Cholesterol : Busting the myths
Cholesterol: What It Is, What the Numbers Mean, and How to Actually Reduce Your Risk
If you’ve ever walked out of a GP appointment clutching a blood test printout and thinking, “Is my cholesterol trying to kill me?”, you’re not alone.
We get this conversation thrown at us like confetti. But here’s the thing — cholesterol isn’t the villain. It’s actually one of your body’s VIP molecules.
Let’s break this down in plain English so you can feel confident, not terrified.
So… What Is Cholesterol Really?
Think of cholesterol as the body’s courier service — delivering fats, hormones, and building blocks around the system so your cells can do their job.
A few truths your doctor probably didn’t have time to tell you:
Your liver makes around 75% of your cholesterol. If the body needs more, it makes more.
It repairs damage. When your arteries get irritated by things like smoking, high sugar, stress, or inflammation, cholesterol is sent in as a patch-up crew.
It’s essential for hormones, including oestrogen (which is dipping in perimenopause and menopause).
It’s part of every cell wall and crucial for brain function. Honestly, without cholesterol, we’d be a puddle on the floor.
So no, it’s not “bad”. The question is: why is your body sending out more of it?
What the Numbers Actually Mean
This is where most women panic because they’re given the number without context. Here’s your quick guide.
Total Cholesterol
A rough overall number. Pretty useless on its own.
LDL (“the one everyone blames”)
LDL isn’t bad. It's simply the delivery van taking fats from the liver to your tissues.
The real issue is oxidised LDL — when the vans become rusty and get stuck in the artery walls.
What rusts them? Stress, sugar, processed oils, smoking.
HDL (“the helpful one”)
This is the clean-up crew bringing unused cholesterol back to the liver for recycling. Higher HDL is good.
Triglycerides
This is the important one that often gets ignored.
High triglycerides usually mean too much sugar, alcohol, processed food and insulin resistance.
Triglyceride / HDL ratio
This is GOLD.
It’s one of the more accurate markers of heart-disease risk.
Ideal: under 1
Moderate: 1–2
Concerning: over 2
If your GP didn’t mention this ratio, don’t be shocked — it isn’t routinely explained.
So What Can You Actually Do to Reduce Risk?
Spoiler: it’s not “cut all fat” or “eat your wholegrain cereal”.
Here’s the practical, real-world approach that works.
1. Reduce Sugar & Starches
High sugar = high triglycerides = higher risk.
Cutting sugar, white carbs, and processed snacks is one of the fastest ways to bring the numbers down.
2. Switch to Healthy Fats
Healthy fats don’t raise risk — they lower inflammation.
Great choices:
Olive oil
Avocado oil
Grass-fed butter
Oily fish
Nuts and seeds (if tolerated)
Quality eggs (if you tolerate them)
Avoid:
Vegetable oils (sunflower, rapeseed, corn oil)
Deep-fried anything
Margarine and “spreads” pretending to be healthy
3. Watch Your Stress
If your stress is sky-high, your cholesterol will be too — because your body keeps patching up the damage.
Walking, breathing exercises, reading in bed… whatever calms your nervous system helps your heart too.
4. Move Your Body Daily
Not bootcamps.
Not gym guilt.
Just daily, consistent movement — walking, swimming, dancing, yoga, strength training.
It boosts HDL and lowers triglycerides.
5. Reduce Inflammation
Inflammation is the REAL driver behind damaged arteries.
Support your gut with whole foods and whole food capsules, colourful plants, omegas, probiotics, and fewer processed foods.
6. Add Omega-3s
Omegas are brilliant at reducing inflammation and keeping cholesterol particles small and bouncy — not sticky.
They’re especially helpful in perimenopause when inflammation naturally creeps up.
The Takeaway
Cholesterol isn’t trying to harm you — it’s trying to help you.
Your job isn’t to beat the number down… It’s to understand why your body is making more and address the root cause.
Small daily changes can have a huge impact on your results — and your confidence.
If you want help making sense of your numbers, or you’d love a personalised plan (not a random diet printout), book a free call and let’s go through your results together.
Jackie x
