When we go to the doctor and he gives us our cholesterol reading, many do not understand just exactly what he is talking about. Many people know that cholesterol is either good for you or bad, but many do not understand what is cholesterol. Cholesterol is simply a waxy matter that the liver creates which handles a number of duties in our body.

Cholesterol has a vital function in our body because it produces vitamin D, creates bile salts to help in the digestion of unused fat, and it aids in building call walls. So, if cholesterol does all these wonderful things, why would we need to worry about having too much in our body? The answer is simply because anything in excess is bad for our bodies. If we can learn what is cholesterol, then we can avoid having too much in our system.

The Bad Cholesterol Verses The Good Cholesterol.

If we understand which foods produce the good cholesterol and the bad cholesterol, then we will be able to monitor our cholesterol level more readily and keep it at a good level for our heath. Foods that have the bad cholesterol are items that have animal fats like meats and dairy products. Foods that have the good cholesterol are items such as fruits, whole grains, and vegetables.

Bad cholesterol can cause much damage to our bodies including hardening of the arteries. This happens because the bad cholesterol builds up plaque which eventually blocks the arteries and shrinks our blood flow.

The main goal of the good cholesterol is to keep our bodies healthy. It does this by taking the left over cholesterol within our system and carries it to the liver so it can produce bile salt which helps eject it from our body.

What Causes High Cholesterol?

Many of us who go to the doctor are usually worried about having a high cholesterol level. There are several reasons that we acquire a high cholesterol level and the main reason is our age. As we age our cholesterol level goes up and we are thus more able to get high cholesterol.

There are many explanations as to why we get high cholesterol. One explanation is that we inherit high cholesterol from our parents. If this is the case, then you should be tested to determine if you have inherited this from your parents. Another explanation is physical activity. When we exert ourselves with physical activity, this raises the amount of good cholesterol within our body and thus promotes better health.

When we are determining what is cholesterol, and examining the causes and treatments, we often find that there is a direct link to our cholesterol levels and the food we eat on a daily basis. By eating foods rich in fiber, fruits, vegetables, fish and beans we can help keep the cholesterol in our body low and thus have a healthier life. By trying to avoid eating foods like meat and dairy that make our cholesterol levels high, we can also have a healthier life.