{"id":871,"date":"2020-10-20T09:50:58","date_gmt":"2020-10-20T09:50:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/healthandwellbeing-news\/?p=871"},"modified":"2020-10-20T09:59:23","modified_gmt":"2020-10-20T09:59:23","slug":"national-cholesterol-month-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/healthandwellbeing-news\/2020\/10\/20\/national-cholesterol-month-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"National Cholesterol Month 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"

October is National Cholesterol month.<\/strong><\/p>\n

What is cholesterol?<\/h2>\n

Cholesterol is a fatty substance, vital for good health. It helps form cell membranes, various hormones, bile and vitamin D. We get some cholesterol from our diet but most is made in our liver.<\/p>\n

What causes high cholesterol?<\/h2>\n

Cholesterol levels are affected by your family history, age, your lifestyle, some medicines and medical conditions. You are more likely to have unhealthy levels of cholesterol if:
\n\u2022 Close family have high cholesterol
\n\u2022 Your diet is high in saturated fat
\n\u2022 You are not physically active
\n\u2022 You drink too much, or you smoke
\n\u2022 You carry too much weight around your middle<\/p>\n

Why should I lower my cholesterol?<\/h2>\n

Having too much cholesterol in your blood can increase your risk of:<\/p>\n