The norm of cholesterol in the blood of women and men

In order to understand whether the level of cholesterol in the blood is normal, you need to pass the appropriate tests, and first it would be nice to understand what kind of cholesterol it is, and whether you need to fight it.

The concept and functions of cholesterol

Cholesterol is commonly called lipid (in other words – fatty) alcohol, which forms the basis of the membranes of animal cells. The presence of cholesterol provides the cell membranes with strength and elasticity. Almost all of the cholesterol the body synthesizes independently, only a quarter (20-30%) comes from food.

Cholesterol is essential for:

• Digestion-it is a source for the synthesis of bile acid salts by our liver;
• Immunity – cholesterol is involved in the production of cortisol by the adrenal glands and vitamin D by the skin;
• Production of female and male sex hormones.

Types of cholesterol

When taking a test for the amount of cholesterol in the blood, everyone pays attention to incomprehensible abbreviations and asks the question – what is it?? For further research, it is necessary to understand the level of:

• Total cholesterol;
• HDL (high-density lipoprotein) – the so-called “good” cholesterol;
• LDL (low-density lipoprotein) – ” bad ” cholesterol, which causes the formation of plaques on the walls of blood vessels;
• Triglycerides, which cause an increase in body weight.

Norms of the amount of cholesterol in the blood

In fact, gender is not so important in determining the norm of cholesterol, much more important is the age of a person. The older a person is, the higher the normal cholesterol level in their blood. Doctors from different countries give different standards, but they differ slightly, so we will give the average figures.

Norms in women:

• Regular – 3.9-6.8 mmol / L;
• HDL – 0.86-2.28 mmol/L;
• LDL – 1,92-4,51 mmol/l;
• Triglycerides-1,7-2,2 mmol/l.

Norms at muzhnin:

• Normal – 4.1-7.15 mmol / L;
• HDL – 0.7-1.73 mmol/L;
• LDL – 2.25-4.82 mmol/l;
• Triglycerides – 1,9-2,7 mmol/l.

The norms are given for men and women aged 40-45 years, when it is seriously necessary to take care of the prevention of various diseases.

Causes of increased cholesterol levels in the blood:

• Hypertension; diseases of the kidneys, liver and pancreas, diabetes mellitus, heart attack;
• Poor nutrition and resulting metabolic disorders, obesity;
• Pregnancy and lactation;
• Hypodynamia;
• Smoking;
• Alcohol consumption in uncontrolled amounts;
• Taking some steroid medications and oral contraceptives.

How to lower your blood cholesterol

In order to avoid problems with blood vessels and heart at any age, it is necessary to understand as early as possible that the fight against high cholesterol can not be carried out only with the help of statins and other medications. Necessary:

• Move more;
• Minimize the consumption of fatty meat, especially fried meat, milk and butter, hard cheeses and confectionery, sausages, smoked meats and pickled products;
• Reduce alcohol intake, especially beer;
• Break up the smoking habit;
• Train yourself to drink more green tea and less coffee;
• The basis of the diet is to make fish, cereals, any vegetables and fruits, olive and sunflower oil, because – as you know-in vegetable food, by definition, there is no cholesterol.