If you have a need to reduce cholesterol you may be resigned to the annual visit to the doctor’s office for a regular series of blood tests.

 

One such test looks for three specific numbers that tell your doctor pertty much everything he needs to know about your cholesterol levels.

 

The blood test looks at your measurements fro Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL), High Density Lipoprotein (HDL) and total cholesterol. Your doctor or health care provider is then able to tell you the significance of the numbers.

 

You may be happy to visit your doctor on a regular basis and you should certainly let your health care provider give you regular advice on any treatments necessary, but if you're visiting annually there's a long time between one test and another. Your cholesterol levels could certainly spike before your next visit and as we all know early detection and action can make a big difference to your overall health.

 

Home testing of cholesterol is an excellent way to take an active part in controlling your cholesterol levels. Early warning helps you make suitable changes and avoid major problems later on. You shouldn't use home testing instead of physician testing, but it's a good way to see how effective your ongoing efforts are when trying to control your cholesterol.

 

Most simple home cholesterol tests give you an indication of whether your cholesterol is “desirable,” “borderline-high,” or “high risk for heart disease” levels. For more precise readings you need to look at more sophisticated home testing.

 

One of the simplest home cholesterol testing kits is available at your local pharmacy without prescription. All you do is prick your finger and test the blood on a special strip of paper. If the reading indicates borderline, or high you should see your doctor for a more precise test.

 

You can also get very precise readings from some of the hi-tec home cholesterol test monitors. For anyone who needs to be very accurate about their cholesterol levels, these monitors are ideal, although they are pricey. Running hundreds of dollars they are very much the luxury end of the testing market.