We all know the importance of lowering our cholesterol. Most adults are aware of the dangers involved of having high blood cholesterol levels. The more savvy of us know that the risk lies especially in the LDL cholesterol also referred to as the bad cholesterol for its tendency to clog the arteries. LDL needs to be reduced to a level that eliminates the danger along with lowering the overall total blood cholesterol. But how much is enough? From a study that has been conducted recently I appears the very few adults, even those who take statin drug therapy to educe cholesterol actually know the answer to that question.

It seems that we miss something very important in our plan to reduce cholesterol. We lack an essential factor, which will help us to better understand what should be the border of our efforts. In simple terms we need goal setting. It appears that federal guidelines are even more confusing, as people with high cholesterol seem to lack the necessary education regarding the ‘why’, ‘how’ and ‘when’ when it comes to lowering cholesterol.

Managing cholesterol is all about understanding why one should reduce cholesterol, the realistic means to do that and how to set the correct and goal. Every individual is different; since blood cholesterol is determined by many factors so will the goal your physician will put you through. It will not be the same as the goal of another patient, even with the same numbers.

Basically, your total cholesterol level should not exceed 200mg/dl and your LDL levels should be below 100mg/dl.

More adults are confused as to the way they should manage their cholesterol levels and about goal setting in general. From recent survey it appears that the majority of adults with high cholesterol wish their doctors would share more information and guidance regarding cholesterol management. More than half of the people on the survey did not know to what level should they lower their LDL cholesterol.

The GOAL Standard Campaign that was initiated by Women Heart and the Association of Black Cardiologists, Inc, has been aimed at educating people with high cholesterol levels regarding practical ways to lower cholesterol, goal setting and cholesterol management in general.