Hyperlipidemia

Hyperlipidemia, also known as dyslipidemia or high cholesterol, means you have too many lipids (fats) in your blood. Your liver creates cholesterol to help you digest food and make things like hormones. But you also eat cholesterol in foods from the meat and dairy aisles. As your liver can make as much cholesterol as you need, the cholesterol in foods you eat is extra.

Too much cholesterol (200 mg/dL to 239 mg/dL is borderline high and 240 mg/dL is high) isn’t healthy because it can create roadblocks in your artery highways where blood travels around to your body. This damages your organs that don’t receive enough blood from your arteries.

Bad cholesterol (LDL) is the most dangerous type because it causes hardened cholesterol deposits (plaque) to collect inside of your blood vessels. This makes it harder for your blood to get through, which puts you at risk for a stroke or heart attack. The plaque itself can be irritated or inflamed, which can cause a clot to form around it. This can cause a stroke or heart attack depending on where the blockage is.

Think of cholesterol, a kind of fat, as traveling in lipoprotein cars through your blood.

• Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) is known as bad cholesterol because it can clog your arteries like a large truck that broke down and is blocking a traffic lane. (Borderline high number: 130 mg/dL to 159 mg/dL. High: 160 mg/dL to 189 mg/dL.)
• Very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) is also called bad because it carries triglycerides that add to artery plaque. This is another type of traffic blocker.
• High-density lipoprotein (HDL) is known as good cholesterol because it brings cholesterol to your liver, which gets rid of it. This is like the tow truck that removes the broken down vehicles from the traffic lanes so vehicles can move. In this case, it’s clearing the way for your blood to get through your blood vessels. For your HDL, you don’t want to have a number lower than 40 mg/dL.

It’s important to know that providers consider other factors in addition to your cholesterol numbers when they make treatment decisions.

Hyperlipidemia can be very serious if it’s not managed. If high cholesterol is untreated, you’re letting plaque accumulate inside of your blood vessels. This can lead to a heart attack or stroke because your blood has a hard time getting through your blood vessels. This deprives your brain and heart of the nutrients and oxygen they need to function.

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in Americans.

Causes

Various hyperlipidemia causes include:

• Smoking.
• Drinking a lot of alcohol.
• Eating foods that have a lot of saturated fats or trans fats.
• Sitting too much instead of being active.
• Being stressed.
• Inheriting genes that make your cholesterol levels unhealthy.
• Being overweight.

Medications that are helpful for some problems can make your cholesterol levels fluctuate, such as:

• Beta-blockers.
• Diuretics.
• Hormonal birth control.
• Steroids.
• Antiretrovirals for HIV.

Medical problems can also affect how much cholesterol you have. These include:

• Liver disease.
• Pancreas disease.
• Multiple myeloma.
• Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
• Hypothyroidism.
• Primary biliary cholangitis.
• Chronic kidney disease.
• Diabetes.
• Lupus.
• Sleep apnea.
• HIV.

Risk Factors

Several things can put you at a higher risk of hyperlipidemia, including:

• Having a family history of high cholesterol.
• Having hypothyroidism.
• Having obesity.
• Not eating a nutritious diet.
• Drinking too much alcohol.
• Having diabetes.
• Smoking.

Treatments

Some people can just change their lifestyles to improve their cholesterol numbers. For other people, that’s not enough and they need medication.

Things you can do include:

• Exercising.
• Quitting smoking.
• Sleeping at least seven hours each night.
• Keeping your stress level well managed.
• Eating healthier foods.
• Limiting how much alcohol you drink.
• Losing a few pounds to reach a healthy weight.

Risk Reduction and Prevention

Even children can get their blood checked for high cholesterol, especially if someone in the child’s family had a heart attack, stroke or high cholesterol. Children and young adults can get checked every five years.

Once you reach middle age, you should have your cholesterol checked every year or two. Your healthcare provider can help you decide how often you should have a hyperlipidemia screening.

Changes you make in your life can keep you from getting hyperlipidemia.

Things you can do include:

• Stop smoking.
• Stay active instead of sitting too much.
• Keep your stress level down.
• Get the right amount of sleep.
• Eat healthy foods.
• Cut back on eating fatty meats.
• Don’t buy snacks that have “trans-fat” on the label.
• Stay at a healthy weight.