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HDL Cholesterol Guidelines

By now, most of us know it's very important to keep our cholesterol in check. If we don't, it can cause fatty deposits to gather along the walls of our arteries, leading to arterial damage and blockages that often prompt kidney failure, heart disease, heart attack and stroke. But not all cholesterol is actually bad. High-density lipoprotein, also known simply as HDL, is considered "good" cholesterol. The reason for this favorable moniker has a lot to do with the way in which it interacts with other forms of cholesterol in our body, making it an important element in our cholesterol goals.

  1. Cholesterol Goals

    • When evaluating your overall cholesterol level goals, look at the entire picture. It isn't enough just to focus on one number. You need to take into account a series of healthy objectives within your entire "lipoprotein profile," including HDL cholesterol, LDL cholesterol (low-density lipoprotein cholesterol), triglycerides and total cholesterol.

    Lipoprotein Profile

    • With HDL cholesterols, a good target range is anything above 45 mg/dl in men and 55 mg/dl in women, but it is recommended that both sexes aim for 60 mg/dl or higher. With LDL cholesterol, also referred to as "bad" cholesterol, a good target number is anything less than 130 mg/dl, unless, of course, you are suffering from another condition. Heart disease or high risk individuals need to keep LDL cholesterol below 70 mg/dl and 100 mg/dl respectively. Triglycerides, which are fats found in the blood, should be kept under 150 mg/dl. And to keep your total cholesterol in a healthy range, shoot for any number between 100 and 199 mg/dl after the age of 20 or 75 to 169 mg/dl under the age of 21.

    "Good" Cholesterol

    • By increasing your HDL cholesterol, you can ultimately help lower LDL cholesterol. This is largely due to what "good" cholesterol does to "bad" cholesterol. When HDL comes into contact with "bad" cholesterol, it grabs hold and transports it directly to the liver, where it can properly be disposed.

    At Risk

    • When HDL cholesterol starts to drop below a certain level, it can put you at greater risk of developing heart disease as well as other life-altering and life-threatening conditions. For men, anything below 40 mg/dl puts you at risk of heart disease or suffering from a stroke. For women, anything below 50 mg/dl can increase your chances of either condition.

    Increasing HDL

    • There are a number of different methods to increasing HDL cholesterol. One of the easiest is modifying your diet to include foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids, like salmon, tuna and flax seed, or foods high in soluble fibers, like fruits, vegetables, legumes and whole grains. Tofu and tempeh are also believed to help elevate HDL levels. Even onions are considered a good vegetable to amplify HDL.

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