Cholesterol is not soluble in water and in blood too. For its transportation through the blood vessels, special protein compounds are used. These compounds conditionally divide it into 2 types: “bad” and “good”. “Bad” cholesterol is transported and accumulated in the tissues of the body while “good” cholesterol accumulates the excess of lipids and washes them out.
Cholesterol in the blood is always bound to lipids, proteins, and other substances. Such complexes are called lipoproteins. Namely on the composition of the substances in the complexes depends whether cholesterol is “bad” or “good”.
For example, in the composition of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) the cholesterol it is “bad”. The cholesterol from these complexes settles on the walls of blood vessels, forming the so-called cholesterol plaques. Triglycerides (fats) that make the most part of lipoproteins behave in a similar way. But “good” cholesterol is found in high-density lipoprotein (HDL). In this form, it is transferred from the plaques themselves and from other organs to the liver where it is processed. That is, HDL even has a preventive and slightly therapeutic effect.
The “bad” cholesterol is in excess in the presence of negative factors including animal fats consumption but for “good” cholesterol good fats such as Omega-3 found in fish and nuts are needed.
The causes of plaques in the vessels are actually not the level of cholesterol. Cholesterol is a building material that is used to repair damages. It means to minimize the risks of cardiovascular diseases due to cholesterol it is important to eliminate the cause of damage to blood vessels, and not the means that repair them.