Cholesterol is a waxy substance found in every cell in the body. Cholesterol is either made by the body or absorbed from food. Your body needs cholesterol to make important steroid hormones such as estrogen, progesterone, and vitamin D. Cholesterol is also used to make bile acids in the liver; they absorb fats during digestion.
Excess bad cholesterol in the blood can deposit in the body’s arteries, creating atherosclerotic plaques or hardening of the arteries. This is a major cause of heart attacks, strokes, and other vascular problems.
Your total blood cholesterol is a measure of the total amount of cholesterol circulating in your blood, which includes several components:
- Low-density lipoprotein (LDL), which is known as the “bad” cholesterol, directly contributes to plaque buildup in the arteries. Very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL), which is the precursor to LDL.
- Total cholesterol is VLDL cholesterol plus LDL cholesterol and HDL cholesterol.
- High-density lipoprotein (HDL), also known as “good” cholesterol, is considered by experts to be optimal (around 50 mg/dL) and can help the body remove LDL cholesterol.
There are also triglycerides, another type of fat found in the blood. Women should pay special attention to this. High blood triglycerides are associated with a greater risk of heart disease in women than in men.
When you consume more calories than you need, your body converts the extra calories into triglycerides, which are then stored in fat cells. Triglycerides are used by the body for energy, but people with excess triglycerides are at risk for health problems including heart disease. Drinking a lot of alcohol and eating foods containing simple carbohydrates (sugars and starches), saturated fats, and trans fats contribute to high triglycerides. Triglycerides can be elevated due to health conditions such as diabetes, hypothyroidism, obesity, polycystic ovary syndrome, or kidney disease.
Triglycerides also circulate in the blood and can contribute to plaque formation. Many people with high triglycerides also have other risk factors for atherosclerosis, including high LDL or low HDL levels, or abnormal blood sugar levels. Genetic studies have also shown some links between triglycerides and heart disease.
Why Women Need to Care About Their Cholesterol?
Cholesterol and triglycerides are health concerns that are everywhere. Even foods that seem good for you, like fruit yogurt or whole-grain crackers, can contribute to high blood cholesterol levels if they are high in saturated fat or refined sugar.
Many women are at risk for high cholesterol without realizing it. About 45% of women over the age of 20 have total cholesterol levels of 200 mg/dL or higher, which is considered high.
What’s more dangerous is that triglycerides, a type of fat in the blood that is often tested along with cholesterol, also have more risk effects in women than in men. This is a problem because women’s cholesterol levels can fluctuate quite a bit after menopause and tend to increase with age, putting us at higher risk for heart disease and stroke.
How to Control High Cholesterol?
There are several ways to help maintain and control cholesterol:
1. Medication
Depending on your risk of heart disease, you may be treated with cholesterol-lowering medications, such as statins. If you already have vascular disease or signs of atherosclerosis, or if you are at high risk of heart disease, statins are recommended for prevention because they treat plaque in the arteries and lower LDL cholesterol. These medications should be used under the advice, examination, and monitoring of a doctor.
2. Diet and lifestyle
Diet and lifestyle are important to help maintain healthy cholesterol levels. Even for women who are recommended to take cholesterol-lowering medications, a healthy lifestyle will help these medications work better.
Here are ways to maintain a lifestyle that promotes healthy cholesterol levels:
- Maintain a healthy weight;
- Don’t smoke;
- Exercise for at least 30 minutes a day, five or more days a week;
- Eat a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, lean proteins and high amounts of soluble fibre such as beans and oats, which can lower LDL’
- Avoid sugary drinks and fruit juices, opt for water and unsweetened tea instead;
- Drink alcohol in moderation, especially if you have high Triglicerides;
- Try the Mediterranean diet, which is rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and fish. Use olive oil instead of lard, butter and spices instead of salt;
Eat monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, such as those found in olive oil, nuts and fatty fish such as salmon. These fats can actually have a positive effect on cholesterol by lowering the amount of LDL in the blood and reducing inflammation in the arteries, especially when they replace saturated fats in the diet. Foods to prioritize: Fatty fish such as salmon, trout, mackerel, sardines and tuna; Nuts, including walnuts, almonds and hazelnuts; Olive oil and nut oils.
