What is cholesterol and why is it important?

Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance (lipid). Although it's often discussed as if it were a poison, you can't live without it. Cholesterol is essential to your body's cell membranes, to the insulation of your nerves and to the production of certain hormones. It's used by your liver to make bile acids, which help digest your food. The confusion that clouds cholesterol is partly due to the way some people use the word. The term "cholesterol" is often a catch-all term for both the cholesterol you eat and the cholesterol that is maintained in your body.

It is important that we understand the significance of cholesterol as it relates to our health. Specifically, the amount of different types of cholesterol in our blood is one of several key indicators of a person's potential for heart disease.