Does your child have high cholesterol? (High Cholesterol in Children) - Let's talk about this!

We often think of cholesterol as a disease that only adults, especially those who grow older, don't we? But in fact, even our little children, that is, school-age children, can develop this condition of high cholesterol. Perhaps you feel very scared and worried when you see that your child's blood report shows high cholesterol. You may be thinking, "Oh, how did this happen to my little one?" Don't worry. This is a condition that is now seen among many children. The most important thing is to be properly informed about this and take the necessary steps. Let's talk about everything in a simple way that you can understand.

Simply put, what is causing these children's cholesterol to rise?

Okay, first let's understand what cholesterol is. Cholesterol and triglycerides are two types of fats in our blood. We call these lipids. Our bodies need some of these lipids for many important functions, such as building cells and producing hormones. That means they're not all bad things.

But the problem starts when these lipid levels increase beyond the required amount. Just like a dish needs a little salt, if there is too much salt, you can't eat it. When these cholesterol levels increase, they gradually start to deposit on the walls of our blood vessels. Over time, these can block the blood vessels and pave the way for serious diseases like heart disease and stroke.

So how do we know if a child's cholesterol level is good or bad? The blood test for this is called a lipid profile . This mainly looks at the following:

• LDL cholesterol: This is what we call "bad cholesterol." This is what deposits in the blood vessels and blocks them.
• HDL cholesterol: We call this "good cholesterol." It helps carry bad cholesterol to the liver and remove it from the body. So the higher the HDL level, the better.
• Triglycerides: This is another type of fat. It's not good to have too much of this either.
• Total Cholesterol: This is a combination of all of the above.

Children's levels are slightly different from the average levels for adults. You can get an idea of ​​this from the table below.

What symptoms does a child show when their cholesterol is high?

This is one of the biggest challenges here. Usually, a child's cholesterol is high, but there are no outward symptoms. The child may appear to be playing and jumping around and looking very healthy. That's why it's important to check the cholesterol levels of children if anyone in the family has cholesterol or heart disease.

However, very rarely, if cholesterol levels become too high, especially due to genetic causes, symptoms such as:

• Fatty deposits on the skin (Xanthoma): Sometimes yellowish, waxy lumps can form under the skin in places like the elbows, knees, and buttocks.
• Yellow lumps near the eyelid (Xanthelasma): Yellow lumps may appear on the inside of the eye, above or below the eyelid.
• Corneal Arcus: A white or gray ring may appear around the cornea.

These symptoms are very rare. Therefore, it is wise to talk to your doctor and get a blood test if you are at risk, rather than waiting for symptoms to appear.

Why does a child's cholesterol increase?

There could be several reasons for this. It could be not just one reason, but a combination of several reasons.

1. Diet: This is the main reason and one that we can easily change. If you regularly feed your child foods high in oil and fat, especially fast food, bakery foods, packaged foods, and sugary drinks that are high in saturated fat and trans fat, there is a high chance that your child will have high cholesterol.

2. Lack of physical activity: Nowadays, many children spend more time on their phones, tablets, and in front of the TV than going outside and playing. When exercise is reduced, the body does not burn fat. This can increase bad cholesterol (LDL) and decrease good cholesterol (HDL).

3. Other medical conditions: Some medical conditions such as obesity , diabetes , and nephrotic syndrome can also cause high cholesterol levels in a child.

4. Genetics: This is also a very important factor. If either the mother or father, or a close family member, has high cholesterol, or has had heart disease at a young age, then the child is also at risk of having high cholesterol genetically.

Let's take a look at these genetic causes.

Sometimes, no matter how thin a child is or how well they eat, their cholesterol can still be high. The reason for this is genetics.

• Familial Hypercholesterolemia (FH): This is a genetic condition. This is a condition in which a child is born with very high levels of LDL ("bad") cholesterol. This can happen to a child if they inherit the gene from either their mother or father. Usually, doctors suspect FH if a child's LDL level is higher than 160 mg/dL for no other reason.
• Polygenetic Causes: This is when a child inherits multiple genes that increase cholesterol from both the mother and father. In this case, cholesterol levels increase gradually and only become more severe during adolescence.

There is another type of cholesterol called Lipoprotein (a) . This is also genetic. When this level increases, the risk of heart disease increases.

What problems can arise in the future from increased cholesterol?

Why are we so concerned about high cholesterol in a child? Because if left unchecked at a young age, it can cause serious health problems in adulthood.

As mentioned earlier, excess LDL cholesterol builds up in the blood vessels. This is called atheroma . This causes the blood vessels to gradually narrow and harden. This is why:

• If the arteries that supply blood to the heart become blocked , a heart attack can occur.
• If the blood vessels supplying blood to the brain become blocked , a stroke can occur.
• Peripheral Artery Disease can occur if the veins that supply blood to the legs become blocked.

These things don't happen overnight, but over years. That's why recognizing and managing this at an early age is a great investment in a child's entire future.

What should we do to control our child's cholesterol levels?

The good news is that this condition is very manageable. The doctor's first line of treatment is lifestyle changes.

Step One: Diet and Exercise

Before resorting to medication, every doctor tries to control cholesterol levels through these two methods. Your contribution is essential for this.

• Low-fat foods: Reduce the total amount of fat in the foods you feed your child. Especially, you should reduce the excessive use of processed meats , sausages , full-fat milk and cheese , butter , palm oil , and coconut oil .
• Choose good fats: Instead of bad fats, add good fats like olive oil , avocado , and fish oil to your diet.
• Fiber-rich foods: Eat more fiber-rich foods like vegetables, fruits, legumes, oats, red rice, chickpeas, lentils, and chickpeas. These reduce the absorption of cholesterol in the body.
• Cut down on sugary drinks and sugar: Reduce your intake of sugary foods like packaged fruit drinks, carbonated drinks (soda), cakes, biscuits, and chocolates as much as possible. These increase triglyceride levels.
• Exercise: Encourage your child to play for at least an hour a day. It can be anything from riding a bike, running, jumping, or swimming. Exercising as a family can be a great way to keep your child engaged.

Step Two: Medication (prescription) only if necessary

If your child's cholesterol levels do not decrease after about 6 months of making the lifestyle changes mentioned above, or if the levels are very high, the doctor may decide to prescribe medication. Medication is usually started for children over 8 years of age.

The most commonly prescribed medication is a class of drugs called statins (e.g., Atorvastatin, Rosuvastatin). These work by reducing cholesterol production in the liver and removing excess cholesterol from the blood.

How can I, as a parent, help my child?

You have a big role to play in this journey. You can't do this by scolding or restricting your child. You need to understand him and get him used to this with love.

1. Get the whole family together: Don't make this a punishment for just the child. Rather than saying, "You're the only one who can't eat oil," it's a great encouragement for the child to have the whole family get used to the same eating pattern by saying, "Let's all eat healthy now."

2. Change the way you prepare food: Instead of deep frying, try methods like boiling, grilling, baking, and air frying . When cooking a curry, it is much better to make it in a milky broth than frying it in oil.

3. Read labels: When buying food from the store, look at the amount of "Saturated Fat" and "Trans Fat" on the label. Choose the ones with the lowest amounts of these.

4. Healthy Snacks: Do you feed your child packaged food in the afternoon? Instead, try giving them a piece of fruit, yogurt, vegetable pieces (carrots, cucumbers), boiled chickpeas, and green beans.

5. Visit the doctor regularly: Take your child for checkups and clinics as prescribed by the doctor. It is very important to monitor progress.

Think about it, this is an investment you're making in your child's future. By instilling these habits at a young age, he'll learn to live a healthy life even when he grows up.

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