Cholesterol – know the factors that can, cannot be changed

By April Speck, Coordinator,

Clinton County Healthy Hometown Coalition

Too much cholesterol in the blood is one of the main risk factors for heart disease and stroke—two leading causes of death in the United States. One way to prevent these diseases is to detect high cholesterol and treat it when it is found.

What is cholesterol? Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance that your body needs. But when you have too much in your blood, it can build up on the walls of your arteries and form blockages. This can lead to heart disease, heart attack, and stroke. Overall risk factors such as your age, family history, smoking history and high blood pressure must be considered when interpreting your results — and your regular doctor is most likely to have all that information. Once you know your numbers, your doctor should recommend a treatment and prevention plan, as well as follow-up testing to make sure the plan is getting you to your cholesterol goals. Risk factors are conditions or behaviors that increase your chance of developing a disease.

Risk factors you can’t change

• Age—45 or older for men; 55 or older for women

• Family history of early heart disease—father or brother diagnosed before age 55, or mother or sister diagnosed before age 65

Risk factors you can change

• Smoking

• High blood pressure

• High blood cholesterol

• Overweight/obesity

• Physical inactivity

• Diabetes

Screening is the key to detecting high cholesterol. Because high cholesterol does not have symptoms, many people do not know that their cholesterol is too high. You may need to have your cholesterol checked more often if any of the following statements applies to you:

• Your total cholesterol is 200 mg/dL or higher.

• You are a man older than age 45 or a woman older than age 50.

• Your HDL cholesterol is lower than 40 mg/dL.

• You have other risk factors for heart disease and stroke.

How can you prevent or treat high cholesterol?

• Eating a healthy diet. Avoid saturated fats and trans fats, which tend to raise cholesterol levels. Other types of fats, such as polyunsaturated fats, can actually lower blood cholesterol levels. Eating fiber also can help lower cholesterol.

• Exercising regularly. Physical activity can help lower cholesterol. The Surgeon General recommends that adults engage in moderate-intensity exercise for two hours and 30 minutes every week.

• Maintaining a healthy weight. Being overweight or obese can raise your cholesterol levels. Losing weight can help lower your cholesterol.

• Not smoking. If you smoke, quit as soon as possible.

Kentucky’s data:

• More than one out of four deaths in Kentucky are due to heart disease

• 10,353 Kentuckians died from heart disease in 2006

• 2,197 Kentuckians died from stroke in 2006

According to 2007 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) survey results, adults in Kentucky reported having the following risk factors for heart disease and stroke:

• 30.0 percent had high blood pressure

• 38.5 percent of those screened reported having high blood cholesterol

• 9.9 percent had diabetes

• 28.2 percent were current smokers

• 69.1 percent were overweight or obese (Body Mass Index greater than or equal to 25.0)

• 55.8 percent reported no exercise in the prior 30 days.

• 81.6 percent ate fruit and vegetables less than five times a day.

For more information contact April Speck, Healthy Hometown Coordinator at 606-306-7044

• 31 percent of the residents is classified as physically inactive

Portions of the above article contain informtation contributed by the Center for Disease Control and the American Heart Association

Healthy Hometown is working toward a “healthy” Clinton County.