High LDL cholesterol levels reduce the risk of death

This study was published in the Journal of Internal Medicine 2010 Jun;267(6):576-87

 

Study title and authors:

Gender difference of association between LDL cholesterol concentrations and mortality from coronary heart disease amongst Japanese: the Ibaraki Prefectural Health Study.

Noda H, Iso H, Irie F, Sairenchi T, Ohtaka E, Ohta H.

Public Health, Department of Social and Environmental Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, Shuita-shi, Osaka, Japan.

 

This study can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20141564

One of the aims of the study was to investigate the relationship between low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels and total death rates. The study included 30,802 men and 60,417 women, aged 40 to 79 years with no history of stroke or coronary heart disease who were followed for ten years.

The study found:
(a) Men with the highest LDL cholesterol levels (over 140 mg/dL or 3.6 mmol/L) had a 29% reduced risk of death compared to men with the lowest LDL cholesterol levels (under 80 mg/dL or 2.0 mmol/L).
(b) Women with the highest LDL cholesterol levels (over 140 mg/dL or 3.6 mmol/L) had a 36% reduced risk of death compared to women with the lowest LDL cholesterol levels (under 80 mg/dL or 2.0 mmol/L).

This ten year study of 91,219 people reveals that men and women with the highest LDL cholesterol levels have around a 30% reduced risk of death compared to men and women with the lowest LDL cholesterol levels.