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What Organ Regulates Cholesterol?

Cholesterol is a soft, waxy substance found in the fats in your blood and all your cells. Your liver normally produces all the cholesterol your body needs, but you also get cholesterol from foods.

  1. The Liver and Cholesterol

    • The liver produces and regulates cholesterol. It uses cholesterol to make digestive acids (bile). For several hours after you eat, the liver takes up cholesterol from the bloodstream. When no cholesterol is available in the blood, the liver makes its own. The organ also removes excess cholesterol from the blood.

    The Intestines and Cholesterol

    • The intestines absorb the cholesterol you eat in food and the cholesterol your liver makes.

    Lipoproteins

    • The liver releases cholesterol in packages called lipoproteins, which carry cholesterol to the cells. The two major lipoproteins are low-density lipoprotein and high-density lipoprotein.

    Excess Cholesterol

    • If the liver makes more cholesterol than the intestines can absorb, the excess cholesterol stays in the blood.

    "Good" and "Bad" Cholesterol

    • Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) is often called "bad" cholesterol because if too much circulates in the blood, it can combine with other substances to build up harmful plaque in the arteries. High-density lipoprotein (HDL), or "good" cholesterol, is believed to carry cholesterol away from the arteries and back to the liver.

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