelines for cholesterol screening
  • American College of Physicians (ACP) guidelines for cholesterol screening
• Cholesterol screening is often available in supermarkets, pharmacies, shopping malls, and other public places. Home cholesterol testing kits also are available. The results of tests done outside a doctor's office or lab may not be accurate. If you have cholesterol screening done outside your doctor's office, talk with your doctor about the accuracy of the results.

Last updated:	September 13, 2007
Author:	Robin Parks, MS
Reviewed By:	E. Gregory Thompson, MD - Internal Medicine, Stephen Fort, MD, MRCP, FRCPC - Interventional Cardiology
Editors:	Susan Van Houten, RN, BSN, MBA, Tracy Landauer