High cholesterol is often associated with a high-fat diet or an unhealthy lifestyle. But actually, high cholesterol numbers are not always caused by food. Other factors, such as age, can also affect high cholesterol.

Other Causes of High Cholesterol besides Food

Cholesterol is a fat that is needed by the body. In sufficient amounts, cholesterol is needed by the body to produce hormones, produce vitamin D, build cells in the body, and perform nerve and brain functions.

Apart from being naturally produced by the liver, cholesterol can also be obtained from food. When cholesterol intake in the body is too high and left untreated, this condition can cause fat accumulation in the blood vessels, increasing the risk of diseases such as heart attack and stroke.

High cholesterol levels usually show no symptoms and can only be found through blood tests. Apart from food, here are some causes of high cholesterol levels in the blood:

The age factors

As we age, people are at risk of having higher cholesterol levels. Entering the age of 50 and above, a person will be at risk of having higher cholesterol levels than when they were younger. However, there are many young people aged 25–35 years and older who have high cholesterol levels and require regular treatment.

Read more: Kapan Sebaiknya Melakukan Tes Kolesterol?

Genetic factors

Genetic factors also affect your risk of developing high cholesterol. Genes are passed down from parents to their children. The genes instruct the body on how to process cholesterol and fat. If your parents have high cholesterol, you are also at risk of developing high cholesterol.

Smoking and drinking habits

Alcohol is not only intoxicating and harmful to the health of the liver, heart, and blood vessels but also contains high levels of sugar. The habit of drinking alcohol can interfere with the process of breaking down cholesterol in the liver. As a result, the performance of the liver will decrease because the process of breaking down alcohol takes a long time, and cholesterol levels in the blood will accumulate.

This is also the case with smoking. Cigarettes contain various chemicals that can lower good cholesterol (HDL) and increase bad cholesterol levels in the blood (LDL).

Read more: Benarkah Diet Mediterania Efektif untuk Menurunkan Kolesterol?

Stress

Poor stress management can also increase the risk of high cholesterol levels. When your body is tense or under stress, it releases adrenaline and cortisol. If you can't control your stress well, then this will cause pressure on your heart and other organs in your body.

High cortisol levels or long-term stress can also increase cholesterol and cause other heart diseases.

Lack of active movement

An inactive or sedentary lifestyle is also at risk of increasing high cholesterol in the blood. Lack of movement triggers fat accumulation, which leads to obesity, high cholesterol, and other heart diseases.

Many people think that high cholesterol is always caused by eating fatty foods. But food is not the only cause.

If you have high cholesterol, it's best to see a doctor to get your cholesterol levels under control. If you need medical advice or consultation, you can either visit a doctor or make use of the consultation features that are available in the Ai Care application by downloading the Ai Care application from the App Store or Play Store.

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