Cholesterol Test – Why Take It?
Wednesday, August 20th, 2008 Subscribe To Our Feed
Doctors recommend their patients take a cholesterol test in order to evaluate the risk their patients have of developing a disease such as heart disease. High cholesterol is also known to cause hardening of the arteries and heart attacks. It is now very common for people to have their cholesterol level checked as part of a preventive approach to healthcare.
Most experts suggest that all adults over twenty years of age take a cholesterol test about every five years. People who are utilizing a special diet or are taking cholesterol lowering drugs often have their cholesterol tested several times during a year to find out if the diet or drugs are effective in lowering cholesterol. Usually people have a lipid profile done which tests for LDL (bad cholesterol), HDL (good cholesterol) and triglycerides.
Interpreting the Cholesterol Test Results
Experts have different thoughts on what is considered a desirable cholesterol level but below 200 mg/dl seems to be considered an acceptable level and suggests a small risk of a person acquiring heart disease. If your cholesterol level is from 200 to 240 mg/dl you are considered to have a moderate risk of getting heart disease. Your doctor might order a lipid profile to determine if your high cholesterol level is due to the LDL, bad cholesterol or the HDL, good cholesterol.
If your cholesterol test shows a level over 240 mg/dl you are considered to be a high risk patient for acquiring heart disease. Your doctor will probably order a lipid profile test to determine the causes of your high level of cholesterol. After reviewing the cholesterol test results your doctor will probably design some type of treatment for you.
It is preferred to measure a person’s cholesterol level when they are considered to be healthy since blood cholesterol levels can be reduced due to an acute illness, due to very recently having a heart attack, from having serious stress due to a recent surgery or serious stress due to an accident. Also, if a woman is pregnant she will often have an increase in her cholesterol level.
Causes of High Cholesterol
Researchers and doctors believe that high cholesterol levels can be causes by an inherited disease or due to a person having a diet which is too high in saturated fats or a combination of a hereditary disease and unhealthy diet. If the cholesterol test results show that your cholesterol level is too high your doctor will usually recommend you eliminate unhealthy fats from your diet. If an improved diet does not lower your cholesterol to acceptable levels, your doctor might prescribe drugs to reduce your cholesterol levels such as statins. It is a good idea to check with your doctor and find out how often you should take a cholesterol test.
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