For women who’ve had normal cholesterol readings all their loves, that changes at menopause, since cardiovascular disease is the No. 1 cause of death in postmenopausal women.
- Drops in Female Hormone called “estrogen” in menopause
- Rise in Total cholesterol due to higher amounts of the “bad” cholesterol called low density lipoprotein and triglyceride.
- Increase hart risks.
What is cholesterol?
Cholesterol is a fate like substance made in the body or ingested in food. For the most part, cholesterol is carried in our bloodstream in packages called lipoprotein particles. There are many types of particles: small ones and large ones, with different densities and even different functions. They may contain different amounts of cholesterol or triglycerides.
In general, the higher the cholesterol – especially LDL or non-HDL cholesterol – the higher the chance a women has of developing a heart attack or stroke in her lifetime.
What is a good cholesterol reading?
For most people who don’t have heart or vascular disease, the goal is to get total cholesterol below 200 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL), non-HDL cholesterol (total minus HDL) to less than 170 mg/dL, and LDL cholesterol to less than 100 mg/dL.
But for people with other risk factors for heart attack or stroke, then lower levels would be optimal. The people at highest risk should aim for LDL levels below 50 mg/dL.
Should people try to treat their high cholesterol through lifestyle interventions first, or should they consider other options as well?
It depends on how high the level is. Everyone benefits from lifestyle interventions – and the great thing about lifestyle interventions is that if they are done consistently, day in and day out, they have a huge benefit. In fact, we can prevent heart attacks, stroke, and diabetes in about 80% to 90% of the cases by practicing an optimal lifestyle. But practicing an optimal lifestyle is not easy, especially in our modern way of living.
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