Malathy Iyer
TNN
Jun 7, 2014, 11.22 PM IST
...Another finding (click here) is the low levels of the good cholesterol or HDL among Indians. Dr Shashank Joshi, lead author of the study published in PLOS One medical journal last week, said low HDL level was the most common lipid abnormality among Indians. "Almost 72% of Indians have low levels of HDL."
The finding of the ICMR study that 72% Indians have low levels of the good cholesterol or HDL holds true across the country, be it in Mumbai, Chandigarh or Chennai.
"The reason could well be genetic, but we cannot rule out environmental reasons," said one of the authors of the study, Chennai-based Dr V Mohan. The study's lead author is Dr Shashank Joshi, endocrinologist from Lilavati Hospital, Bandra.
Indian diet is traditionally high on carbohydrates, which have been associated with high levels of fat or triglycerides. "When a person has high levels of triglycerides, he or she will have low levels of HDL. There is an inverse relationship between triglycerides and good cholesterol," added Dr Mohan. Almost 30% of Indians have high levels of triglycerides, according to the study....
There are multiple body systems involved in HDL.
New Insights Into the Regulation of HDL Metabolism and Reverse Cholesterol Transport (click here)
Figure 2. Intravascular modeling of HDL by lipases and lipid transfer factors is an important determinant of the rate of HDL clearance from the circulation....
