REDUCING YOUR RISK OF CORONARY ARTERY DISEASE: ELEVATED CHOLESTEROL – WHAT IS CHOLESTEROL?
Cholesterol is one of several types of fats (lipids) that have important roles in your body. Despite its reputation as a risk factor for coronary disease, which tends to make people think of it only in negative terms, it is an important component of cell membranes and therefore is vital to the structure and function of all cells in your body. Cholesterol is also a building block in the formation of certain types of hormones. However, cholesterol is the predominant substance in atherosclerotic plaques, which may develop in arteries and impede the flow of blood. When the cholesterol level in the bloodstream becomes excessively high, the likelihood of atherosclerotic plaques developing increases.Cholesterol is not the only lipid circulating in your bloodstream. Triglycerides are another form of fat that circulate in the blood. Triglycerides can be thought of as transportable fuel that ultimately is used for energy production by the body. Neither cholesterol nor triglycerides, being fats, dissolve in water. Therefore, to circulate through your blood, which is mainly water, they must be carried by protein packages called apoproteins. The combination of an apoproteins and a lipid is a lipoprotein. Each type of lipoprotein is defined by the type and proportion of lipid and apoprotein in its structure. *238\252\8*