Fatty foods are often regarded as a major contributor of cholesterol, particularly "bad" cholesterol or low density lipoprotein (LDL) in the blood. But in fact, the food only accounts for about 20 percent of the total cholesterol levels in the blood.
Specialist heart and blood vessels Hospital Sahid Sahirman dr. Aulia Sani said, the biggest contributor of cholesterol in the blood is actually the liver, which is as much as 80 percent.
In other words, the vast majority of cholesterol is produced in the body. Only, said Aulia, the ability to determine or at least a lot of cholesterol production depends on each individual.
"It usually depends on hereditary factors and lifestyle," said the former Director of Cardiovascular Center Harapan Kita in a press conference in Jakarta, Tuesday (18/06/2013).
Hereditary factors for high cholesterol production in the body occurs in Erwin Parengkuan artists and presenters who attended the press conference. He was very picky when it comes to food. He always avoid high-fat foods, preservatives, or chemical color.
But he surprised the total cholesterol in the blood is quite high, ie 206 mg / dL. Known total cholesterol should be less than 200 mg / dL.
"I see a physician, and I say high cholesterol due to hereditary factors. Issue is, eating healthy has been my run was not enough to keep my cholesterol levels remain normal," he said.
He was advised to run a regular exercise, at least three times a week with a minimum of 30 minutes. Sports suggested a walk with a steady motion. In addition, Erwin also suggested taking cholesterol-lowering drugs.
Cholesterol is a fatty substance or lipid complex that looks like pieces of a yellowish-white wax. Cholesterol is actually needed by the body to help the cell membrane, forming bile acids that digest food in the intestines, forming vitamin D and hormones such as estrogen in women and testosterone in men.
Nevertheless, there are also cholesterol that is "evil", namely LDL. Cholesterol carries fats from the liver to the tissues that can lead to accumulation of fat in the tissues. High LDL in the blood known as one of the risk factors for cardiovascular disease.
"So the lifestyle such as not smoking and regular exercise greatly affect the total cholesterol levels in the body," said Aulia.