E78.2: Mixed hyperlipidaemia

Increased cholesterol levels and increased fat levels have been measured in your blood.

Fats have various jobs in the body. There are various kinds of fats. For example, fats are important for the structure of cells and for making the production of particular messenger substances possible. Fats are transported in the blood by fat transporters.

Cholesterol is a specific kind of fat. Cholesterol is important for the structure of cells in the body and for some messenger substances. A distinction is made in turn for different kinds of cholesterol. For example, there is HDL cholesterol and LDL cholesterol. HDL cholesterol transports fat from the body’s fat stores to the liver. The fats are then converted in the liver. HDL cholesterol thus eliminates fatty deposits. HDL cholesterol protects against constricted blood vessels.

LDL cholesterol transports fat from the liver into the rest of the body. Fat stores are created there. Along the way, LDL cholesterol can be deposited in the blood vessels. LDL cholesterol encourages constrictions in the blood vessels. LDL cholesterol is therefore considered harmful.

If you have too much cholesterol in your blood, harmful LDL cholesterol is often increased and the beneficial HDL cholesterol is too low. Furthermore, there can also be too many fats in the blood. The risk of diseases in the blood vessels can be increased by these fat levels.

There are various reasons for having too much of particular fats in the blood. On one hand, nutrition can play a role. On the other, genetic makeup plays an important role. For example, there are families in which an increased amount of a particular fat is hereditary.