In general, you should start having your cholesterol level checked when you are about 20 years old. After that, you should have your cholesterol checked at least once every five years.
Depending on what your total cholesterol level is and whether you have other risk factors for heart disease, you may need to have your cholesterol checked more often. Home cholesterol test kits can be purchased from the pharmacy, and the result of the test can be input into the HealthReader. The cholesterol test measures the total cholesterol. Cholesterol is only one factor that can increase the risk of heart disease, see below, for other contributory factors.
Other contributory risk factors of heart disease may include:
- Family history of heart disease or high cholesterol
- Excess weight
- High alcohol intake
- High stress levels
- High blood pressure
- Diabetes
