High Cholesterol

Good and bad cholesterol have to do with lipoproteins, and these play a critical role in health.

Cholesterol is transported through the blood attached to proteins. The combination of cholesterol and protein is called a "Lipoprotein."

Editor's Note:

"Race" is sometimes mentioned as a risk factor in the development of certain cancers and a number of other diseases. When you read this in a discussion about an illness, note that the explanation seldom refers to anything biological. Instead, it usually refers to behavior, such as eating habits. The kinds of behavior usually mentioned as risk factors are culturally determined. They are not genetic or biological.

Scientists now agree that consuming trans fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol increases the risk of coronary heart disease, the leading cause of death in America.

African-Americans have the highest mortality rate from heart disease of any ethnic group in the country and are 29 percent more likely to die from it than non-Hispanic Whites over their lifetimes.

"... metabolic syndrome is a cluster of cardiovascular disease risk factors which include high blood pressure, elevated triglycerides, low levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL), impaired fasting glucose and excess abdominal fat. A diagnosis of metabolic syndrome is made if you have three out of five of these risk factors. Having metabolic syndrome increases the risk for cardiovascular disease," according to a study by Amy Z. Fan, M.D., Ph.D. and Marcia Russell, Ph.D. conducted at the Prevention Research Center, Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation, Berkeley, Calif.

if you have too much cholesterol in your bloodstream, it can lead to atherosclerosis, a condition in which fat and cholesterol are deposited in the walls of the arteries in many parts of the body, including the coronary arteries feeding the heart. In time, narrowing of the coronary arteries by atherosclerosis can produce the signs and symptoms of heart disease, including angina and heart attack.

According to a study described by the National Institute of Mental Health, it appears that depression is an important risk factor for heart disease along with high blood cholesterol and high blood pressure. A study has found that people who had a history of depression were four times more likely to suffer a heart attack and those who were depressed were four times as likely to die after a heart attack in the next 6 months as those who were not depressed.

Diabetes is a disease in which blood glucose levels are above normal. People with diabetes have problems converting food to energy. After a meal, food is broken down into a sugar called glucose, which is carried by the blood to cells throughout the body. Cells use the hormone insulin, made in the pancreas, to help them process blood glucose into energy.

Researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis report that "...lower levels of T3, cholesterol and the inflammatory molecules TNF and C-reactive protein, combined with evidence of "younger" hearts in people on calorie restriction, suggest that humans on CR (Calorie Restriction) have the same adaptive responses as did animals whose rates of aging were slowed by CR."

Tachyarrhythmias are rhythms that are abnormally rapid. Bradyarrhythmias are rhythms that are abnormally slow. These, and fibrillations are discussed along with some causes of arrhythmias such as underlying disease, food and drink, oxidant stress and environment.

Chubby babies are often described as being cute, but chubby teenagers are headed for an increased risk of disease if they do not change their lifestyle. Some good suggestions about regular exercise and a healthy diet (not dieting) for teens, and what you should do if you are already overweight are offered in this Nemours Foundation article.