Well, it’s almost a hard and fast rule. In most overweight people, weight loss will lead to lower lipid levels and a healthier balance between total cholesterol and HDL, good cholesterol.

Almost! Anyone who follows the whole cholesterol issue, or for that matter watches television and sees cholesterol lowering drug commercials, knows that part of the issue is lifestyle, but for some, part of the issue is genetics. Scientists believe they have isolated the gene that stymies cholesterol change that would normally come with weight loss.

To put it in a nutshell, they have determined that one genetic variant links weight loss and cholesterol absorption, while another variant blocks that link.

Knowing that this variant exists will help doctors recognize those in which weight loss alone is not the entire treatment necessary for cholesterol control. For many it may take a plan of diet, exercise and prescription medical help.

We have talked often about how important it is to have your cholesterol checked on a reasonably frequent basis. Undiagnosed or untreated, cholesterol can cause health issues that often carry mortality risks. Out of control cholesterol will impact your life insurance rates, and rightly so. The cholesterol link to heart disease is well documented.

Bottom line. Get checked. There are free health fairs just about everywhere and therefore, no reason not to know. If you cholesterol numbers are out of the normal range, see a doctor and find out what you need to do. Often it is as simple as getting off the couch. Sometimes more aggressive treatment is necessary.