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Top Be Aware Of The High-Cholesterol Controversy Resources

Cholesterol is a whitish, waxy fat made in vast quantities by the liver. That's why liver and other organ meats are high in cholestrol! Cholesterol is needed to make hormones as well as cell membranes. If you have high cholesterol, the excess cholesterol in your blood can cause narrowed arteries, which can lead to a heart attack. Saturated fat, discussed in detail in the Diet section, is often a culprit when it comes to high cholestrol because it causes your body to produce its own cholestrol.

The highest levels of cholesterol, however, are due to a genetic defect in the liver. The story of women and high cholesterol is still unfolding. You see, when it comes to high cholesterol, newer research is showing that it is not as much of a risk factor for heart disease in women as it is for men. If you have already suffered a heart attack, then following a low-saturated-fat diet will help to lower the "bad cholestrol" and raise your HDL.

Similarly, if you smoke, have high blood pressure, are obese, have Type 2 diabetes, or have a family history of heart disease, following the low-fat, lower-cholesterol diet will help improve your health, too.

For healthy women over age sixty-five with hogher than normal cholesterol, though, who do not smoke and who have no other risk factors for heart disease other than age, there's no clear benefit to lowering cholesterol, or even worrying about it. We know, for example, that very few premenopausal women with high cholesterol ever develop heart disease, leading researchers to conclude that other factors are more significant for women than high cholesterol. So, while high cholesterol is definitely linked to male heart disease, it is not definitely linked to female heart disease and, in fact, may not even be a big deal.

Most physicians will recommend a low-fat diet to women with other risk factors for heart disease because it cannot hurt and will improve other health problems. That said, there are clinical practice guidelines that physicians follow when managing a woman's cholesterol.

By modifying your diet and exercising, you will probably be able to lower your cholesterol without taking any medication. Vitamin E has been shown to lower cholesterol, too, preventing the formation of arterial plaque. A 46 percent drop in the incidence of heart attack was reported in a study of 87,000 nurses taking vitamin E. On the basis of that study, doctors now recommend a dosage of 100 IU daily.