Share on Pinterest Actress Gina Torres shares how she helped her parents manage their health after they were diagnosed with high cholesterol, and how she maintains healthy levels herself. Photo by Andy Friedman Primetime TV star Gina Torres shares how her parents struggled with heart health. Torres spreads awareness about “bad” cholesterol. Experts share how knowing your cholesterol levels can help keep your heart healthy.
Actress Gina Torres learned to be a health advocate at a young age: Both of her parents were diagnosed with high LDL cholesterol, the “bad” cholesterol that increases the risk of coronary artery disease.
“Maybe years of eating Cuban food was taking a toll on my body, and maybe I wasn't advocating for myself medically very well,” Torres told Healthline.
Her parents spoke Spanish and were not fluent in English, so she acted as a translator during doctor's appointments.
“At that time, there were not many drugs to control LDL. [helping my parents] “It requires a lifestyle change,” Torres said.
Studies have shown that Hispanic adults are more likely than non-Hispanic white adults to experience major risk factors for cardiovascular disease, including obesity, hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, pregnancy-induced hypertension, psychological stress, and emerging cardiovascular disease risk factors such as occupational exposures.
According to the American Heart Association (AHA), the optimal total cholesterol level is about 150 mg/dL, and the optimal LDL cholesterol level is below 100 mg/dL. People who maintain these levels have a lower chance of developing heart disease and stroke.
But about 50 percent of Mexican men and women over the age of 20 have total cholesterol levels above 200 mg/dL, and about 40 percent have “bad” LDL cholesterol levels above 130 mg/dL, putting them at increased risk for developing heart disease, according to the AHA report.
“The tricky thing about 'bad' cholesterol is that, unlike a cold or fever, high LDL cholesterol has no obvious symptoms, so some people may have high cholesterol and not even know it,” Dr. Tochi Iloch Marries, president of the American Academy of Family Physicians, told Healthline.
High LDL can increase plaque buildup in your arteries. Too much plaque can narrow or completely block your arteries, cutting off blood supply to parts of your heart and potentially causing a heart attack. Similarly, a blockage in the arteries leading to your brain can cause a stroke, she explained.
“Unfortunately, many people don't realize they have high cholesterol until they have a heart attack or stroke,” says Iroc-Marise, “which is why it's so important to have your cholesterol checked by your doctor, who can help you improve it to avoid life-threatening consequences.”
Torres not only watched her parents struggle with their heart health, but she also lost family members to heart attacks.
“The Hispanic community [has] Heart problems as a complication of high cholesterol…[made] “It made me realize what complications elevated LDL-C can cause,” she said.
These factors prompted her to prioritize her health by consistently working out and eating healthy.
“Culturally, our diet is restrictive at best,” Torres says, “and it's full of all the things that make life worth living — meat, oils, fats, salt — but if it's not balanced, and you do that for years and years, it can lead to deadly high LDL-C levels.”
She points out that some people are prone to high cholesterol even with proper diet and exercise.
“So the key to that is to go see your doctor, get tested, know your levels, stay on top of it and take precautions,” she said.
To spread this message, Torres teamed up with the American Academy of Family Physicians and Amgen to launch a public service announcement (PSA) encouraging Hispanic men and women to take more control over their health by learning their “bad” cholesterol levels. The PSA offers people free kits to test their LDL levels at home.
“I've always said, and I hope to continue to say, that I want to use my platform to help the community, not just from a creative standpoint, but to help support the community in any way possible, and to help shed light and educate them on methods and topics that they don't have access to,” she said.
“This PSA was the perfect way to do that, because knowledge is power, and the more you know, the best advocate you can be.”
The best place to start is to see your doctor and have your cholesterol levels evaluated.
“After checking their blood levels with a simple blood test, we can discuss next steps with the patient, including how often they should test their blood levels and what the numbers mean,” Ilok-Marise said.
Your doctor can help you determine if there is a tendency for high LDL cholesterol to run in your family.
“Very high cholesterol levels can run in families, so if one person has high cholesterol, it may be a good idea to get the whole family tested, too,” Dr. Wesley Milks, a cardiologist at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, told Healthline.
Statins are the most widely used and effective drugs for treating high cholesterol, but nonstatin drugs such as ezetimibe, bempedoic acid, and PCSK9 inhibitors such as evolocumab, alirocumab, and inclisiran may also be effective in certain circumstances, he said.
“The decision to undergo drug treatment should be made based not only on elevated cholesterol levels but also on an individual's risk of heart disease, as well as personal priorities and preferences,” Milks said.
Besides drug therapy, there are other ways to improve bad cholesterol levels, such as quitting smoking and aiming for 30 minutes of exercise five to six times a week.
“Research has shown that benefits can be achieved whether you split your physical activity into 10-minute increments spread across different times of the day or doing the full 150 minutes on a weekend,” says Iroc-Marise.
A healthy diet that is rich in fruits, vegetables, lean protein and fiber, and that minimizes saturated and trans fats and emphasizes unsaturated fats found in fish, vegetables, grains and nuts, also helps.
“Of course, we take into account the cultural dietary habits of our patients and make sure it is something that can be incorporated into their lifestyle and is sustainable in the long term,” Ilok Malise said.
