High cholesterol: Symptoms, causes and treatment

What is cholesterol and why is high cholesterol bad for you? Find out how high cholesterol can affect your heart and what you can do to lower it.

Cholesterol (matū ngako) is a fat-like substance in your blood. It comes from two places:

• some is made naturally by your liver
• some comes from the food you eat.

Cholesterol isn’t always ‘bad’. Your body needs some cholesterol to work properly. It uses it to develop cells and hormones and to process and digest fats. But, if the amount of cholesterol in the blood gets too high, it can cause a heart attack or stroke.

Source: https://www.heartfoundation.or.nz/wellbeing/managing-risk/managing-high-cholesterol

For more information, go to The Heart Foundation website.