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Lipids are naturally occurring substances that make up the building blocks of the structure and function of living cells. Examples include fats, waxes, triglycerides, and fat-soluble vitamins. Lipids are mainly made up of hydrocarbons in their most reduced form. They are an excellent form of energy storage, signaling, and acting as structural components of cell membranes.
Doctors may recommend a lipid profile blood test to measure different types of fats in the blood, such as triglycerides, total cholesterol, HDL ("good"), LDL ("bad") to assess the risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Why do you need this test?
This test, along with other risk factors, such as your blood pressure and whether you are a smoker, can help your doctor evaluate the health of your heart and blood vessels. Your doctor may recommend this test if you have certain risk factors, including:
- High blood pressure
- Difficulty in breathing
- Overweight or obesity
- Smoking habit
- Lack of regular exercise
- Diet high in unhealthy foods
- Diabetes or prediabetes
- Chronic Stress
Depending on the test results, an individual may be recommended treatment accordingly. You can search relevant diagnostic centres with the query lipid profile test near me.
Preparations
For optimal accuracy, fasting for 9-12 hours is needed for this test. The individual should not consume any food or drink, except water, during this fasting period. The test may be done first thing in the morning, just before breakfast, to make fasting easier. If someone has undergone a recent surgery, a heart attack or been unwell, it is important to take rest before having the test done. This will ensure accuracy. For the blood sample collection process, a trained phlebotomist will insert a needle in your arm to collect in a test tube. In case of pregnancy, it is important to wait until at least 6 weeks after the baby is born to have your cholesterol measured. This is because cholesterol rises higher during pregnancy.
