So What Is So Bad About Cholesterol ?

Space limits me from sharing all my thoughts and facts on this hotly debated, controversial topic of cholesterol. Throughout my career I have challenged the validity of the literature as well as the side effects of some of the cholesterol lowering medications.

Years ago the cut off for total cholesterol was 240 mg/dL, now it is 200. Who did that study? THE DRUG COMPANIES????!!!

First and foremost I ask you, what are the primary functions of cholesterol? I find that most people, including my colleagues, cannot answer that question. I shall list the major ones for you so you realize that we do need cholesterol to exist.

1 – Cholesterol is the building block for your hormones such as estrogen, progesterone, Dhea, testosterone, and cortisol. As a gynecologist I often see women for hormonal issues. If we don’t have cholesterol how can we make hormones?

2 – Cholesterol is involved in the formation of Vitamin D. Vitamin D is vital to health for SO many reasons.

3 – Cholesterol is one of the main components in the cell membranes of our brain. Behavioral issues, mood, attention span and memory are all related this.

4 – Cholesterol is involved in our digestion. It is involved in the formation of bile acids and bile salts which are responsible for complete digestion.

It is astounding how the emphasis is on lowering cholesterol when so many patients need to increase their cholesterol. The standard lipid panel that we all have had in the past is outdated. Many of us can tell their total, good and bad cholesterol numbers. What needs to be evaluated is the different bad and good cholesterols as we have several of each. Surprisingly, some of our “bad” cholesterol is not that bad. Genetic cholesterol level is another factor that needs to be evaluated and it is not addressed with the standard test. Cholesterol size is of utmost importance and in many cases of heart disease today it is not the cholesterol number but the size that determines whether or not we are at risk.

Side effects of cholesterol lowering medications (statins) are serious…Muscles aching, severe fatigue and feeling awful are common. This is rhabdomyolysis which translates to breakdown of connective and muscle tissue. The side effects are well documented. My concern is that our heart is also a muscle and subject to breakdown. Those on a statin need to be using CoQ 10. The dose needs to be individualized and often a blood test needs to be done.

We need to be aware of the facts:

1 – More than 600,000 people die each year of heart disease.
2- 150,000 (one fourth of the 600,000 ) die of SCD or sudden cardiac death with no prior known risk factors.
3 – Heart disease accounts for 25% of all US mortalities.
4 – Heart disease kills more females each year than the next 4 causes of death combined.
5 – Heart disease is very much underdiagnosed and undertreated in females in the US
6 – 50% of patients hospitalized with heart attacks had normal total cholesterol on admission.
7 – Greater than 75% of patients with heart attacks fell within normal limits regarding their LDL or bad cholesterol.
8 – One of greatest risk factors for men and heart disease is low testosterone.

In closing I am pleading with each and every one of you to no longer accept mediocrity when it comes to your health and that of your loved ones. The data is obvious. The technology has advanced to where we have so much more available to us. It will continue to save lives but only if we utilize it.

Allan W Redash, M.D.