Keep your bad cholesterol level below 70mg / dl if you are at risk of
hert disease or stroke, say new US guidelines. Earlier international
recommendations had put the bad cholesterol (low density lipoprotein or LDL)
upper limit at 100mg / dl.
Those at risk include people diagnosed with heart
disease , diabetes and those who have at least two risk factors for heart
disease, such as obesity, smoking, family history of heart attack, inactive
lifestyle or high blood pleassure.
Experts in India, however, say keeping LDL under 80 mg
/ dl is good enough, provided you ensure that your good cholesterol (high
density lipoprotein or HDL ) stays over 50 mg / dl. Total cholesterol should
not exceed 180 mg / dl.
More than total cholesterol, the
ratio of total cholesterol and HDL is a more accurate indicator of heart
disease, Below 3 is ideal, below 4 is acceptable, but ratio over 4.5 indicates
heart disease”, says Dr.Srinath Reddy, head of cardiology, AIIMS. Factors that
lower HDL are smoking, diabetes, high triglycerides, abdominal obesity and lack
of exercise.
The US government recommendations
say that all those at risk of heart attack would benefit from taking
cholesterol-lowering drugs such as stains to keep their LDL level below 100 mg
/ dl.
Source:Indian Medical Association.
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