Causes of High Cholesterol

What causes high cholesterol?

Lifestyle causes:

Nutrition - although some foods contain cholesterol, such as eggs, kidneys, eggs and some seafoods, dietary cholesterol does not have much of an impact in human blood cholesterol levels. But saturated fats do! Foods high in saturated fats include red meat, some pies, sausages, hard cheese, lard, pastry, cakes, most biscuits, and cream (there are many more).

Sedentary lifestyle – people who do not exercise and spend most of their time sitting/lying down have significantly higher levels of LDL (bad cholesterol) and lower levels of HDL (good cholesterol).

• Bodyweight – people who are overweight/obese are much more likely to have higher LDL levels and lower HDL levels, compared to people who are of normal weight. 
• Smoking – this can have quite a considerable effect on LDL levels. 
• Alcohol - people who consume too much alcohol regularly, generally have much higher levels of LDL and much lower levels of HDL, compared to people who abstain or are moderate drinkers.

Treatable medical conditions

The following medical conditions are known to cause LDL levels to rise and may be controlled medically, with the help of your doctor, such that they do not need to be contributory factors:

• Diabetes
• Hypertension or High Blood Pressure
• High levels of triglycerides
• Kidney diseases