Word: low
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...also becoming evident that cholesterol can be either foe or friend, depending on the way it travels through the body. Cholesterol's sinister image derives from the fact that much of the substance is swept through the bloodstream by potentially damaging carrier particles called LDLs (for low-density lipoproteins). LDLs are called "bad" cholesterol because an excess of cholesterol carried by them can lead to the buildup of harmful deposits in the arteries. The other cholesterol carriers, known as HDLs (for high-density lipoproteins), are considered "good" because, far from being killers, they may actually play a vital role...
That judgment was reinforced by four new studies presented at the American Heart Association's annual meeting in Washington last month. They confirmed earlier research indicating that low levels of HDL can result in heart disease -- even in individuals whose total cholesterol count is in the supposedly "safe" zone below 200 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dl) of blood...
...body's cells and also results from the intake of foods containing saturated fats or pure cholesterol -- for example, butter, cheese, liver, eggs and animal fat. In the Third World, where relatively little saturated fat and cholesterol are consumed, most people seem to be protected from heart disease by low LDL levels. The problem with the Western world's rich diet is that it puts the body into overdrive, so that more LDL cholesterol accumulates in the bloodstream than can be absorbed and used by cells...
...badly. The mean cholesterol levels of men over the age of 35 fall well into the borderline-high-risk area. More than a third of American men between the ages of 45 and 64 are in the high-risk category. Because of differences in hormones, premenopausal women run a low risk of developing heart disease. In later years, though, this advantage is lost, and women between 55 and 64 have significantly higher total cholesterol levels than men the same age. The dangers of high readings are evident: the chance of a heart attack has been found to double with every...
Portable analyzers, though, cannot calculate LDL and HDL levels. Even many laboratories have been unable to give consistently accurate counts of HDL. Yet that figure may be the most vital statistic of all in evaluating cardiovascular health in otherwise moderate- or low-risk individuals. Says Dr. Bruce Gordon, associate professor of medicine at Manhattan's Rogosin Institute: "There are a sizable number of people who would be inappropriately treated unless their HDL levels were taken into account...