Is “good” cholesterol still good for you?

New research questions the benefit of drugs to raise HDL, but lifestyle steps to boost good cholesterol are still recommended.

One of the fundamentals of heart-healthy living is that if your LDL (bad) cholesterol is high, you need to take steps to lower it. After all, bad cholesterol contributes to artery-clogging plaque deposits. On the flip side, doctors encourage us to also raise our HDL (good) cholesterol. That’s because people with high HDL tend to be at lower risk of heart disease.

The HDL story became more complicated after findings from a recent Harvard study. Researchers pooled health information on more than 116,000 people genetically predisposed to produce higher-than-normal amounts of HDL. Surprisingly, this group did not show the predicted 13% lower risk of heart attack, which undermined the rationale for prescribing drugs to boost HDL.

“The study results suggest that just because an intervention raises HDL cholesterol, we cannot assume that the risk for heart attack will drop,” says Dr. Sekar Kathiresan, one of the lead researchers on the gene study and an associate professor of medicine at Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital.

Fortunately, the heart-healthy lifestyle that tends to raise HDL and lower LDL is still good for us. Here’s what the new science results mean for you.

HDL: Why we care

HDL cholesterol is thought to be healthy because it transports fat from the arteries into the liver for disposal or recycling. People with HDL levels above 60 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) tend to have a lower risk for heart disease. Not unreasonably, doctors and scientists assumed that deliberately boosting HDL would lower cardiac risk even more — much the same way that lowering bad cholesterol does.

A number of clinical trials have tested new drugs for raising HDL cholesterol, but so far the results have been disappointing. Currently, several medications can be used to raise HDL. However, the ultimate benefit of doing so remains unclear — especially when compared with the clear benefit of lowering LDL using statin drugs.

How to boost your good cholesterol

·?Exercise more:?Vigorous exercise is best for boosting your HDL (good) cholesterol, but any extra exercise is better than none.

·?Lose weight:?If you are overweight, losing 5% to 10% of your current weight can raise HDL, along with reducing blood pressure and blood sugar.

·?Avoid trans fats:?Not eating these artificial fats — found in hard margarines, many baked goods, and fried fast foods — raises HDL cholesterol. Reducing your intake also helps to lower LDL (bad) cholesterol.

·?Cut back on refined carbs:?Switch from refined carbohydrates (such ?as white bread) to whole grains. It also helps to add more lean protein to your diet.

·?Don't smoke:?Quitting smoking improves HDL and helps your health in many other ways.

If you drink alcohol, do so in moderation:?Moderate drinking means one or two drinks per day. Moderate alcohol consumption supports healthy HDL levels, but it isn't something you should start doing specifically to boost good cholesterol