9781422280416

Fats and Cholesterol

T ypes of C holesterol Fat goes hand-in-hand with another substance, called cholesterol. Cholesterol is fatty and wax-like. It produces hormones and other substances that help a person digest food. However, the body makes all the cholesterol it needs—in fact, many people actually make more than they need. Cholesterol levels increase even further if a person eats a high-fat diet. Not all types of cholesterol are the same—some is considered good, and some bad. The “good cholesterol” is high-density lipoprotein (HDL). HDL removes bad cholesterol from blood vessels and carries it back to the liver, where the body can then expel it. LDL, or low-density lipoprotein , is known as “bad cholesterol” because it can clog a person’s arteries and restrict blood flow to the heart. LDL cholesterol also produces plaque, which can keep blood from flowing through the body, creating a barrier that Most of the fat found in nature belongs to a group called glycerides . The fat on a ham or steak is an example of a glyceride. Glycerides are known as simple lipids, which is another term for fat. They’re “simple” because they contain only carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms. Lipids can store twice as much energy as proteins and carbohydrates. When lipids combine with oxygen from the air, they release energy, which allows us to move our muscles or digest our food. Compound lipids are fatty substances that hold on to something else, such as cholesterol. For example, triglycerides are a type of fat that is transported in the blood. It is the most abundant fatty molecule in your body. Whatever calories your body doesn’t burn right away are turned into triglycerides, which are then stored in fat cells. Triglycerides also contain cholesterol. More than 90 percent of the fats in food are triglycerides. An elevated level of triglycerides may lead to heart disease. ▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲ ▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼ Glycerides and Lipids

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