Dietary Cholesterol: Sources, Impact & Health Implications

Dietary cholesterol is a type of cholesterol found in food. It is commonly associated with fatty foods, such as eggs and steak. Physicians recommend avoiding dietary cholesterol to lower the risk of developing heart disease or high cholesterol.

Function

• According to Northwestern University, dietary cholesterol helps produce steroid hormones and Vitamin D. It also helps produce bile.

Identification

• Dietary cholesterol is found in animal byproducts, including fatty meat, milk, butter and fish.

Size

• The American Heart Association recommends eating less than 300 milligrams of cholesterol per day. This is equivalent to one and a half eggs or 12 oz. of beef.

Effects

• Dietary cholesterol raises bad cholesterol, or LDL. It also increases the dietary fat you consume---most foods that contain it also have high levels of fat.

Considerations

• People who have high LDL levels due to genetics are recommended to eat less foods with dietary cholesterol, 200 milligrams or less per day. People who are susceptible to heart disease are recommended to eat less dietary cholesterol to lower their risk.