European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - July 26, 1988, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Serum cholesterol and Why it s important to you by Janee. Brody new York times a re you among the 1 in 10 americans who knows his or her serum cholesterol level or Are you still one of the 9 in 10 who do snot know How much of this artery clogging substance now courses through your blood vessels possibly setting the stage for a heart attack or stroke if the nation s heart experts have their Way before too Long you should be As familiar with your cholesterol Reading As you now Are with your address and phone number. The National heart lung and blood Institute in Bethesda md., has recently begun to Blanket the country with posters and ads beseeching every american to know your  physicians meanwhile Are being urged to test every patient and if necessary act on the results. You May have had your cholesterol measured at one time and been told Only that it was Normal but standards have changed and what was once considered Normal is now widely thought to be too High. So a pronouncement of Normal without the accompanying numbers is meaningless. Screening Sites where total serum cholesterol can be measured in three minutes using a few drops of blood from a Finger prick Are springing up in shopping malls at work Sites in pharmacies at health fairs and in a variety of Community and medical settings. But How reliable Are the results and what do they mean perhaps you be already had your cholesterol tested More than once and you re confused because the results did not quite agree. And what is All this you be heard about the Good cholesterol High density Lipoprotein or Hal cholesterol which acts like arterial drano cleansing the body of harmful cholesterol maybe much of your total cholesterol is this beneficial kind and you have nothing to worry about. Chances Are though that too much is the bad Type Low density Lipoprotein which clogs up arteries. What can you do to Foster the High density lipoproteins and lower the other kinds at least one person in four will be told that his or her cholesterol Reading is too High and May be advised to see a doctor for re measurement and possible treatment. Many others with readings that Are near the Border on the High Side May also be referred for treatment or May decide to try to bring their cholesterol Down. How important is cholesterol dozens of studies throughout the world involving Laboratory animals healthy people and cardiac patients have consistently shown that too much of the wrong cholesterol in the blood is a major cause of heart disease and stroke. For every 1 percent Rise in cholesterol the risk of heart attack increases about 2 percent. Since the mid-1960s, when the american heart association started publicizing the connection Between cholesterol and heart disease americans have reduced their serum cholesterol Levels primarily through dietary changes. The average Middle aged american now has a cholesterol level of 215 milligrams per 100 Millilitres of blood serum Down from an average of about 240 milligrams two decades ago. As a result of this cholesterol shift As Well As campaigns to Stop smoking and treat High blood pressure coronary death rates have fallen More than 40 percent since 1963. Still 1.5 million americans suffer heart attacks and 2 million suffer strokes each year. More than half a million people die annually from heart attacks and 60 percent of those deaths occur suddenly often without any prior warning symptoms. What is High cholesterol so far official criteria have been established Only for people older than 20. To be classified As desirable your cholesterol Reading should be below 200 milligrams. But the lower the better. Since Many people with Levels Between 150 and 200 suffer heart attacks an Ideal cholesterol level is really under 150. Those with Levels of 240 or More Are classified As having High cholesterol and at High risk of heart disease and those with Levels Between 200 and 240 milligrams Are considered on the Border. If someone with a level Between 200 and 240 has evidence of heart disease or has two or More other cardiac risk factors that person would also be classified As High risk and advised to reduce total blood cholesterol. The relevant risk factors include being male men have three times More Early in life heart attack shaving High blood pressure smoking cigarettes having half the average risk of heart disease Boston Marathon runners physicians average risk of hear disease in americans average victim Rofheart diem twice average of Sec triple average risk j2.5 3.4 3.4 the higher the ratio of cholesterol to High density Lipoprotein Thev greater the risk 01 heart disease. People under 4.$probabty do not require treatment. 4.6-6.4 women ssi men  from Ghala Terol a technical monograph. Published by National health laboratories inc., 196? not How cholesterol buildup leads to atherosclerosis hardening of the arteries atherosclerosis is a degenerative disease that Narrows or blocks blood vessels cholesterol is the main component of plaque the fatty Yellowish substance that can collect inside arteries like rust does in water pipes artery cholesterol artery lining cells the buildup begins when excess cholesterol collects beneath artery lining cells that have been damaged by smoking or High blood pressure platelets platelets one of the body s protective mechanisms gather at damage site and form a Cap to isolate the plaque fatty Core of plaque combines to form blood clot Cap Breaks if Cap Breaks plaque can Combine with clot producing factors in blood to Block an artery to the heart causing a heart attack to the brain causing a stroke or to a leg causing gangrene Chicago Tribune graphic sources american heart association discover Magazine random House encyclopedia Page 16 the stars and stripes tuesday july 26,1988