What Are Normal Cholesterol Levels?

If you ask most people what normal cholesterol levels are, chances are they could not tell you. Most people know that having high cholesterol is a bad thing, but they do not know how high is too high.

Normal cholesterol levels range is below 100 LDL. LDL stands for low density lipoprotein, and is also known as bad cholesterol. If you are a man above 35 or a woman above 45, you should have your cholesterol levels checked routinely. If your LDL number is between 100 and 129 you are considered near optimal. 130-159 LDL is considered borderline high. 160-189 LDL is high, and above that is very high. If you have heart disease or blood vessel disease you should get your LDL under 70. If you have diabetes, your LDL goal should be less than 100.

High density lipoprotein is also known as good cholesterol. With good cholesterol, the higher the number the better off you are. HDL takes the bad cholesterol out of your blood. So if you have a big number of good cholesterol, you will not have a big risk of bad cholesterol building up in your arteries. You will be protected from heart disease. Here is the number breakdown for HDL. Above 60 is optimal and helps lower the risk of heart disease. Less than 40 in men and 50 in women is low and considered a risk for heart disease.

Your total blood cholesterol is a measure of LDL and HDL. Doctors recommend that it is below 200. If it is 200-239 it is borderline high. Above that is considered high.

Cholesterol is necessary in the body. It is used to build and maintain cell membrane walls. However, it has become a problem due to the dietary habits of today’s society. Since animal products have become the main staple of society, secondary cholesterol is consumed at a high rate. Excess cholesterol is dumped in the arteries where it builds up until the arteries are clogged and heart disease happens.It is possible to redeem past dietary mistakes. If you eat a diet that is rich in fiber and foods that are low in bad cholesterol, your cholesterol will go down. Increasing the amount of good cholesterol in the body is the best way to get it taken care of. This is done by losing weight and doing a lot of moderate exercise. Also having a small bit of alcohol every once in a while will help to boost HDL levels.

You can also take drugs called statins which inhibit the livers ability to produce more cholesterol. They can help to lower cholesterol out of the serious risk range. But they should be taken only as long as it takes to get the levels down. You should change your diet and exercise habits to maintain your cholesterol levels naturally.

Knowledge is power. So if you know what normal cholesterol levels are, you will keep a good plan to keep them where they should be.