How Cholesterol Can Kill You

Although cholesterol has a bad rap, it really is a natural function of the human body. It is a waxy, fatty substance that is in all cell walls and membranes in your body. It helps in producing hormones, vitamin D and bile acids and without it you could not survive. So how can it be so bad for you?

The problem is not cholesterol per se, but in having too much cholesterol in the bloodstream. Cholesterol is absorbed in the intestines and then passed on to the liver for transport throughout the body. It can be used immediately or stored for future use and transport mechanisms called lipoproteins are provided for this. You’ve probably heard of them - High Density Lipoproteins (HDL), Low Density Lipoproteins (LDL), and Very Low Density Lipoproteins (VLDL).

The LDL deposit’s the cholesterol and if there is too much it can deposit the excess in the arteries of the heart which could result in stroke or heart disease. This is why LDL is often called the “bad” cholesterol. HDL, on the other hand can collect this cholesterol and take it back for storage in the liver - which is why it is often called the “good” cholesterol. So you can see if you have too much LDL or not enough HDL combined with excess cholesterol that it is a recipe for disaster.

There are other causes of heart disease, but cholesterol is known to be a major contributing factor in the complicated series of events that leads to the buildup of plaque in your arteries.

Cholesterol only attaches to the lining of an artery if the artery has been damaged. Once damage has occurred, white blood cells, cholesterol, calcium and other debris rush to the site of the injury.

These continue to develop and bulge into the artery. This bulge is a mixture of cholesterol and and other cellular material which eventually is covered by a hard shell. This is the part that is eventually covered by plaque which can build up over time, narrowing the artery wall.

When the artery becomes narrowed, less blood can flow through which limit’s the amount of oxygen and nutrients that can get to the tissues fed by that blood vessel. In addition, the elasticity and ability to control the pressure of the blood is compromised. When not enough oxygen can get through you might feel a pain in your heart often called angina and which usually happens during exercise.

In the arteries there are larger and smaller plaques, but it is the smaller ones that are most dangerous as they can rupture thus releasing all the cholesterol inside into the blood stream which causes immediate clotting in the artery and if this clot totally blocks the artery will result in a heart attach. The heart muscle on the other side of the clot cannot get the oxygen it needs and dies resulting in permanent damage.