Your Good Health: Yes, even children can have cholesterol problems

Dear Dr. Donohue: My daughter, age 12, has a cholesterol level of 216. Her pediatrician says this is too high. I thought that 200 was normal, and she’s not far from that. The doctor wants to recheck her. If her number stays the same, what would you recommend? I don’t like the idea of giving her drugs. — K.O.

Answer: The normal cholesterol value for children isn’t the same as a normal value for adults. The average cholesterol reading for children her age is 160 mg/dL (4.1 mmol/L). The 75th percentile for children her age is 173 (4.5). The 75th percentile means 75 percent of 12-year-old children have a cholesterol level less than that.

High cholesterol in childhood assures high cholesterol in adulthood and, at a young age, the serious heart consequences that come from such an elevation. Autopsies on many young soldiers in the Vietnam War showed that their arteries were beginning to close off from cholesterol buildup. They were in the late teens or early 20s.

Experts recommend that any child with a cholesterol level higher than the 75th percentile make serious efforts to lower it. These children must exercise daily. Your daughter can do any activity she likes — like jumping rope, jogging, swimming, dancing or brisk walking — but she has to get in 30 minutes of exercise. She should keep fatty foods and cholesterol-rich foods to a minimum. If she’s overweight, she has to restrict calories too.

Changing a child’s diet is serious business. Children are growing, and slipshod restrictions of food could affect their health. A dietitian can guide you in proper nutrition for her diet.

She must stay on the diet and exercise program for six months to a year before being retested. If there has been no change in her cholesterol by then, medicines should be considered.

The cholesterol booklet helps explain this confusing subject. Readers can obtain a copy by writing: Dr. Donohue — No. 201W, Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475. Enclose a check or money order (no cash) for $4.75 U.S./$6.75 Canada with the recipient’s printed name and address. Please allow four weeks for delivery.