A lot of nutrition advice makes it seem like cholesterol is bad. The truth is cholesterol is crucial for overall health and function. It only becomes a problem when you also have other risk factors for cardiovascular disease such as: inflammation, excessive blood clotting, diabetes and more.

To learn more about LDL-C and HDL-C, please click the links.

Functions of Cholesterol

Cholesterol serves many roles in our body and cannot be replaced. Here are just a few important roles of cholesterol:

• Critical component of cell membranes: helps cell signaling, fluidity of cells, protection of cells [1]
• Precursor to all steroid hormones[1]: testosterone, progesterone, pregnenolone, estrogens (estrone & estradiol), aldosterone and more
• Brain health: 25% of the body’s cholesterol is in the brain [2]. It covers nerve axons, contributes to brain maturation [3], and plays a role in sleep [4], learning and memory [2].
• Precursor to vitamin D [1]

Cholesterol and Dietary Recommendations

Until recently, dietary recommendations around the world emphasized the importance of reducing cholesterol. In the past the American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology proposed an upper daily limit on dietary cholesterol, without conclusive evidence [5]. The reason I bring up the American associations first is that these ones are recognized globally. Many nations follow their recommendations and a lot of media and general knowledge is picked up passively by the more publicized American associations and news outlets.

After decades of the old guidelines, in 2015, new American guidelines were introduced. The emphasis for heart health shifted from avoiding cholesterol to limiting sugar intake. The advisory panels stated “available evidence shows no appreciable relationship between consumption of dietary cholesterol and serum (blood) cholesterol. Cholesterol is not a nutrient of concern for overconsumption” [5].