A cholesterol values table gives direction, but never a final verdict. As a rough guide: total cholesterol below about 5.0 mmol/l, LDL often below 3.0 mmol/l, HDL for women ideally above 1.3 mmol/l, and fasting triglycerides below 1.7 mmol/l. What is healthy for you depends on your overall risk.
I say that up front, because standalone tables online often sound more certain than they are. A target for someone at high risk differs from one for someone with no risk factors. Below you see the numbers, plus what they mean. For the broader context, read our overview on lowering cholesterol for women.
What are normal cholesterol values?
Normal cholesterol values are not a fixed line, but target values that differ per person. The Dutch Heart Foundation (Hartstichting) sets them based on your risk profile. The table below gives a widely used rough direction for adults, in millimoles per litre (mmol/l), the unit Dutch labs use.
| Value | Rough direction (mmol/l) |
|---|---|
| Total cholesterol | below about 5.0 |
| LDL cholesterol | often below 3.0 (lower at high risk) |
| HDL cholesterol (women) | ideally above 1.3 |
| Triglycerides (fasting) | below about 1.7 |
| Cholesterol/HDL ratio | ideally below 5 |
Mind the unit. Foreign sites often give milligrams per decilitre (mg/dl), a completely different scale. An LDL of 3.0 mmol/l is about 116 mg/dl. So always compare within the same unit.
What does the cholesterol ratio mean?
The cholesterol ratio is your total cholesterol divided by your HDL. It sums up in one number how your good and total cholesterol relate. A lower ratio is seen as more favourable; below 5 is often used, but here too your whole profile counts.
The ratio is useful because an "average" total cholesterol means something different with a high HDL than with a low HDL. Still, it is only one piece of the puzzle. Your GP looks at the whole, not the ratio alone. Want to improve your HDL on purpose, read raising HDL cholesterol.
Do cholesterol values differ for women?
For HDL, a higher lower limit is often used for women than for men. And the values themselves are not stable your whole life. Around menopause, total cholesterol and LDL rise in many women, partly independent of age.
This has been mapped neatly. In the SWAN study, LDL and apoB rose most in the year around the final period (Matthews et al., 2009). A value that was fine at 40 can read higher at 50 without you doing anything wrong. More on that is in cholesterol and heart health after menopause.
What does non-HDL cholesterol mean on your result?
Non-HDL cholesterol is your total cholesterol minus your HDL. It sums up all unfavourable fractions in one number, not just the LDL. More and more labs put it on the result as standard, because it also captures particles the LDL alone misses.
For you it is useful because it is less sensitive to whether you fasted. Where triglycerides and sometimes LDL fluctuate after a meal, non-HDL stays more stable. That makes it a practical addition to the rest of your profile.
See it not as a new target number you must hit yourself, but as extra context. Your GP weighs it against your LDL, your HDL and your risk profile. Is there a non-HDL on your result you cannot place? Take it to your appointment.
When is a value too high?
A single high result says little. Values fluctuate, and a non-fasting measurement can make your triglycerides in particular look higher. Only when a rise returns on repeat and fits your risk profile does it become relevant. Your GP weighs that.
Is your LDL strikingly high, or did cardiovascular problems appear young in your family? Then also think of a hereditary form, which we discuss in hereditary high cholesterol. Thuisarts.nl explains that one abnormal value is not yet a diagnosis.
Want to place your own numbers alongside this table? Then you need a recent measurement. At Lunara you can take a lipid profile blood test or check individual values such as HDL cholesterol. Compare your result with this direction and discuss any deviation with your GP.
Sources
- Matthews KA, Crawford SL, Chae CU, et al. Are changes in cardiovascular disease risk factors in midlife women due to chronological aging or to the menopausal transition? J Am Coll Cardiol. 2009;54(25):2366-2373. PMID 20082925.
- Hartstichting. Cholesterol and target values. Available via hartstichting.nl.
- Thuisarts.nl (NHG). I have raised cholesterol. Available via thuisarts.nl.
Every blood test result at Lunara includes a professional assessment by a BIG-registered doctor. For treatment decisions, discuss your results with your GP.
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