High cholesterol has a lot of life threatening effects on the body. It does not develop overnight but stretches over a period of many years. It generally happens due to a medical condition known as atherosclerosis. This condition is related to the loss of flexibility and narrowing of the arteries. The effects of atherosclerosis are coronary heart disease, heart stroke, heart attack and angina. The only way to avoid these health risks is by reducing the level of blood cholesterol.

The high levels of cholesterol a leads to the condition of atherosclerosis or the stiffening and narrowing of the arteries. If the body experiences higher cholesterol levels over a long period, the LDLs leave behind cholesterol in the blood stream thus putting extra load on the HDLs to remove the excess cholesterol. Eventually, the HDLs fail to flush out the excess cholesterol and leads to cholesterol build up on the walls of the arteries besides accumulation of fats and other waste material. This accumulated cholesterol is known as Plaque. As the quantity of plaque in the arteries increases, they get narrower and obstruct the normal flow of blood.

The condition of atherosclerosis has the potential of affecting any of the blood vessels inside the body resulting in any of the medical conditions like angina, heart arrhythmia, Mini stroke or TIA, high blood pressure, Peripheral artery disease, coronary heart disease and stroke. The severity of the above medical conditions depends on whether atherosclerosis affects the arteries completely or partially. The people who have a higher level of cholesterol are most prone to suffer from the atherosclerosis of the arteries present in the heart.

The coronary arteries are special arteries that are concerned with the transportation of blood to the heart. High cholesterol levels of the blood can result into the accumulation of plaques in these arteries. If arteries get blocked (partially or fully) then the flow of blood to the heart is hindered. Due to the narrowing of the passage the Oxygenated blood in the body gets reduced. The above scenario leads to a condition known as CAD or Coronary artery disease.

The areas of the heart where there is an accumulation of plaque can cause severe pains and is known as angina. Angina is the result of reduction in the flow of oxygenated blood to the heart. It is a symptom for the dreaded Coronary artery disease.

Plaques are also the reason behind heart attack. A heart attack can occur when thin plaques release cholesterol and fat into blood on bursting. The released cholesterol and fat hinders the flow of blood. This can result into a heart attack or angina.

There are no specific reasons for the occurrence of plaque in the body, but their build up results into irregular blood supply to various essential tissues of the body causing death. The only solution to the above problem is the reduction in the blood cholesterol level. Proper eating habit and a healthy lifestyle can help you achieve this and tide over the effects of high cholesterol.