How Early Should You Get Your Cholesterol Checked?

Some recent news has raised the question as to when cholesterol levels need to be checked. High cholesterol is a risk factor for heart disease, and with heart disease being the number one cause of death in the US, lowering cholesterol early is a special concern to prevent heart disease. The current guidelines set forth by the National Cholesterol Education Program state that cholesterol should be checked at least every five years when you turn twenty years of age. However, a recent study published in the British Medical Journal suggests that healthcare providers should begin to check cholesterol levels in children as young as 15 months of age!

The study seemed to be most concerned about a form of high cholesterol known as familial hypercholesterolemia, which is rare and mostly runs in families. Although children and young adults may have this condition and have high cholesterol, it often isn't checked because cholesterol screening isn't included in a child's physical. The researchers, however, found that screening children between the ages of one and nine years of age was the most effective in discovering this condition.

I wouldn't add a cholesterol screening to your physical and child's immunization schedule just yet. This is just one study, and more need to be performed to look further into this. I suppose the question I have is this: What happens if your 15 month child has high cholesterol? Would they be placed on medication at an early age? Would they need to restrict the amount of fat in their diet? These are questions that would need to be addressed, so definitely stay tuned on this budding subject...