{"id":259,"date":"2025-07-18T06:31:11","date_gmt":"2025-07-18T06:31:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/flatplanplus.io\/bbc-sciencefocus\/?p=259"},"modified":"2025-07-18T06:31:13","modified_gmt":"2025-07-18T06:31:13","slug":"259","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/flatplanplus.io\/bbc-sciencefocus\/2025\/07\/18\/259\/","title":{"rendered":"We’re now closer than ever to curing high cholesterol. Here’s why"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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HEALTH<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The end of high cholesterol starts here<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

From wearable patches to one-time injections, revolutionary treatments promise to fix the problem forever<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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By JHENI OSMAN<\/p>\n\n\n\n

22 July 2025<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Photo credit: Getty<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

The Mona Lisa<\/em> \u2013 one of the most famous paintings in the world. But who is the dark-haired, oval-faced lady? The question has baffled scholars for centuries. Her taunting half-smile shrouding her true identity. The most likely candidate is believed to be Lisa Gherardini, the wife of a Florentine silk merchant. But the verdict is still out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While no one has discovered her identity, experts have been musing on whether she may have suffered from high cholesterol levels. Or, to be more specific, whether she suffered from a medical condition called familial hypercholesterolemia (FH).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The clue is in the fat deposits, faintly visible on her hands. The existence of these so-called \u2018xanthomas\u2019 could be evidence of the FH genetic disorder, which affects 1 in 200 adults, and is linked to high cholesterol and cardiovascular disease, such as heart disease and strokes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The full Mona Lisa<\/em> (left), painted by Leonardo da Vinci around 1503, alongside a close-up of her hands (right) \u2013 faint fat deposits may hint at high cholesterol levels. Photo credit: Getty<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Of course, \u2018Mona\u2019 didn\u2019t have to deal with the challenges of our modern lifestyle. Today, unhealthy ultra-processed diets and sedentary routines have made high cholesterol an epidemic. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In fact, about 1 in 3 adults in the US \u2013 and half the population in the UK \u2013 have cholesterol levels above what’s considered healthy. Globally, high cholesterol is linked to an estimated 3.6 million deaths each year \u2013 more than twice the number of people killed in car accidents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But here\u2019s the thing: not all cholesterol is bad. While often thought of as something unhealthy, the fatty substance can actually play a vital role in a healthy body: it helps make cell membranes, vitamin D and various hormones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eighty per cent of cholesterol is made in your liver, and only 20 per cent comes from food. Cholesterol is then carried through your bloodstream by LDL (low-density lipoprotein) and HDL (high-density lipoprotein). HDL cholesterol is known as \u2018good\u2019 cholesterol, as it transports cholesterol away from the arteries and back to the liver, where it is broken down and then excreted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

High levels of \u2018bad\u2019 LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) can clog up blood vessels, resulting in them becoming stiff and narrow, reducing blood flow and increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf you take a blood sample from someone with very high cholesterol, it almost looks like butter,\u201d says Prof Stephen Duncan, Chair of Regenerative Medicine and Cell Biology at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). \u201cIf untreated, individuals die young from cardiovascular failure, because they get a build-up of plaque.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n