What is normal cholesterol level? Cholesterol range of most healthy individuals is considering as normal cholesterol level/range. To know whether your cholesterol number is healthy; see below cholesterol levels chart.
Healthy Normal Cholesterol Range
Raised cholesterol level itself is not the problem. But, it indicates there is a problem somewhere such as inflammation, infection, etc. The cholesterol level raises to heal the inflammation, eradicate infection, remove toxins, etc.
Lipid panel test is the most used test. It is useful for the assessment of different lipids in the blood. It provides total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and triglycerides levels.
Here we are trying to provide healthy ranges of Total cholesterol, HDL-C, LDL-C, and triglyceride. This individual range does not provide useful information. But, you can calculate TG/HDL-C ratio and Non-HDL-C to make it useful.
Total cholesterol healthy & unhealthy range
Total cholesterol level is the sum of all lipids in your blood lipoproteins (VLDL, LDL, and HDL). TC = LDL-C + HDL-C + VLDL-C
- Normal TC: Less than 200 mg/dL (< 5.2 mmol/l)
- Borderline TC: 200 to 239 mg/dL (5.3 to 6.2 mmol/l)
- High TC: More than 239 mg/dL (> 6.2 mmol.l)
LDL-C healthy & unhealthy range
Low-density lipoproteins (LDL) cholesterol is considering as bad cholesterol, but not exactly. Previously LDL is considering to promotes plaque formation and thus increases heart disease risk. The healthy LDL-C ranges are as below.
- Normal LDL: Less than 130 mg/dL (< 3.36 mmol/l)
- Borderline LDL: 130 to 159 mg/dL (3.36 to 4.11 mmol/l)
- High LDL: More than 159 mg/dL (> 4.11 mmol.l)
Most labs estimate the concentration of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol using Friedewald formula (not ultracentrifuge). This indirect LDL cholesterol estimation is unreliable, when the triglyceride is high or low.
Friedewald formula is useful to calculate LDL cholesterol. LDL-C = TC – HDL-C - TG/5
HDL-C healthy & unhealthy range
High-density lipoproteins (HDL) cholesterol is considering as good cholesterol, but not exactly. Previously HDL is considering to decreases plaque formation. Thus, it may lower heart disease risk; it is partly correct. The healthy HDL-C ranges are as below.
- Normal HDL: More than 60 mg/dL (> 1.55 mmol/l)
- Borderline HDL: 40 to 60 mg/dL (1.03 to 1.55 mmol/l)
- High HDL: Less than 40 mg/dL (< 1.03 mmol.l)
Labs measures HDL cholesterol by separating other lipoprotein fractions. High-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) is the cholesterol in HDL particles contain.
Triglycerides healthy & unhealthy range
Triglycerides are the fats found in your blood, which are the major source of energy.
- Normal Triglycerides: Less than 150 mg/dL (< 1.69 mmol/l)
- Borderline Triglycerides: 150 to 199 mg/dL (1.69 to 2.25 mmol/l)
- High Triglycerides: More than 199 mg/dL (> 2.25 mmol.l)
If you have high cholesterol and heart disease risk, then you may need medication. Various treatment options for high cholesterol are dietary, lifestyle changes and medicines.
Many alternative treatments also available, they are herbal, homeopathy, yoga, acupressure, and reflexology.
VLDL level calculated by dividing the triglyceride level by five. You can reduce triglyceride by exercise and consume omega-3 fatty acids. Some sources of omega-3 are fish, flax seed oil, walnut, etc. Important, you can lower triglyceride by cutting down carbohydrate intakes (switch to low-carb diet).
TG to HDL-C ratio
TG/HDL-C ratio should maintain below 3.8. Otherwise, increases your chance for small dense LDL phenotype B.
- Normal: Less than 3.5 (in Men) < 3.0 (in Women)
- Moderate: 3.5 to 5.0 (in Men) 3.0 to 4.4 (in Women)
- High: More than 5.0 (in Men) > 4.4 (in Women)
Non-HDL-C
Non-HDL-C is equal to total cholesterol minus HDL-C i.e. Non-HDL-C = TC – HDL-C.
- Normal: Less than 130 mg/dL (< 3.3 mmol/l)
- Borderline: 130 to 159 mg/dL (3.3 to 4.1 mmol/l)
- High: More than 159 mg/dL (> 4.1 mmol.l)
Non-HDL-C is a better predictor of future CVD risk than LDL-C.