How to Read a Lipid Panel Like a Caregiver-Pro

The five numbers that reveal how well your Alzie’s brain is being fed.

Every number on a cholesterol test tells a story—about how well your Alzie’s brain is being fed and how much help it needs.

Let’s walk through those five numbers together, so you can see what your Alzie’s body has been trying to tell you all along.

Grab your coffee and your lab results—we’ll make sense of it, one number at a time.

Why Cholesterol Still Matters in Alzheimer’s

Cholesterol doesn’t just affect the heart—it affects blood flow to the brain.

When arteries narrow, less blood, oxygen, and nutrients reach the memory centers.
Over time, that can quietly accelerate decline.

The good news?
A simple lipid panel—the same test most doctors already order—can reveal early warning signs.

You don’t have to be a doctor to read it. You just need to know what each number means.

The goal isn’t to chase perfect numbers—it’s to keep cholesterol moving freely through your Alzie’s arteries.

Because when blood flows freely, the brain stays nourished.

The lipid panel shows you how well that flow is happening—and where it’s getting stuck.

The Five Numbers That Told Us the Real Story

Here’s what our mom’s labs looked like in June 2023, six months after stopping cholesterol medication to get an accurate baseline.

Each number tells you something different about how blood, oxygen, and nutrients reach the brain.

Now let’s unpack what those numbers meant—and how they showed us where to focus.

Total Cholesterol — The Grocery Bill

At first glance, this was the only number anyone talked about.
Her total cholesterol was 317—a number that sounded scary but didn’t tell us much.

Think of total cholesterol like your grocery bill.
It tells you what you spent, but not what you bought.
You can’t tell if that $317 went to fresh produce or junk food.

For the brain, this number matters only when you look at what’s inside it—how much is “good” (HDL), how much is “bad” (LDL), and how much is leftover (Non-HDL).

Goal: Below 200 mg/dL is desirable, but balance matters more than the total.

Fix: Lifestyle. Focus on fiber, balanced meals, and regular movement.

LDL — The Traffic Jam

Once we understood the “bill,” LDL showed us where things were getting stuck.
Her LDL of 217 was the biggest red flag.

Too many LDL particles clog arteries like delivery trucks stuck on narrow streets.

That buildup was quietly starving our mom’s brain of blood, oxygen, and nutrients—the essentials that keep her memories and personality shining through.

Goal: Below 70 mg/dL if you have Alzheimer’s or are genetically at-risk for a stroke.

Fix: Medication + Lifestyle. LDL often needs help from statins, but walking, fiber, and less sugar help the medicine work better.

💡 Caregiver takeaway: When LDL is high, blood isn’t flowing freely—and the brain may not be getting fully “fed.”

Triglycerides — The Sugar Story

After LDL, we turned to triglycerides to understand what was fueling the traffic jam.

Her triglycerides came back at 206.

We’d always thought she was eating healthy. But it turned out, she wasn’t eating wrong—she was eating imbalanced.

Too much sugar hiding in “healthy” foods (flavored yogurt, cereal, fruit juice), and not enough fiber to sweep it out.

That combo fuels insulin resistance, and when the body can’t move sugar efficiently, it stores it as fat in the blood.

That “blood fat” shows up as triglycerides on a lab test—and for our mom’s brain, it meant less steady energy and slower fuel delivery when she needed it most.

Goal: Under 100 mg/dL (below 80 is ideal).

Fix: Lifestyle. More fiber, fewer sweetened foods, and short walks after meals can dramatically lower triglycerides—often within months.

💡 Caregiver takeaway: High triglycerides are your body’s way of saying, “I need more fiber.”

HDL — The Cleanup Crew

Next, we looked at HDL—her body’s cleanup team.

Her HDL was 59, just below the low end of the healthy range.

This is the cholesterol that clears excess fat from the bloodstream.
Think of HDL as the crew that keeps the brain’s highways clear, making sure blood and oxygen can reach every corner.

When HDL runs low, those routes start to clog—and our mom’s brain has to work harder just to stay alert and connected.

Goal: 60 mg/dL or higher—the more, the better.
Higher HDL helps clear cholesterol and keeps blood flowing to the brain.

Fix: Lifestyle. Daily walks, strength training, and healthy fats (such as avocado, olive oil, and nuts) naturally raise HDL.

💡 Caregiver takeaway: High HDL means smoother blood flow—and better-fed brain cells.

Non-HDL — The Leftovers

Finally, we looked at Non-HDL, which shows what’s left after HDL clears it.

Our mom’s number was 258—another sign that her bloodstream was crowded.

When there’s too much leftover cholesterol circulating, it’s harder for blood to move freely through the arteries.

For the brain, that means our mom was getting a slower delivery of nutrients and oxygen to the cells that support memory and movement.

It’s like rush-hour traffic on every route leading to the brain’s most important neighborhoods.

Goal: No more than ~30 points higher than LDL.
If LDL’s goal is 70, aim for Non-HDL ≈ 100.

Fix: Both. Lowering LDL with medication and lifestyle adjustments (fiber, less sugar, more movement) brings Non-HDL down too

💡 Caregiver takeaway:
HDL clears the road; Non-HDL shows what’s still stuck in traffic.
When Non-HDL is high, the bloodstream is crowded and the brain can’t get the steady fuel it needs.

The Bigger Picture

These numbers told us our mom’s body wasn’t processing fat and sugar efficiently.

Her brain was not getting the nourishment it needed—not just because of Alzheimer’s, but because blood flow was compromised.

Once we focused on fiber, reduced hidden sugar, and encouraged short walks after meals, everything changed.

Her cholesterol dropped by more than 125 points in four months, driven by significant reductions in triglycerides and LDL.

It was proof that the body and brain can heal when given the proper support.

Lifestyle or Medication? Here’s the Breakdown

We’re Doing Our Part So the Medicine Can Do Its Part

For our mom, we did bring the statin back — at a much lower dose — because her goal LDL is 70, given her Alzheimer’s and stroke risk.
And this time, it’s working better, because her lifestyle changes were finally doing their part too.

And here’s what clicked for us:

Medicine and lifestyle don’t compete — they complement each other.
Fiber, movement, and cutting back on added sugar handle things prescriptions can’t.
Medication handles the things lifestyle alone can’t.

When we do our part, the medicine has a better chance of doing its part.
And that balance is what keeps blood, oxygen, and nutrients moving where they’re needed most — straight to the brain.

When to Talk to Your Alzie’s Doctor

Don’t wait for your next appointment to bring this up.

Print your Alzie’s latest lipid panel and look for patterns.

The Caregiver Takeaway

Understanding these five numbers turns a lab report from something scary into something actionable.

You don’t have to be a doctor to coordinate care.
You just have to connect the dots—because coordinated care isn’t there yet.

Every improvement in cholesterol, blood sugar, and daily movement helps your Alzie’s brain stay fed, alive, and alert.

👉 Pull out your Alzie’s last lab results, circle these five numbers, and bring them to your next appointment.

You’ll be amazed at the real conversation it starts.

We’re not doctors—just caregivers sharing what we’ve learned in plain English.
Use this information to start a better conversation with your Alzie’s doctors and find what works best for your loved one.