With today’s diet of high-fat processed foods, cholesterol has become a real concern for many women. Consider these statistics:
- According to The American Heart Association, cardiovascular disease causes the death of more than 500,000 women every year.
- It is reported that high cholesterol levels pose a big risk to women’s health in the form of heart disease and stroke.
- The American Heart Association’s Heart Disease and Stroke statistics 2006 Update shows that more than 51 million American women have very high cholesterol levels.
Information for Pre-Menopausal & Post-Menopausal Women
Studies have shown that women have higher HDL cholesterol levels before menopause as a result of the presence of estrogen, the female sex hormone. Estrogen raises the HDL cholesterol levels, and HDL is considered the ‘good’ cholesterol.
On the other hand, women are at greater risk after menopause when their LDL cholesterol levels increase. LDL is considered the ‘bad’ cholesterol that can lead to cardiovascular disease and stroke.
High Risk for Diabetics & Smokers
Diabetes and smoking have been identified as two risk factors related to heart disease in women, so women need to take measures to have regular cholesterol testing to better evaluate their risk. The connection between smoking and heart disease would also indicate that giving up that habit will help your risk level drop.
What Happens if Your LDL Levels Are High
If your LDL [‘bad’ cholesterol] levels are found to be dangerously high, your physician may prescribe cholesterol lowering medication until your levels are safe. Even after the medication has balanced your cholesterol levels, your doctor may request that you continue taking the medication as a precautionary health measure. You should always be open to following your doctor’s advice concerning medication if you hope to improve your health.
Because high cholesterol is common among so many numbers of women both pre and post menopause, it is important at every stage to learn as much about controlling cholesterol as possible.
Prevention Tips
Eat a healthy and varied diet and get tested regularly, especially as you grow older. Cholesterol risks have been shown to increase with age.
