Controlling Cholesterol Is Easier Than You Think

Controlling cholesterol is easier than you think

- Annie Deadman

Cholesterol. Smacks of bad news, doesn’t it? But actually, cholesterol is pretty jolly vital. It’s made in the liver and forms part of the membrane of every single cell.

It’s used to help us make vitamin D and hormones – and we can’t do without it. It’s not dissolved in the blood but instead, it’s carried along by proteins. Lipoproteins, to be exact. You still with me? Good, because the next bit is important. Low-density lipoproteins (LDL) carry the cholesterol from the liver to the cells that need it. However, if there’s too much LDL, it builds up against artery walls, increasing the risk of high blood pressure, strokes, heart disease and other cheerful conditions. Hence it’s called ‘bad’ cholesterol. GPs can also refer to it as our ‘non-HDL’, because collectively any cholesterol which isn’t HDL is ‘bad’ (see below).