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People don’t need to check cholesterol levels on an empty stomach, suggests new research conducted on 300,000 participants across Denmark, Canada and the United States.The research was published in the European Heart Journal.
So far, fasting was needed before cholesterol and triglyceride measurements in all countries except Denmark, where non-fasting sampling has been adopted since 2009. The latest research shows that cholesterol and triglyceride remain the same regardless of whether one fasts or doesn’t.
One of the researchers Borge Nordestgaard from Herlev Hospital, University of Copenhagen said, “This will improve patients compliance to preventive treatment aimed at reducing number of heart attacks and strokes, the main killers in the world.”
Benificial for All
This research has simplified the procedure for patients, doctors and labs alike. Working individiuals, children, patients with diabetes and elderly benfit tremendously as they don’t have to fast before blood sampling.
These recommendations represent a joint consensus statement from the European Atherosclerosis Society and European Federation of Clinical Chemistry & Laboratory Medicine which has medical experts from Europe, Australia and the U.S.