What effect does thyroid have on cholesterol?Posted by Naina Tiwari on September 30th, 2019 Cholesterol – the fatty substance present in the blood usually has a negative connotation despite the known fact that it has two versions – good and bad cholesterol. Its growth or decline in blood is dependent on functions of several internal organs of the body apart from the food intake.
Thyroid is one such part of the body which influences the cholesterol levels in the body. The butterfly-shaped thyroid gland is a tiny part in the body. However, it plays a vital role in regulating the body functionalities such as breathing, body temperature, heart rate, muscles, body weight, cholesterol levels and it also controls the metabolism. Let us know the relation between the thyroid and cholesterol:
The liver makes 80% of cholesterol through thyroid hormones that control metabolism in our body and the rest of it comes through our food. The thyroid gland produces two hormones Triiodothyronine (T3) and Thyroxine (T4) which helps all the organs function normally, especially brain and heart. It also helps in building cell tissues and to protect nerves. The T3 hormone helps the liver in removing excess cholesterol. The human body needs adequate cholesterol. If the amount of cholesterol exceeds, it will get deposit on the walls of all the arteries of heart, brain and all the arteries which supply blood throughout the body.
There will be abnormal ranges of cholesterol if thyroid gland produces less or excessive hormones.
If the thyroid gland doesn’t produce adequate hormones, then it leads to the hypothyroidism whereas if it produces excessive hormones than needed, then it leads to hyperthyroidism.
Cholesterol combines with the proteins (lipoprotein) and together travel through the blood. The two main types of lipoproteins are LDL and HDL and boyh are essential for our body in adequate ranges.
The high- density lipoprotein (HDL) is called good cholesterol since it removes cholesterol from the blood and takes it to the liver which excretes the bad cholesterol with the help of T3 hormone. The HDL levels should be low for normal thyroid hormone levels.
The low-density lipoprotein (LDL) is called bad cholesterol since it delivers cholesterol to the body. The LDL levels should be high for normal thyroid hormone levels.
Thus, the thyroid gland and its hormones will have an impact on the cholesterol levels throughout our life span. Here we have given the normal, borderline high, and the high ranges of the cholesterol for your reference. You can contact your near clinics for more information.
For adults:
Cholesterol Levels:
Normal: < 200 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL)
Moderate/ borderline high: 200 and 239 mg/dL
High : > 240 mg/dL
LDL (low-density lipoproteins) Ranges:
Normal: < 130 mg/dL
Moderate/ borderline high: 130-159 mg/dL
High: 160- 189 mg/dL
Very High: >190 mg/dL
HDL (high-density lipoproteins) Ranges:
Normal: > 60 mg/dL
High: 41-59 mg/dL
Very high: <40 mg/dL
For children:
Cholesterol Levels:
Normal: < 170 mg/dL
Border line: 170-199 mg/dL
High: >200 mg/dL
LDL (low-density lipoproteins) Ranges:
Normal: <110 mg/dL
Border line: 110-129 mg/dL
High: >130 mg/dL
HDL (high-density lipoproteins) Ranges:
Normal: > 35 mg/dL
High: <35 mg/dL
Causes of high cholesterol:
• Lack of proper diet
What happens if one has high cholesterol?
High cholesterol can contribute to major health risk for heart and brain such as atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) which includes
Everyone irrespective of their age (preferably from 30 years of age) must have regular health check-ups with best diagnostic care centers and take the guidance of doctor to rule out incidence of hypo or hyper thyroid which has a bearing on cholesterol levels. And who have high cholesterol already, need to regularly monitor their Thyroid function closely. Like it? Share it! More by this author |