National Cholesterol Education Program Promotes Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes and Healthier Lives

In 1985, the National Cholesterol Education Program was established by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute with the aim of educating professionals as well as the public regarding benefits of reducing cholesterol levels in order to lessen the risk of coronary heart disease. The National Cholesterol Education Program increases the awareness of people via a cooperative effort between groups of practitioners, public health professionals, community and voluntary organizations, state as well as local government officials as also healthcare administrators. Interest groups that participate in the National Cholesterol Education Program need to communicate two important messages to the public as well as healthcare professionals that provide treatment. Firstly, they need to convey the message that it is important to know the cholesterol level and to take preventive measures when the levels are high, thereby reducing the risk of heart diseases. Secondly, there should be encouragement given to all Americans to adopt a lifestyle that is healthy, especially when it concerns the heart, and includes eating foods with less of saturated fat and cholesterol while also remaining physically active and keeping weight under control.

Two Important Messages

There are two principles that are the basis of the National Cholesterol Education Program and these include basing their educational incentives and messages on sound scientific evidence as well as also making a number of public and private healthcare organizations its partner for the development as well as carrying out of the campaign. In its basic form, the National Cholesterol Education Program has been designed to lessen the illness and death consequent to coronary heart disease in the United States through achieving a reduction in the percentage of Americans having high blood cholesterol. Its goal is to meet, on a recurring basis, and to review on a continuous scientific basis, all about atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease as well as make simplified, consensus, committee recommendations that are promoted to reduce the incidence of disability and death that result from atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.

It is important to know your cholesterol numbers and realize the attendant risks and give yourself a therapeutic lifestyle change (TLC) that, an estimated 65 million American adults with high blood cholesterol, need to lessen their cholesterol and subsequently lessen the risk of heart disease. It is publications such as Your Guide to Lowering Your Cholesterol With TLC that is based on the National Cholesterol Education Program's Adult Treatment Panel III, that provide useful details regarding three part programs that use diet, physical activity as well as weight management to combat and lessen cholesterol levels and thus promotes a healthier way of living that are of great practical value in keeping cholesterol within limits.