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Actionable suggestions for reducing cholesterol will be included in your report if your numbers are higher than they should be. If your results show that you have high cholesterol, a nurse will contact you to explain your numbers and discuss possible next steps. Taking a test that provides the wrong information is worse than taking no test at all.
If youre taking medications that could increase your cholesterol levels, such as birth control pills, your doctor may ask you to stop taking them a few days before your test. Home cholesterol tests, in contrast, don't offer any real advantages. They don't provide accurate information about your cardiovascular risk. Nor do they tell you much about the impact of diet or exercise on your cholesterol. The results won't give you the information you need to figure out your risk of having a heart attack or other cardiovascular problem. Nor will they help you check whether a diet and exercise program is working.
How do home kits measure cholesterol?
There are three types of at-home cholesterol test kits. "Patients should use at-home cholesterol test kits in conjunction with a medical evaluation and recommendation," says J.D. Zipkin, MD, Chief Medical Officer at GoHealth Urgent Care. If you know cholesterol is a problem for you, at home testing is an affordable way to monitor your levels and track any changes as you make adjustments to your diet.
It is vital for people to follow all directions provided with the test kit to get the most accurate results. This article examines why people should measure cholesterol, the home testing process, accuracy, and what the results may mean. A reliable and easy-to-follow home test to check overall cholesterol health.
Does Eating Oatmeal Help Lower Cholesterol
So it’s not surprising the self-testing medical industry is now worth an estimated £4.4 billion . You may need to fast for 8 to 12 hours before your cholesterol test. Be sure to ask your doctor how to prepare for the test.
It's important to get your cholesterol checked regularly. Too much cholesterol in your blood can cause a heart attack or a stroke. To use a cholesterol home test kit, you first prick your finger with the lancet.
A: Yes, you can now check your cholesterol at home!
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At-home testing may be less expensive than seeing your doctor, especially if you have no health insurance or a high deductible plan. If cost has been keeping you out of your doctor’s office, at-home testing has clear benefits. Sarah has over 10 years of experience teaching and practicing phlebotomy and intravenous therapy using physical, psychological, and emotional support. She received her Massage Therapist License from the Amarillo Massage Therapy Institute in 2008 and a M.S. Since every at home cholesterol kit is slightly different, it's important to read all the directions before you start the test.
However, they can provide information about your cholesterol level between appointments. Compare the color of your test strip to the provided color-coded chart. Pull out the labeled color chart that comes with your color-coded strip test kit. Hold your test strip up to the chart and find the closest color match. That color will correspond to a cholesterol range listed clearly on the chart.
If you’re sending your sample to a laboratory for analysis, you’ll fill a small vial with blood and mail it in a biohazard bag enclosed in a return envelope. Everlywell is HIPAA compliant and uses state-of-the-art, bank-grade encryption to protect your identity and results. We include products we think are useful for our readers. If you buy through links on this page, we may earn a small commission. Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 26,769 times.
This is sometimes given as a ratio, which is your total cholesterol divided by your HDL level, and it should be below 4. You can send your blood sample to a lab and wait to receive your results via mail or email. Because high cholesterol doesn’t have symptoms, many people don’t know their levels are high. Before purchasing one, check which lipid values are included in the test and whether the test is FDA-approved or, at the very least, FDA-cleared. It often helps to ask a pharmacist which test they recommend and why.
However, not all cholesterol home test kits you can buy meet the FDA’s stringent guidelines. If you have high cholesterol, your body may store the extra cholesterol in your arteries. These are blood vessels that carry blood from your heart to the rest of your body. A buildup of cholesterol in your arteries is known as plaque.
But if HDL cholesterol isn’t measured, knowing your total cholesterol levels still gives you valuable information. Getting your blood cholesterol, blood pressure, body mass index and fasting blood sugar measured regularly should be part of your overall personal care plan. Another electronic monitor, the Curo L7 cholesterol test kit, provides the best range of cholesterol test options. It reports six data points with just one blood sample—total cholesterol, HDL, LDL, LDL/HDL, non-HDL, and triglycerides. It uses profile cholesterol test strips that are capable of reporting your entire blood lipid panel instead of requiring a different type of test strip for every type of cholesterol.
LetsGetChecked Cholesterol Test
This will make it more difficult to interpret your test results. These tests have information about the test’s accuracy printed on the product label. A diet high in monounsaturated fats and omega-3s decreased triglyceride levels in 17 men with moderately increased triglycerides . Compared to a diet high in carbs, diets rich in protein and unsaturated fat reduced triglycerides by about 10 mg/dL in a study of 164 people with high blood pressure . High blood pressure doesnât always come with any warning signs.
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