Your total cholesterol should normally be <5.0, and your ‘bad’ (known as ‘non-HDL’ or ‘LDL’) cholesterol should normally be <4.0.
We know that high cholesterol is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.
For the general population, your total cholesterol should normally be <5.0, and your non-HDL cholesterol should normally be <4.0.
However, for certain patient groups, we recommend aiming to have an LDL (bad cholesterol) level of less than 2.0.
We know that high cholesterol puts you at risk of cardiovascular disease. Cardiovascular disease is an umbrella term used to describe diseases that affect the heart, the blood vessels or both i.e. heart attack, angina, and stroke. We also know that by lowering your total cholesterol, especially focusing on lowering LDL (bad cholesterol), you can reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease. This can be achieved by changes to your diet and increased exercise, and some people may need medication (statins).
How do we interpret your cholesterol results?
- If you already have a history of Cardiovascular disease, we aim to have a bad cholesterol (LDL) of less than 2.0.
- For everyone else under the age of 80, we use the cholesterol result to calculate an estimate of your 10 year risk of developing Cardiovascular disease (QRISK). If the QRISK is 10% or more, we will offer you a trial of Statin medication.
- Additionally, if you have other risk factors, e.g. Chronic Kidney Disease or Diabetes, you may be offered a statin regardless of your cholesterol results.