Fatigue is one of the most common complaints I hear from patients, and the causes are surprisingly varied. One that rarely gets attention — even among doctors — is low cholesterol.
Most people have heard that high cholesterol is something to watch. But cholesterol that’s too low can cause real problems too.
Cholesterol is a building block for several critical hormones, including your stress hormones and your male or female sex hormones.
When cholesterol drops too low, your body simply doesn’t have enough raw material to make them — and that can leave you feeling exhausted, mentally foggy, and “off.” One cause for focus problem reasons is low cholesterol.
Symptoms of Low Cholesterol
A patient of mine illustrates this well. He had first seen me years ago when I was practicing in Massachusetts. I treated him successfully, but after I moved, he couldn’t find another doctor willing to continue his care.
By the time he found me again, he was struggling with fatigue and difficulty thinking clearly. Once I addressed his low cholesterol with an appropriate supplement, his energy and mental clarity improved significantly.
As a general guideline, a total cholesterol level below 140 is worth paying attention to. Classic low cholesterol consequences include persistent fatigue, difficulty concentrating or making decisions, reduced stress resilience, and decreased libido.
What Should You Do?
If you’re dealing with unexplained tiredness or brain fog, ask your doctor to check your cholesterol — and make sure you’re looking at whether it might be too low, not just too high.
This is an area where integrative and functional medicine practitioners tend to have more familiarity, as it’s not widely recognized in conventional medical settings.
To Health!
If you have a question about this blog post or anything medical-related, please email me thru the button below.
To your health!
Dr. Richard Chen
Focused Wellness Author,
A New Way to Health: Wheel of Health
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