Role of cholesterol in cardiovascular disease
Cholesterol is a type of fat your body needs to make hormones and essential cell components. Your body makes most of the cholesterol it needs in the liver. Cholesterol is also present in some foods.
Too much cholesterol in the blood may block the arteries, especially the coronary arteries – blood vessels that supply oxygen to the heart.
Deposits of cholesterol in the coronary arteries cause the arteries to narrow – starving the heart of oxygen and increasing the risk of heart attack.
Blockages to the blood vessels of the brain can result in a stroke.
There are several different types of cholesterol. Each type has a different role in the body and not all types of cholesterol are harmful.
Lowering your Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL) can significantly decrease your risk of developing heart disease or stroke.
Click here to find out more about the types of cholesterol.