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Cholesterol and Your Heart’s Health

  • Published
  • By TRICARE.mil Staff
  • Communications Division, Defense Health Agency
FALLS CHURCH, Va. --  Cholesterol plays an important role in the health of your heart. A build-up of cholesterol and other deposits can block arteries and lead to coronary artery disease (CAD) – the most common type of heart disease in the United States.

Knowing if you have high cholesterol is important because it is one of a number of factors that determine your risk for CAD. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), for some people, the first sign of CAD is a heart attack. Certain lifestyle choices such as smoking, physical inactivity and diet also increase your risk.

Currently, TRICARE covers cholesterol testing every 5 years in adults age 20 and over, as recommended by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. Beneficiaries should talk to their primary care manager (PCM) for more information on preventive screenings, and what their specific needs are in order to stay heart healthy.

Beneficiaries using TRICARE Standard should note that cholesterol screenings are covered only when combined with an immunization, breast, cervical, colorectal or prostate cancer screening. Prime beneficiaries may receive clinical preventive services from their primary care manager or any network provider without a referral or authorization at no cost.

Your liver makes enough cholesterol for your body’s needs, but we often get more from the foods we eat. If we take in more cholesterol than the body can use, the extra cholesterol can build up in the walls of the arteries, including those of the heart. A blood test can detect the amount of cholesterol and triglycerides (a related kind of fat) in your blood.

For more information about coronary artery disease, visit the CAD page on the CDC’s website. For more information about your covered preventive services, go to the TRICARE website.