# Cholesterol

> Cholesterol is not an essential nutrient. It is a type of sterol fat that is at best (as with HDL) unnecessary to get in one's diet, and at worst (as with LDL) exacerbates risks of heart disease and stroke. Your body naturally produces the cholesterol it needs - you do not need to consume cholesterol in your diet.

### Recommended Intake

The USDA recommends keeping dietary cholesterol "_as low as possible while consuming a nutritionally adequate diet_." The USDA also warns that "_high dietary fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol intakes are associated with increased risk for many diseases._"\
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Fortunately, you can completely eliminate cholesterol from your diet by eating plant-based: "_both plant and animal foods contain sterols, but only animal foods contain cholesterol._"\
[https://extension.okstate.edu/fact-sheets/dietary-fat-and-cholesterol.html](https://extension.okstate.edu/fact-sheets/dietary-fat-and-cholesterol.html)\
[https://www.nal.usda.gov/human-nutrition-and-food-safety/dri-calculator](https://www.nal.usda.gov/human-nutrition-and-food-safety/dri-calculator)\
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Increasing your consumption of plant sterols (phytosterols) can reduce the "bad" LDL cholesterol already in your system. Fruits, legumes, vegetables, and grains can all contain beneficial phytosterols.\
[https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/17368-phytosterols-sterols--stanols](https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/17368-phytosterols-sterols--stanols)

### Chemistry

Cholesterol is manufactured by the liver and transported on lipoproteins. We categorize these lipoproteins by high-density (HDL or "good") and low-density (LDL or "bad"). The reason for these "good" and "bad" terms is because "_higher LDL cholesterol **increases** your risk of heart disease. Higher HDL cholesterol **decreases** your risk of heart disease._"\
[https://www.cdc.gov/cholesterol/ldl\_hdl.htm](https://www.cdc.gov/cholesterol/ldl_hdl.htm)
