Eye Check May Show Cholesterol Buildup
When the level of bad cholesterol inside your body skyrockets, plaque will develop inside your arteries, strain them and cause blockage that restricts your blood flow. Any parts of your body that are passed by your arteries can show the symptom of high cholesterol. The retina of your eyes has many tiny blood vessels. Therefore, if your physician or eye specialist tells you that you have cholesterol in your eyes, she actually sees cholesterol buildup in your eyes’ blood vessels. In fact, blood vessels located in your retina are often used to identify whether or not you have cholesterol problem. Those blood vessels are the only blood vessels in your body that are the most obvious to the naked eyes as blood vessels located at other parts of your body are concealed under your skin.
Is Cholesterol in Your Eyes a Serious Problem?
Is the visible cholesterol buildup in your eyes a serious problem? It can be a serious problem if you don’t respond to it properly. When cholesterol begins to be visible in your eyes, you have to be aware that systemic health problems may take place very soon afterwards. The visibility of cholesterol buildup in your eyes is a sign that you have cholesterol problem. The high level of cholesterol in your body may be caused either by your unhealthy lifestyle or by familial hypercholesterolemia that you may have. In the first case, you may have consumed too much food that is rich in cholesterol, saturated fat or trans fat. You may also rarely perform exercises, thereby allowing your body weight to increase uncontrollably. In the second case, your body may genetically produce more cholesterol than normal. In this case, you will always have high cholesterol level in your body even if you have improved your lifestyle.
Symptoms that Appear
Besides the appearance of cholesterol deposit in your retina, there are other symptoms in your eyes that may indicate that you have cholesterol problem. Fatty skin deposit, which is also referred to as xanthoma, may appear in your cornea and xanthelasma or yellowish deposit of fat may appear around your eyelids. Xanthomas may also appear on other parts of your body, especially elbows, knees and ankles.
Dangers that May Threaten You
The appearance of those symptoms is a sign that forthcoming dangers caused by cholesterol problem may occur. If those symptoms have started to appear, you should beware of such systemic diseases as heart diseases, high blood pressure, stroke, diabetes, and peripheral vascular diseases. Your eyes where the symptoms become apparent may also be affected. If your eye specialist has detected visible cholesterol deposit in your retinal blood vessels, she possibly warn you that you may be suffering from retinal vein occlusion, a painless eye disorder that causes you to suddenly experience vision loss.
What Should You Do to Avoid Them
If you are aware of the dangers that may threaten you, you should start to improve your lifestyle. Avoid anything that may cause cholesterol buildup in your body. If have familial hypercholesterolemia, consult your doctor and discuss about the possibility of taking statin.
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