A viewer asks: “High cholesterol is said to be a major risk factor for heart disease. It is said that LDL(bad) cholesterol should be less than 100 mg/dL HDL (good) should be 40 mg/dL or higher for men and 50 mg/dL or higher for women. Triglycerides should be less than 150 mg/dL. Many different types of drinks, including green tea, oat drinks, soy drinks, and plant milk smoothies, contain compounds that may help reduce or manage cholesterol levels. Several studies, for example, have demonstrated the beneficial effects of tomato juice on cholesterol metabolism. How accurate and reliable are these suggested levels of cholesterol, and are the drinks suggested one effective method (among many) to optimize levels?” What is Creator’s perspective?

We can tell you with confidence that the entire discussion of lipid biochemistry, as the key to heart health and maintenance, is misguided. It is a combination of statistical data showing correlations but not a causal relationship, along with medical conjecture based on chemical analysis of arterial plaques with relatively poor understanding of the nuances of biochemistry, concluding falsely that this is a kind of plumbing problem where the sludge is clinging to the pipes and causing obstruction, putting the patient in danger of inadequate blood flow, and thus promoting heart disease and potentially lethal heart attack. We are being simplistic for a reason. Even when this is dressed up with much medical jargon and terminology, as contained in your question, we can tell you that fighting lipid levels in the bloodstream will not be an effective answer for coronary health and longevity. Many of the medications intended to do so are actually more harmful than helpful because of the many side effects they cause. It is a kind of folly that is perpetuated even though the science is providing more and more powerful counterarguments for the assumptions in your question. If you look at the scientific literature, you will find many who disagree based on scientific observations. So, at one time, this was the best guess du jour, that cholesterol is the culprit. That led to the refinement, looking at other lipids and subtypes and the ratios present in health and disease, and drawing inferences to implicate them in a causal relationship with pathology. That is often a trap because, while logical, it might not be representing truth but only coincidence. The major problem with heart disease is biowarfare conducted against humanity with chronic viruses, which are the culprit underlying coronary artery disease and heart failure, which are on the rise.