Category: Cholesterol

This is an organic compound which belongs to a class of “natural fatty acids” and is always normally present in the membranes of animal cells. Every day, in the course of metabolism, cholesterol (translated from ancient Greek – “hard bile”) is synthesized from glucose, fats and amino acids which weigh up to 2.5g. A smaller part of cholesterol (0.5g) comes from food.

At room temperature water-insoluble cholesterol is always in a solid state (density – 1.07g /cubic centimetres). It begins to melt only at a temperature of 148°C and boils only at 360°C.

The physiological significance of cholesterol is underestimated! It is vital for human health, as it performs a lot of useful functions including:

• it promotes the production of vitamins of group D in the skin
• participation in the synthesis of cortisol, aldosterone, estrogen, progesterone, testosterone and other steroid hormones;
• an obligatory component of bile acids (contributing to the digestion of fatty foods);
• stabilizes the fluidity of the plasma membrane;
• protect red blood cell from destruction by blood toxins;
  protects red blood cells from destruction by blood toxins;
• ensure the viability of cell membranes when they are overheated, etcFinally, without this bioactive substance cell permeability is impaired.