7 Factors to Consider if You’re Told Your Cholesterol Is Too High

#1: Flawed Cholesterol Science Has Done Untold Harm...

This includes Dr. Ancel Keys’ 1953 Seven Countries Study,⁵ which linked the consumption of dietary fat to coronary heart disease. When Keys published his analysis that claimed to prove this link, he selectively included information from only seven countries, despite having data from 22 countries at his disposal.
The studies he excluded were those that did not fit with his preconceived hypothesis. Once the data from all 22 countries is analyzed, the correlation vanishes. Moreover, as noted by Dr. Lipman:

“[T]oday’s mainstream thinking on cholesterol is largely based on an influential but flawed 1960s study which concluded that men who ate a lot of meat and dairy had high levels of cholesterol and of heart disease.
This interpretation took root, giving rise to what became the prevailing wisdom of the last 40+ years: lay off saturated fats and your cholesterol levels and heart disease risk will drop.
This helped set off the stampede to create low-fat/no-fat Frankenfoods in the lab and launch the multibillion-dollar cholesterol-lowering drug business in hopes of reducing heart disease risk. Did it work? No.
Instead of making people healthier, we’ve wound up with an obesity and diabetes epidemic that will wind up driving up rates of heart disease – hardly the result we were hoping for.”

#2: Cholesterol Is Important for Health

Cholesterol, a soft, waxy substance, is found not only in your bloodstream but also in every cell in your body, where it helps to produce cell membranes, hormones (including the sex hormones testosterone, progesterone, and estrogen), and bile acids that help you digest fat.
It’s also important for the production of vitamin D, which is vital for optimal health. When sunlight strikes your bare skin, the cholesterol in your skin is converted into vitamin D. It also serves as insulation for your nerve cells.  
Cholesterol is also important for brain health, and helps with the formation of your memories. Low levels of HDL cholesterol has been linked to memory loss and Alzheimer's disease, and may also increase your risk of depression, stroke, violent behavior, and suicide.

#3: Total Cholesterol Tells You Virtually Nothing About Your Health Risk

Your liver makes about three-quarters or more of your body's cholesterol, which can be divided into two types:

• High-density lipoprotein or HDL: This is known as the "good" cholesterol, which may actually help prevent heart disease.
• Low-density lipoprotein or LDL: This "bad" cholesterol circulates in your blood and, according to conventional thinking, may build up in your arteries, forming plaque that makes your arteries narrow and less flexible (atherosclerosis). If a clot forms in one of these narrowed arteries leading to your heart or brain, a heart attack or stroke may result.

Read more:  http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2015/01/12/7-factors-cholesterol-levels.aspx?e_cid=20150112Z1_DNL_BuyerB_art_1&utm_source=dnl&utm_medium=email&utm_content=art1&utm_campaign=20150112Z1-BuyerB&et_cid=DM66627&et_rid=802331629