Reasons behind the Increasing Cholesterol in a Human Body

Cholesterol is a chemical element that builds healthy cells in the human body. It has gained an overly negative reputation due to its role in promoting heart issues. It is responsible for the production of fatty storages in your blood. Once these storages get bigger, they cause obstacles to the smooth flow of blood in your veins. In some cases, they break suddenly by creating clots that cause a heart issue.

Luckily, cholesterol is not all negative. It is also crucial to your well-being. According to the Harvard Special Health Report, cholesterol is a significant building block in cell walls. It takes part in the production of vitamin D, hormones, and fat-dissolving bile acids. This way, it helps your body function properly.

Getting your cholesterol examined at regular doctor visits is unavoidable. Apart from that, you need to keep your well-being under control. Even if you have this problem, you will be able to prevent and treat it effectively. But before you take action, you should know the causes of increased cholesterol. Let’s find it out in the article below!

Why Does It Get High?

Cholesterol is mainly produced in the liver. The rest originates from consumed products, such as meat, fish, eggs, milk, and beans. Organic products have no to limited cholesterol. Once you are done with a meal, this chemical element is delivered from the small intestine, digested, and collected in the liver. Whenever it is needed, your body gives a clear signal to the liver.

If a person suffers from cholesterol, the excess may be stored on the walls of arteries. The amount of this chemical element is able to form plaques that reduce and block the arteries. As a result, it gets more and more difficult to transfer blood around the organism. The negative consequences for heart and brain arteries won’t be waited for too long.

In fact, the countries with an average low level of cholesterol among the population have reduced indicators of heart issues. These include Japan, Finland, and Estonia. However, some countries with identical indicators have a worse situation with heart rates. Why is it so? There are many other factors that influence the health issues.

Primary Risk Factors to Be Considered

If you have lots of cholesterol stored in your body, you can’t avoid the problems. Whether they affect your heart or brain, they will put your life at risk. Some risk factors can be affected, while others cannot. The more risk factors you have, the greater the chance of developing a health issue. Before you decide to keep your health under control, make sure to know the whole range of risk factors. Here it is:

Poor diet: Eating saturated and trans fats does have a negative impact on your body. When you eat animal or artificial products, you automatically encourage the increase of cholesterol in your organism. The situation gets even worse when your daily diet involves nothing else but animal or artificial products. Apart from harmful elements, your body must get some useful elements. If it’s not the case, it becomes a problem.

Let’s say you love fried fish, coca cola, and different snacks. In order to provide your body with sufficient vitamins, you need to eat some fresh vegetables and fruits, grains, stewed fish and meat, etc. This way, you will get a proper amount of “good” cholesterol. A healthy diet doesn’t need to be boring. It can include a wide range of products that need to be cooked in a particular way or consumed uncooked.

Obesity: You don’t need to have a super skinny physique to be healthy. But you should definitely keep your weight under control. Constant ups and downs won’t be of any good to you. While 5 kg of extra weight won’t be a problem for you, 50 kg can cause a serious complication to your body and organism. Having a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or above indicates a dangerous amount of cholesterol.

If you suffer from obesity, your liver automatically generates cholesterol and makes it more difficult to get cleared from your blood. Even if you stop consuming unhealthy products, you will still be challenged to solve your cholesterol issue. Why does it happen? Because your overweighed body starts giving a different response to the fats you consume. Eventually, the weight loss through diet and ports becomes more complicated.

Lack of physical activity: No matter how healthy your food habits are; they won’t be effective without sufficient physical activity. Through intense exercising, you will be able to maximize "good" and minimize “bad” cholesterol in your body. Regular exercising won’t be unnoticed by your organism. It will assist you in keeping a healthy weight and monitoring appropriate cholesterol. When you create a sports program, make sure to include a cardiovascular routine, resistance training, yoga session, or any other physical option. According to the data published by the American Heart Association, it is highly recommended to have at least 30 minutes of physical routine every day or at least once in two days.

Smoking: Cigarette smoking destroys the walls of your blood particles. It makes them more prone to store fat. Smoking makes cholesterol stickier, which makes it more likely to get stuck against arterial walls. While smoking destroys arteries, its sticking effect makes things even more complicated. What’s good is that cholesterol boosts within three weeks of smoking cessation. And there is no strict pattern of change thereafter.

Age: While the age is not the most important risk factor, it surely may have some impact on your health. It is a well-known fact that body's chemistry goes through certain transformations as you age. These transformations make the organism more sensitive to different products, activities, and habits. While young adults may assume they don't have to think about heart functioning, healthcare specialists have found that high cholesterol in early adulthood is related to atherosclerosis and coronary heart issue at a more mature age.

Additional Risk Factors to Be Considered

Now that you know the primary risk factors, you should get familiar with the additional ones. They also have an impact on your body and organism, so they can’t be ignored.

Inheritance: It is a well-known fact that 1 in 500 patients have their cholesterol increased due to inheritance. It is also known as familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) that originates from a defect on chromosome. This genetic aspect may start affecting cholesterol at a young age. Interestingly, the people of French, Canadian, Ashkenazi, Jewish, Lebanese, or African origins happen to be at the highest risk. They can inherit it from their parents or close relatives. As a result, they have a high risk of gaining premature atherosclerotic heart complication. If you suffer from this issue, you should understand that your LDL receptors become more active.

Interestingly, many people don’t even think about the possibility of having genetic conditions. Thus, they ignore the need for early detection and intervention. If you are concerned about hereditary health issues or have close relatives with backgrounds of heart issues, consider scheduling an appointment with your doctor.

Diabetes: If you suffer from diabetes, you are inclined to cholesterol problem. It happens due to the increased blood sugar that ruins your blood channels. Consequently, you need to treat diabetes properly in order to keep the well-being of your organism under control.

If you suspect a problem in your heart or brain veins, you should go through medical examinations as often as possible. This is the only way to prevent or eliminate the possible health issues at an early stage of development. Once you get familiar with the risk factors, you will know what aspects to pay attention to in your everyday life.

When the Test to Be Taken

Are you concerned about your food diet? Or do you have relatives with certain heart issues? Do you have issues with blood circulation in your organism? Whatever your concern is, you shouldn’t leave it ignored. As soon as it becomes possible, make sure to get your health examined. Here are the aspects to be worried about:

• heart or arterial issue;
• family background of cardiovascular issue;
• close relatives who suffer from a cholesterol-related issue;
• overweight problem;
• high blood pressure, one of the diabetes, or any other health condition that can boost the amount of chemical element in a human body.

Regular screenings help find people at risk for heart issues. It is crucial to have the so-called lipid profile to demonstrate the actual levels of each type of fat in your organism. Remember to discuss the test nuances with your healthcare provider. According to the report published by the American Heart Association (AHA), following up is required every 5 years.

Consequences to Be Aware of

Your body has a unique ability to produce sufficient cholesterol whenever it is needed. Thus, you don’t need to do something extra to keep it high. Instead, you should make sure to keep it in the norm. If you suspect you have this problem, you should get it examined in the medical settings. And if you know you have this problem, you should fight against this problem.

“The silent killer” may have a number of consequences for your body and organism. Once you face them, you will suffer a lot. It will take a lot of time and effort to get rid of the negative consequences. Here are five consequences why you should never ignore this issue:

1. Heart issues: The most common consequence to be faced is atherosclerosis. It becomes an issue due to the development of cholesterol in your veins. The issue gets even more complicated when other risk aspects are involved. Then, this chemical element causes plaques in your blood channels. Depending on which veins are damaged, debilitating or deadly consequences occur.
2. Stroke: When the blood channels in your brain become reduced, they start restricting blood flow. As a result, a blood clot starts causing the barriers for bloodstream on the way to your brain. At some point, a stroke becomes inevitable.
3. Peripheral artery issues: When the formation of plaque damages the healthy circulation of blood throughout your body, you may develop a peripheral artery complication. This health issue may cause sores, infections, and tissue death. Without the proper treatment, amputation may be inevitable.
4. Weak kidney: When a sufficient amount of blood stops reaching your kidneys, this organ stops functioning properly. Kidney impairment happens to be quite possible.
5. Some forms of cancer: Although cholesterol can’t cause cancer but it can contribute to the further development of cancer cells. In fact, UCLA has identified the association between this chemical compound and colon cancer.

How Much Benefit to Be Gained from Low Cholesterol?

Cholesterol is a chemical element that has good and bad effects on your health. Meanwhile, its efficiency depends on its amount in your body. At the normal level, it is a significant agent that encourages the production of other valuable elements. Some health experts state that the lower the cholesterol level is, the better the chances are of preventing heart issues. At the abnormal level, it becomes a “silent” problem that damages the proper functionality of your body and organism. In order to fight against the problem, you should be familiar with good and bad sides of cholesterol.

According to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence in the UK, you should have a complex approach to the treatment of the cholesterol problem. It won’t be enough to eat properly or do sports.

Even if you have no health complications, it is still important to follow the healthy routine. A combination of a proper diet, constant physical exercises, and no smoking and drinking habits will make it possible to keep your body healthy from inside and outside. If this is exactly what you are interested in, make sure to keep your lifestyle organized.