Good Cholesterol

Doctors, Dietitians, and Health Experts all advice that we should keep our Good Cholesterol up and that we maintain the quality of our good cholesterol. But what really is good cholesterol and why do we need it?

This good cholesterol that most advertisements and drug companies speak of is not actually a type of cholesterol but rather a lipoprotein. There is only one type of cholesterol and that is “Cholesterol”; there is no good cholesterol nor bad cholesterol.

Lipoproteins however have five types and each type has its own function and characteristics. Two of the more popular lipoproteins are LDLs and HDLs. These two popular kinds of lipoproteins are the ones that are usually mistaken by people as bad and good cholesterol.

High Density Lipoproteins (HDL) are lipoproteins that contain the highest proportion of proteins in its make up. Its primary function is to retrieve cholesterol from the tissues within the body and return it to the liver for recycling. Based on this function, it is referred to as the “good cholesterol.”Low Density Lipoproteins (LDL) on the other hand are considered to be “bad cholesterol” because it carries cholesterol from the liver to the tissues.

It is believed that to reduce the risk of heart illnesses, one must maintain high levels of HDL in the body while keeping a low count of LDL that delivers cholesterol to the tissues. This may help reduce the risk of atherosclerosis and other heart related diseases but it is also important to remember that by merely increasing the HDL level in the body is not enough to reduce the risk of heart diseases. What you want is to maintain a high level of “good quality HDL” that will collect the unused cholesterol from the tissues and not just a high level of HDL.