We recently talked about high blood pressure in the previous article , often called the “silent killer” because it usually has no symptoms until it causes serious damage.
I’d like to talk about another silent condition that often goes hand in hand with it — high cholesterol.
If you asked ten people whether they know their cholesterol level, I suspect only a few could answer. Yet high cholesterol is one of the biggest reasons why people develop heart attacks and strokes, not only in Malaysia but across the world.
The problem is simple.
You cannot feel high cholesterol.
It doesn’t make your head ache. It doesn’t make you dizzy. It doesn’t cause pain. Most people only discover they have it after a routine blood test, or worse, after suffering a heart attack or stroke.
That is why checking it is so important.
Many people think cholesterol is something bad that should be completely avoided. That isn’t actually true.
Our bodies need cholesterol. It helps make hormones, vitamin D and forms part of every cell in our body. The problem comes when there is too much of the wrong type circulating in our blood.
You’ve probably heard people talk about “good” and “bad” cholesterol.
Think of it like rubbish collection.
Bad cholesterol deposits fatty material inside the walls of blood vessels. Over many years these deposits build up, making the arteries narrower and stiffer. Good cholesterol helps carry some of that excess cholesterol away to be removed by the liver.
When the balance isn’t right, the arteries slowly become clogged.
This doesn’t happen overnight.
It can take twenty or thirty years before problems appear, which is why prevention is so important.
One question I am asked regularly is whether eating eggs causes high cholesterol.
The answer isn’t as straightforward as social media would have you believe.
For most healthy people, eating eggs in moderation is not the main reason cholesterol becomes high. A diet full of processed foods, fried foods, pastries, sugary drinks and too little exercise plays a much bigger role. Smoking, excess weight, diabetes and family history also increase the risk.
In Malaysia, we are fortunate to enjoy some wonderful food, but let’s be honest—we also enjoy rich curries, fried snacks, coconut milk dishes and late-night suppers. There’s nothing wrong with enjoying these occasionally, but when they become everyday habits, our cholesterol levels often pay the price.
Another myth I often hear is, “I feel perfectly healthy, so my cholesterol must be normal.”
Unfortunately, it doesn’t work like that.
I’ve met patients who cycle every weekend, work full-time and feel absolutely fine, only to discover their cholesterol is dangerously high. Others are slim but inherit high cholesterol from their parents.
That is why relying on how you feel simply isn’t enough.
Then there’s the question of cholesterol tablets.
Some people worry that once they start medication, they’ll have to take it forever.
The reality is that medicines such as statins have been studied for decades and have saved countless lives by reducing the risk of heart attacks and strokes. Like all medicines they can have side effects, but for many people the benefits greatly outweigh the risks. The decision should always be made after discussing your overall risk with your doctor, rather than based on something you read online.
Of course, tablets should never replace a healthy lifestyle.
Eating more vegetables, fruit, wholegrains, beans, fish and nuts, reducing highly processed foods, staying active, maintaining a healthy weight and stopping smoking can all make a real difference. Even modest improvements can lower your risk over time.
If you’re over 40, have diabetes, high blood pressure, smoke, are overweight or have a family history of heart disease, don’t wait until symptoms appear.
Ask your doctor or pharmacist whether it’s time for a cholesterol check.
It is one of the simplest tests you can have, but it could prevent one of the biggest health problems you’ll ever face.
Remember, heart disease doesn’t suddenly begin on the day someone has a heart attack. It often starts silently many years earlier.
The good news is that we have the opportunity to do something about it long before that day arrives.
Sometimes, the most important health decisions are the ones we make while we still feel perfectly well.
Until next week, stay healthy, stay informed and take good care of yourself.
The Daily Durian (zaynp100@yahoo.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
The User Content (as defined on Newswav Terms of Use) above including the views expressed and media (pictures, videos, citations etc) were submitted & posted by the author. Newswav is solely an aggregation platform that hosts the User Content. If you have any questions about the content, copyright or other issues of the work, please contact creator@newswav.com.
