7 Health Indicators That Are More Dangerous Than Cholesterol！
Author: Deborah NG SJ
We are all afraid of heart disease ......
The thought of cardiovascular disease (CVD) often brings anxiety because it can strike without warning, and the symptoms may be subtle until it’s too late.
But do you know how widespread and frightening it is? According to the World Health Organization (WHO) (1), each year:
Currently, 1 in 12 people globally is living with heart disease.
The British Heart Foundation (BHF) reports that 640 million individuals are affected by CVD (2).
In 1990, only 305 million people were living with cardiovascular disease globally (2).
As such, there is an increase of:
1） C-Reactive Protein (CRP): The Strongest Early Warning Sign of Heart Risk
Cholesterol tests only tell you how much cholesterol is circulating in your blood.
Cholesterol by itself does not “attack” or irritate your arteries without inflammation.
Inflammation determines when it explodes, leading to a heart attack.
Mayo Clinic indicated that (3)
patients who have had a heart attack are more likely to have another heart
attack if they have a high hs-CRP level.
High-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) test for heart disease
A high sensitive-CRP test can help diagnose chronic inflammatory diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis or lupus.
What is an ESR test? It measures how
quickly red blood cells settle in a test tube within one (1) hour.
· When the body experiences
inflammation, extra proteins (such as fibrinogen) cause red blood cells to
clump together and fall more quickly, creating a high ESR.
In contrast, a low ESR is generally good.
Why? Because it means that your blood is not full of inflammatory proteins, so your red blood cells settle more slowly.
ESR responds more slowly than CRP but still
reflects chronic and long-term inflammation.
So, what is the
relationship between a high ESR and CVD death?
Research from 603 patients followed for over 15 years with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) found that people with very high ESR (≥60) on 3 separate tests (inflammation stayed for a longer period) were (5) :
High Cholesterol does not equal =
high-fat obesity!
Did you know that Cholesterol is NOT fat, and your body fat does not lead to an increase in Cholesterol?
They are two very distinctive substances with completely different roles in your body.
For example, people like Lean Mass Hyper-Responders (LMHR) can have very low body fat and still show high LDL levels due to metabolic adaptations, even though their body and belly fat are low.
What is more concerning?
Visceral Fat measured by waist size consistently outperformed BMI in predicting heart attack and stroke.
Abdominal Fat and Cardiovascular Risk
Researchers reviewed 28 studies involving over 647,000 people (7) and found that:
*Every +5 BMI score (13 to 15 kg in an average-weight adult) increased heart failure risk by 41%.
*But Belly fat was an even stronger predictor:
Abdominal Fat (visceral Fat) is more deadly than gaining Fat in other body areas because Fat stored around organs triggers inflammation and insulin resistance.
How did you gain Abdominal Fat?
4) Liver Health
- The Overlooked Root Cause of Heart Disease
What if your GGT is over 80? It is a hazardous sign, and you should really be taking proactive action!
Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) is associated with 60% of increased CVD risk globally (8) – with both Elevated GGT and ALT.
(gamma-glutamyl transferase) -GGT
On the contrary, a GGT <20 suggests low carbohydrate intake, particularly low refined carbs and sugar, and -
For very lean individuals, GGT should aim for <10.
ALT (alanine aminotransferase) should be = or < than AST (aspartate aminotransferase)
- ALT is mainly released from liver cells when they are irritated by fat buildup.
- AST can come from many other tissues (muscles, heart, etc.).
- Therefore, when your ALT > AST, the pattern usually signals fat stored in the liver, indicating fatty liver.
- The ideal ratio for non-fatty liver of ALT and AST should be close to 1:1:
- For active individuals, a slight AST-to-ALT difference (E.g. AST slightly > ALT) typically indicates healthy muscle activity, good muscle turnover, and adaptation to aerobic exercise.
5) Blood Sugar Markers: HbA1c & Fasting Insulin - HOMA-IR
Why? Because chronic high insulin promotes the IGF-1 growth pathway and
inflammation.
Cancer is a metabolic disorder.
People with insulin resistance who have
suffered from cancer before are more likely to have a higher cancer recurrence
rate and tend to have lower overall survival rates (9).
So, what is the ideal range (10) ?
HbA1c reflects 3-month blood sugar exposure
Individuals who are already in a pre-diabetic condition should
prioritize reversing HbA1c first to achieve optimal
insulin sensitivity.
Generally, the HbA1c test shows how much glucose has been sticking to your red blood cells.
Higher A1c means = more glycation,
which stiffens blood vessels and accelerates plaque formation!
6) HDL & Triglyceride Ratio (The Best Lipid Predictor of Heart Risk)
6.1) The importance
of High HDL
High HDL cholesterol improves reverse cholesterol transport by
helping remove excess cholesterol from arterial walls and carrying it back to
the liver for clearance.
A large pooled analysis of 302,430 individuals (11) showed people with higher HDL had 29% lower risk of getting coronary
artery disease (CAD).
6.2) High Triglycerides = The Killer
Researchers analyzed 61 studies involving over 726,000 people
and found a clear pattern of high Triglycerides (TG) and overall death (12) :
- Low TG (<90 mg/dL or 1.02 mmol/L)
→ 17% lower cardiovascular death risk
- High TG (≥200 mg/dL or 2.26 mmol/L)
→ 25% higher cardiovascular death risk
Why do you have a high TG?
6.3) TG/HDL ratio is far more important than LDL!
TG/HDL ratio:
Ideal: <1.0 and <0.5 for best metabolic health
Acceptable: <1.5 (moderate risk) - Early signs of impaired insulin sensitivity & fatty liver progression!
6.4) Why LDL alone is NOT reliable?
Low LDL but Fatty
liver? Possible!
Liver inflammation
→ insulin resistance → high triglycerides
When the liver is inflamed, it cannot process fats, leading to excess triglycerides and VLDL spilling into the blood.
7) Blood Pressure
(The Most Immediate, Measurable Heart Risk)
When blood pressure is high for too long, it can damage the walls of
blood vessels, leading to tiny tears.
As highlighted by the American Heart Association (13), it is driven by excess refined carbs and sugar.
AHA now lists high blood sugar, triglycerides, waist circumference, and low HDL as strong links to high BP.
7.1 Did you know when
stroke risk starts to rise?
When your BP is above 115/75 mmHg (14)!
7.2 BP Ideal range with Pulse Pressure (PP)
Ideal Daily BP Range:
• Optimal: 100-115 / 60–75 mmHg
• "Pulse pressure" (systolic – diastolic) should stay 35–45
mmHg.
Why abnormal pulse pressure (PP): the gap between SYS-DIA) is important?
7.3 Resting Heart Rate
(RHR)
If you exercise, you should aim for an (RHR) < 60 bpm.
This generally reflects strong cardiovascular conditioning because the heart pumps
more efficiently with each beat.
7.4 Heart Rate Recovery
(HRR):
HRR is how much your heart rate drops in the first 1 minute after
exercise.
Study found that (15) people with heart rate dropped less than (HRR1
≤ 12 bpm) had a 65% higher death rate!
How to measure Heart rate recovery (HRR)?
8. Heart Risk Checker
Maintaining low
inflammation, healthy liver enzymes, and optimal metabolic markers are combined
factors that effectively protect your heart.
Now, use this
checklist to quickly identify your hidden risks:
(Click the image for clearer view/Download):
1.
World
Health Organization: Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs)
2.
British
Heart Foundation: Global Cardiovascular Disease Factsheet
3.
Mayo
Clinic: C-reactive protein test
5.
National Library of
Medicine: Cardiovascular co-morbidity in rheumatic diseases
9.
Current Oncology (MDPI): Insulin
Resistance: The Increased Risk of Cancers
13.
American Heart Association: Health
Threats from High Blood Pressure
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