Recent statistics from the National Health Assessment Survey have shown that heart disease continues to be the number one killer of American adults, and more than half the U.S. adult population has high or borderline high total cholesterol, a leading cause of heart disease1. However, a low total cholesterol level does not necessarily mean low risk, because low levels of HDL (one of the carriers of cholesterol in the blood) actually increase your risk of coronary heart disease.

Cholesterol is a naturally occurring substance that is both made by your body and derived from food you eat. Total cholesterol is a measure of all cholesterol’s in your blood including cholesterol found in HDL ("good" cholesterol) and LDL ("bad" cholesterol).

HDL cholesterol is considered your "good" cholesterol because it can pick up "bad" cholesterol and transport it to your liver, where your body can get rid of it. High levels of HDL cholesterol can protect your arteries from cholesterol build-up (formed by "bad" cholesterol) and reduce your risk of heart disease.

Experts agree that a total cholesterol level under 200 mg/dl is considered desirable. Experts also agree that a low total cholesterol level does not necessarily mean low risk and that low levels of HDL cholesterol actually increase your risk of coronary heart disease (please refer to graph on the following panel).

As you can see, your risk of heart disease increases as the level of HDL cholesterol decreases. In fact, the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP)2 adult treatment guidelines now recommend testing for HDL cholesterol as well as total cholesterol for accurate assessment of cardiac risk. Total cholesterol testing alone can be misleading.

Approximately 40% of the U.S. population (40 out of 100) who are only tested for total cholesterol could misinterpret their results3:

• 17% (17 out of 100) tested don't realize they could be at risk due to their low HDL cholesterol level (<35mg/dL).
• 23% (23 out of 100) tested may over estimate their risk because their HDL cholesterol level is high (>60mg/dL), indicating added protection from heart disease.

1,3 source: the Lipid Research; Population Studies Data Book, Volume One,

The Prevalence Study (plasma HDL Cholesterol Commutative Frequencies), July 1980.

2 The National Cholesterol Education Program was established by the National Institutes of Health in 1987 to promote awareness of the danger of high cholesterol.

Total and HDL cholesterol testing is an important step to knowing your risk of heart disease. It's simple and quick, so ask your healthcare professional to test your total and HDL Cholesterol today!

High total cholesterol is a leading indicator of potential heart disease, but testing for total cholesterol alone can be misleading.

Low levels of HDL cholesterol increase your potential for heart disease, even when your total cholesterol level is low.

The National Cholesterol Education Program adult treatment guidelines specifically recommend measuring HDL cholesterol as well as total cholesterol to best assess coronary heart disease risk.