Health Center - Men's Health
If you're like many men, you probably delay going to the doctor until you're sick or have an injury. Improve your vitality and help prevent health problems down the road by learning about important screenings, common conditions, questions to ask your provider and other essential health tips.
Cholesterol Screening Guidelines
Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance that can build up on the walls of your arteries if your blood cholesterol level remains too high. This fatty buildup narrows arteries, which slows down or blocks blood flow to the heart. Eventually, this can lead to heart disease, chest pain or heart attack.
An estimated 106.7 million American adults have total blood cholesterol that would be considered high or borderline high. Young men have higher levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL or "bad cholesterol") than young women, but after age 55, that reverses. LDL cholesterol typically increases in both men and women as they get older.
Both your diet and your family history can contribute to high cholesterol. Cholesterol-rich food sources include whole-milk dairy products, eggs, animal fats and meat; other food sources high in saturated and trans fats, such as coconut oil, cocoa butter, palm kernel oil and palm oil and partially hydrogenated oils—often found in processed (snack) foods—also can raise blood cholesterol levels.
