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The concept of “good” and “bad” cholesterol depends highly on the circumstances of the individual person. Although very high blood serum cholesterol values are associated with heart disease, values that are low (below 160 mg/dl) are associated with increased violent behavior, suicide, depression, anxiety, bipolar disease, Parkinson’s disease, and increased mortality from cancer. Low cholesterol values are also associated with manganese deficiency, celiac disease, hyperthyroidism, liver disease, malabsorption, and malnutrition.
Cholesterol is a sterol essential to life and is found in every animal cell. Cholesterol is part of our cellular structure and protects our tissues. Many people fear and focus on high cholesterol levels, yet never focus on low cholesterol levels, which can have negative health effects. Like everything in nature, balance is the key.
Cholesterol serves several important roles in metabolism: it is a key constituent of all cell membranes and provides the structural framework of vitamin D and adrenal and sex hormones, as well as for bile acids which help digest fat and increase absorption of fat soluble vitamins. Most cholesterol is made in the liver and is so crucial to metabolism that, if necessary, it can be synthesized from either fatty acids or glucose.
Advanced Cholesterol Profile
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