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People can respond to dietary changes within four to six weeks. Lowering their low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol by up to 30 percent can significantly reduce their risk of coronary heart disease. “If cholesterol reductions of these amounts can be achieved by changes in lifestyle…

Biophysicists at the University of Pennsylvania have used 3,200 computer processors and long-established data on cholesterol’s role in the function of proteins to clarify the mysterious interaction between cholesterol and neurotransmitter receptors.

Going green may be heart healthy if the green you choose is pistachio nuts, according to researchers at Penn State who conducted the first study to investigate the way pistachios lower cholesterol. “We investigated mechanisms of action to explain the cholesterol-lowering effects of the pistachio diets,” says Sarah K. Gebauer, recent Penn State Ph.D.

Using the drug darapladib, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and colleagues have inhibited a cholesterol-and immune system-associated protein, thereby reducing the development of heart-disease plaques that may cause death, heart attacks, and strokes in a pig model of atherosclerosis and diabetes. The study appeared online this week in Nature Medicine.

Using the drug darapladib, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and colleagues have inhibited a cholesterol-and immune system-associated protein, thereby reducing the development of heart-disease plaques that may cause death, heart attacks, and strokes in a pig model of atherosclerosis and diabetes. The study appeared online this week in Nature Medicine.

Strategies for cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention using lipid-lowering medications can be improved by adopting the absolute-risk approach, according to a research paper in the latest issue of the Medical Journal of Australia. Lipid-lowering medication reduces blood cholesterol levels, an important risk factor for CVD.

New research commissioned by Flora pro.activ revealed that two thirds of GPs polled feel that it is very important for patients on cholesterol-lowering medication to also ensure they eat a healthy diet to improve heart health. According to recent NICE guidance on the management of Familial Hypercholesterolaemia (FH), first-line treatment for FH should be statins.

Understanding cholesterol is more than figuring out what’s good and bad. Although much is known about this waxy substance that’s in all body cells and its relationship with heart disease, much is still uncertain. Doctors suspect that the relationship may be more complicated than previously believed.

Genetic lipoprotein disorders are frequently seen in patients with premature coronary artery disease (CAD). An example of strong genetic predisposition is the disorder: familial hypercholesterolemia, where a single gene defect (the low density lipoprotein receptor) contributes to most of the familial expression of CAD.

AstraZeneca welcomes the recommendations by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) on the treatment of Familial Hypercholesterolaemia (FH) 1, a genetic condition resulting in high cholesterol levels.