Cholesterol often gets a bad rap because so many people are concerned with how to lower cholesterol. The fact is that cholesterol is necessary, even vital to many functions within the body. It is only when cholesterol levels exceed unhealthy amounts that we need to be concerned about lowering cholesterol. The body produces and regulates its cholesterol levels in the optimal way. Occasionally, people will inherit a genetic inability to do this in a completely carefree way. They must do something else to ensure their body processes cholesterol properly. Diet and exercise are the primary, safest, and most natural way to lower cholesterol without the side effect of drugs.

Cholesterol works to help make various hormones in the body and vitamin D. It travels through the blood stream from the liver where it is produced by carrier proteins called lipoproteins. There are various lipoproteins that do this including High Density Lipoproteins (HDL) and Low Density Lipoproteins (LDL). Even though the body can produce all the cholesterol it needs on its own, many foods we eat contain more cholesterol. A high fat, high cholesterol diet, or being overweight and inactive can make it so the body has too much of the LDL carried cholesterol.

Cholesterol levels are not consistent day by day. They can vary from 10 to 25 percent on any given day. These changes occur based on diet and exercise and long term changes such as aging. When a high fat diet and inactivity are the norm, the body is less able to regulate cholesterol intake. When a build up of the LDL cholesterol occurs, the arteries can become hardened or clogged. This can lead to a wide range of heart diseases and even heart attack or stroke. Therefore it is important to have cholesterol levels checked and monitored at least annually or more often if you are battling high cholesterol.