I’m sorry to break some bad news to you today, you may want to sit down first.
Ready?
There is no good and bad cholesterol!
There I said it… Did the world end… No…. ok, great let’s get on with it then.
The substances that we call good and bad cholesterol are not in fact cholesterol they are a substance called lipoproteins. There are several types of lipoprotein, Chylomicron, VLDL, IDL, LDL, Lp(A) and HDL.
These are all protein based carrier molecules. Neither fats nor cholesterol dissolve in water, (not water soluble). This means that they need to be carried by molecules that are.
The most important lipoprotein molecules for us to concentrate on are LDL, HDL and Lp(a).
You may have thought that LDL (low density lipoprotein), is BAD cholesterol and HDL (High density Lipoprotein), is GOOD cholesterol, but by now you know that they are not cholesterol.
These protein molecules carry cholesterol from the liver to the body’s tissues and from the tissues back to the liver. LDL carries cholesterol out and HDL carries unused cholesterol back where it is used in bile to break down fat in your digestion process.
So where does Lp(a) come into it….? Ok, this is where you move ahead of many doctors and where you start to learn the Good Stuff!
Lp(a) is another form of LDL. It does have a little difference though, it has 2 types of protein on the outside of it, which allow the body to recognise it and then for it to attach to specific areas to do its job.
Now there are many ways in which your cholesterol level can be given to you. Your doctor may measure your cholesterol level and give you;
1. Your HDL score
2. Your LDL score
3. Total cholesterol level
4. Ratio of HDL to LDL
The problem is that none of these mention your Lp(a) level, which is a shame as it may be the only one that is any use in the assessment of your heart health and the risk of you getting heart disease.
Right, we need to get on with looking at cholesterol itself rather than hanging around with these proteins.
Due to something called the Lipid Hypothesis, which I’ll ramble on more about tomorrow, we tend to feel that cholesterol is a form of fat or is ‘made’ from fat. I’m going to burst this bubble as well, cholesterol is not made from fat and fat is not used to make cholesterol. Cholesterol is a waxy molecule made from a form acetyl-CoA…
What? Not fat?
Nop, no fat in cholesterol it is a waxy molecule steroid metabolite and only comes in one form there are no types, there is no good and bad, it only has one molecular shape which is used to do all the jobs that we mentioned in the previous post.
To make cholesterol your body starts with the substance acetyl-CoA and then 13 chemical changes later it becomes cholesterol!
Hey presto! No fat at all….
Well not quite Hey Presto, there are other chemical and enzymes involved, but not fat in this process.
In summary
• You don’t have a cholesterol level you have a lipoprotein level
• Lipoproteins carry cholesterol from the liver to the tissue and then from the tissue to the liver
• Lp(a) is a form of lipoprotein which is not talked about, but does have an association to heart disease and many doctors seem to have no idea.
• There is no fat in cholesterol, they are not the same thing and are not similar molecules
Complicated? A little but we’ll separate it all out as we go!
Next time…. Dumb Mistake thinking you could trust scientists to be scientific! The Lipid Hypothesis
Committed to your success
Keith
