High Cholesterol Diseases

High cholesterol is closely linked with many other medical problems. That means it can cause some serious problems to start (like coronary artery disease). But it can also happen as a result of other diseases, especially ones that trigger inflammation in your body (like lupus). People with high cholesterol often develop high blood pressure as well.

What is high cholesterol?

High cholesterol is a condition in which you have too many lipids (fats) in your blood. It’s also called hyperlipidemia or hypercholesterolemia.

Your body needs just the right amount of lipids to function. If you have too many lipids, your body can’t use them all. The extra lipids start to build up in your arteries. They combine with other substances in your blood to form plaque (fatty deposits).

This plaque might not cause any problems for years, but over time, the plaque silently gets bigger and bigger within your arteries. This is why untreated high cholesterol is dangerous. Those extra lipids in your blood help make the plaque bigger without you even knowing it. The only way to know you have high cholesterol is through a blood test.

A blood test, called a lipid panel, tells you how many lipids are circulating in your blood. What is considered high cholesterol depends on your age, sex and history of heart disease.

Good cholesterol vs. bad cholesterol

There are several types of lipids. The main ones you’ve probably heard about are “good cholesterol” and “bad cholesterol.”

Good cholesterol is called high-density lipoprotein (HDL). Think of the “H” as meaning “helpful.” Your HDLs carry cholesterol to your liver. Your liver keeps your cholesterol levels balanced. It makes enough cholesterol to support your body’s needs and gets rid of the rest. You must have enough HDLs to carry cholesterol to your liver. If your HDLs are too low, you’ll have too much cholesterol circulating in your blood.

Bad cholesterol is called low-density lipoprotein (LDL). This is the culprit that makes plaque form in your arteries. Having too many LDLs can lead to heart disease over time.

When to get your cholesterol checked

High cholesterol can start in childhood or adolescence. That’s why current guidelines suggest beginning screenings during childhood.

• Children and teens: Get your cholesterol checked every five years starting at age nine. A child whose parents have high cholesterol or a history of heart problems may begin even sooner.
• People assigned male at birth (AMAB): Get your cholesterol checked every five years until age 45. From age 45 to 65, get checked every one to two years. After age 65, get checked every year.
• People assigned female at birth (AFAB): Get checked every five years until age 55. From age 55 to 65, get checked every one to two years. After age 65, get checked every year.

These are general guidelines. Your healthcare provider will discuss what’s best for you. For example, someone in their 20s with high cholesterol numbers may need yearly tests for a while. People with other heart disease risk factors may need more frequent tests, too.