Nutrition Handbook: Part 11 - Cholesterol is a Unique Essential Lipid

Cholesterol is a nutrient that is a type of solid waxy fat, in the zoosterol grouping, with a complex carbon ring structure that is produced by animals and humans in the liver and only found in animal foods.

Cholesterol is part of cell walls, brain tissue, the myelin sheath covering nerves, a component of bile acid, and used by the body to manufacture vitamin D and steroid hormones.

The steroid hormones that the body manufactures from cholesterol include sex and adrenal hormones:

High-density lipoprotein, shortened to HDL, is known as good cholesterol, and the more HDL compared to LDL one has is an indicator of healthy cholesterol and a healthy vascular system. Low-density lipoprotein, shortened to LDL, is known as bad cholesterol, and the more LDL compared to HDL one has is an indicator of unhealthy cholesterol and overexposure to the oxidative stress of free-radicals within the vascular system.