PATTY woke up one night in excruciating pain. Her entire left side down her arm to the back of her hand was aflame with unendurable pain.

This was a woman who works even when ill and who takes pain in her stride, but this night she laid down on her bedroom floor and cried. For two days she thought that she had injured her left arm and shoulder somehow when she tried to clean her yard a couple of days prior. Normally someone who shunned drugs, Patty started swallowing pain killers every couple hours, yet the pain remained, albeit reduced to levels where she could work; until one night she was so immobilised with the pain that she found it difficult to even get out of bed, when she realised that she was in trouble, so she eventually visited the doctor.
After several tests she was discovered to be perfectly healthy, except that her cholesterol was at a level that transfixed the doctor. Patty’s cholesterol read at 654 mg dl, when the normal is 140 – 200; her triglycerides were at 290 mg dl, when normal is 30 – 150; her glucose levels were 233 mg dl when the normal was 70 – 110; her SGOT was 44 u/l when normal was 0 – 40; her VLDL was 58 when normal was 0 -50. The high cholesterol precipitated all the other high levels.
The doctor did not mince words. She had never seen anyone with such a high cholesterol level who lived. The highest she had seen was 400-odd, and the patient had not lived, but suffered a major heart attack shortly after her examination. Patty was under immediate threat of death by heart attack or a severe stroke. According to the doctor, who tried to use un-alarming words to describe an alarming, even deadly health crisis, with impending – even immediate death unless drastic measures were taken and lifestyle changes were made; and even so her chances of not succumbing were slim, Patty was a walking miracle.
Cholesterol is a fat (lipid) which is produced by the liver and is crucial for normal body functioning. Cholesterol exists in the outer layer of every cell in our body and has many functions. It is a waxy steroid and is transported in the blood plasma of all animals. It is the main sterol synthesised by animals – small amounts are also synthesized in plants and fungi.
Cholesterol builds and maintains cell membranes (outer layer), it prevents crystallization of hydrocarbons in the membrane, it is essential for determining which molecules can pass into the cell and which cannot (cell membrane permeability), it is involved in the production of sex hormones (androgens and estrogens), it is essential for the production of hormones released by the adrenal glands (cortisol, corticosterone, aldosterone, and others), it aids in the production of bile, it converts sunshine to vitamin D, it is important for the metabolism of fat soluble vitamins, including vitamins A, D, E, and K, and it insulates nerve fibres.
Cholesterol is carried in the blood by molecules called lipoproteins. A lipoprotein is any complex or compound containing both lipid (fat) and protein. The three main types are:
LDL (low density lipoprotein) – people often refer to it as bad cholesterol. LDL carries cholesterol from the liver to cells. If too much is carried, too much for the cells to use, there can be a harmful buildup of LDL. This lipoprotein can increase the risk of arterial disease if levels rise too high. Most human blood contains approximately 70% LDL – this may vary, depending on the person.
HDL (high density lipoprotein) – people often refer to it as good cholesterol. Experts say HDL prevents arterial disease. HDL does the opposite of LDL – HDL takes the cholesterol away from the cells and back to the liver. In the liver it is either broken down or expelled from the body as waste.
Triglycerides – these are the chemical forms in which most fat exists in the body, as well as in food. They are present in blood plasma. Triglycerides, in association with cholesterol, form the plasma lipids (blood fat). Triglycerides in plasma originate either from fats in our food, or are made in the body from other energy sources, such as carbohydrates. Calories we consume but are not used immediately by our tissues are converted into triglycerides and stored in fat cells. When your body needs energy and there is no food as an energy source, triglycerides will be released from fat cells and used as energy – hormones control this process.
The amount of cholesterol in human blood can vary from 3.6 mmol/liter to 7.8 mmol/liter. The National Health Service (NHS), UK, says that any reading over 6 mmol/liter is high, and will significantly raise the risk of arterial disease. The UK Department of Health recommends a target cholesterol level of under 5 mmo/liter.
Below is a list of cholesterol levels and how most doctors would categorise them in mg/dl (milligrams/deciliter) and 5mmol/liter (millimoles/liter).
Desirable – Less than 200 mg/dL
Bordeline high – 200 to 239 mg/dL
High – 240 mg/dL and above

*         Optimum level: less than 5mmol/liter
*         Mildly high cholesterol level: between 5 to 6.4mmol/liter
*         Moderately high cholesterol level: between 6.5 to 7.8mmol/liter
*         Very high cholesterol level: above 7.8mmol/liter
High cholesterol levels can cause:
*         Atherosclerosis – narrowing of the arteries.
*         Higher coronary heart disease risk – an abnormality of the arteries that supply blood and oxygen to the heart.
*         Heart attack – occurs when the supply of blood and oxygen to an area of heart muscle is blocked, usually by a clot in a coronary artery. This causes your heart muscle to die.
*         Angina – chest pain or discomfort that occurs when your heart muscle does not get enough blood.
*         Other cardiovascular conditions – diseases of the heart and blood vessels.
*         Stroke and mini-stroke – occurs when a blood clot blocks an artery or vein, interrupting the flow to an area of the brain. It can also occur when a blood vessel breaks.

Brain cells begin to die.
If both blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels are high, the risk of developing coronary heart disease rises significantly.
The average person often is not aware of these risks; nor that they should seek blood testing on a regular basis, especially as they age, until it is too late.
High cholesterol is a silent killer, and a major cause of preventable death or stroke. The good news is that this is reversible with diet and lifestyle changes, especially for persons with sedentary jobs, which make high cholesterol an occupational hazard.