What is good cholesterol?
Cholesterol is fatty substance that is a by-product of normal liver metabolism. While many people become alarmed at the mere mention of the word, cholesterol is actually necessary for a number of biological processes. For instance, the body requires cholesterol in order to manufacture vitamin D. It is also needed to produce bile acid to promote proper digestion and to manufacture androgenic hormones. However, there is a key difference between good cholesterol and bad cholesterol. Since various cells utilize cholesterol, it must be transported through the bloodstream to get where it is needed. This is especially true since cholesterol is insoluble in blood. The vehicle comes in a type of lipid called a lipoprotein. Lipoproteins are designated as being either low-density or high-density. Good cholesterol is also known as HDL cholesterol because its mode of transportation comes from high-density lipoproteins. In contrast, bad cholesterol, or LDL cholesterol, is moved through the blood ste
