HDL too high

[buttons99]

I can never get a staight answer.

I am often told my cholestrol is too high yet it is driven by by HDL ... it is 104.
Can it get too high?

I am a 39 year old female, 5'5", 128lb.and active yet my most recent total cholestrol is 257 (LDL of 134 which I know is borderline and Tri of 96).

Cause for future concern?

Against medications at this early stage of my life.

[erijon]

This link will answer more questions;

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/121187-overview#showall

[buttons99]

Thank you

[erijon]

Much depends on what kind of HDL you have. HDL can be different particle sizes, when some one presents with high HDL, often they have small particle HDL which is not as effective in eliminating LDL as the large particle HDL. There is a cholesterol particle size test you can do for further information.

In addition, high levels of HDL are markers of other underlying conditions which your doctor should also be looking for.

Good luck,

Jon

[ed34]

Latest research has shown some interesting things regarding cholesterol. For many years we have classed LDL as bad and HDL as good, but the picture is far from that simple. Too much HDL has shown to be a huge problem as it seems to have a big influence on how LDL functions. They are looking at different HDL types to determine which are more harmful. Like many people, you would assume that a high level of HDL would be great, possibly keeping arteries nice and clear. When Mice have been given high levels of HDL serum, the results are astonishing because it seems to promote artery disease.
We can ponder over which cholesterol is good/bad or whatever, but at the end of the day, cholesterol is not the primary cause of artery disease which has been shown time and time again. New research has shown that patients on statins and given quite high levels of vitamin C each day has shown a remarkable improvement. Vitamin C is something we cannot produce for ourselves due to certain genes being switched off, and it appears most of the population in developed countries are short in this vitamin. It is important for reducing free radicals (a catalyst for atherosclerosis and cancer) and clearly improves health in many ways.