What is Cholesterol and Does it Matter ?

WHAT IS CHOLESTEROL ?

Cholesterol is a substance in our body that is useful for a number of reasons.

There are a few different types of cholesterol. Cholesterol is actually needed in our body for absorbing vitamins and for maintenance of certain bodily functions.

The bad cholesterol is the one that causes problems.

It gets stuck in arteries and builds up plaques in smaller vessels and can lead to heart attacks and strokes as well as certain types of Dementias amongst other things.

Statins are medications that are used to manage cholesterol. Not everyone that has high cholesterol needs a statin. some people need different types of medications called.

Some people can manage their cholesterol with their diet alone, some with supplements.

How doctors decide on medication is based on guidelines, risk factors discussion with the patient, ability to tolerate side effects of the medication prescribed.