Lipoproteins

The article rejects the simple framing of HDL as good cholesterol and LDL as bad cholesterol. The article asserts that LDL particle number and size matter more for atherosclerosis than total cholesterol. Dietary fats are transported through blood inside protein-lipid complexes called lipoproteins. Cholesterol is described as essential rather than inherently dangerous. Chylomicrons and VLDL progressively shed triglycerides and can become smaller, denser LDL particles. Small, dense, oxidized LDL particles are described as damaging because they enter the arterial wall more easily and oxidize more readily.