Difference Between Dietary Cholesterol and Blood Cholesterol

The key difference between dietary cholesterol and blood cholesterol is that dietary cholesterol is the cholesterol present in the diet while blood cholesterol is the cholesterol present in the blood.

Cholesterol is an essential component for the living system as it is important in some hormone synthesis process. Moreover, cholesterol also acts as a cell membrane component in animal cells. Furthermore, there are two types of cholesterol present in the animal body namely dietary cholesterol and blood cholesterol. As the name suggests, dietary cholesterol refers to the form of cholesterol obtained from dietary sources such as meats, liver and other organ meats, dairy foods, egg yolks, and shellfish, etc., which are rich in cholesterol. In contrast, blood cholesterol is the cholesterol present in the blood. Blood cholesterol is bound to lipoproteins in the blood. Hence, lipoproteins involve in carrying the cholesterol in the blood. Too much of cholesterol is not good for our health since it can lead to heart diseases, stroke, etc. This article will highlight the difference between dietary cholesterol and blood cholesterol.

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Dietary Cholesterol
3. What is Blood Cholesterol
4. Similarities Between Dietary Cholesterol and Blood Cholesterol
5. Side by Side Comparison – Dietary Cholesterol vs Blood Cholesterol in Tabular Form
6. Summary

What is Dietary Cholesterol?

Dietary Cholesterol is the form of cholesterol which is present in food. The main dietary source of cholesterol is animal fat. Besides, eggs are also a good dietary source of cholesterol. In contrast, plant fats do not contain any dietary cholesterol.

Difference Between Dietary Cholesterol and Blood Cholesterol

Figure 01: Dietary Cholesterol

Likewise, dietary cholesterol is present in the unbound, free form. Similarly, excessive intake of dietary cholesterol is unhealthy as it can lead to high blood cholesterol levels and increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Therefore, medical personnel always advise reducing the intake of dietary cholesterol. However, medical researchers predict that dietary fats do not merely increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases, but the dietary sources containing saturated fats. Therefore, substituting with unsaturated fats such as omega 6 and omega 9 fats are beneficial and healthy in this aspect.

What is Blood Cholesterol?

Blood cholesterol refers to the amount of cholesterol in the blood. Primarily, this can be expressed as total cholesterol, HDL – cholesterol and LDL – cholesterol. A lipid profile of a person will provide the levels of each type of cholesterol in the blood. As cholesterol is insoluble in blood during its transportation, they are carried by lipoproteins. There are two main lipoproteins which carry cholesterol in the blood. They are the High density lipoproteins (HDL) and Low Density Lipoproteins (LDL).

HDL – cholesterol is also called as the ‘good cholesterol’, as HDL transports cholesterol away from the arteries. It reduces the risk of deposition of cholesterol in arteries to form plaques. In contrast, LDL cholesterol is called ‘bad cholesterol’. That is because LDL carries cholesterol towards the arteries which will thereby deposit excess cholesterol in arteries. It increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases.

Key Difference Between Dietary Cholesterol and Blood Cholesterol

Figure 02: Blood Cholesterol

Moreover, Cholesterol can be synthesized in the body through an enzyme-catalyzed pathway. Additionally, dietary cholesterol also adds to the blood cholesterol levels.

What are the Similarities Between Dietary Cholesterol and Blood Cholesterol?

Both types of cholesterol play a functional role in animal systems.
Moreover, both are a type of lipid and are insoluble in water.
Therefore, they are soluble in organic solvents.
Also, both types can lead to an increase in blood.
The increase in dietary and blood cholesterol levels may lead to an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Besides, both are present only in animal sources.

What is the Difference Between Dietary Cholesterol and Blood Cholesterol?

Dietary cholesterol and blood cholesterol are two types of cholesterol. Dietary cholesterol is present in food sources while blood cholesterol is present in the blood. This is the key difference between dietary cholesterol and blood cholesterol. Furthermore, dietary cholesterol is in a free form without binding with any other compound while blood cholesterol is in the bound form. Thus, it is also a difference between dietary cholesterol and blood cholesterol.

Below infographic shows the difference between dietary cholesterol and blood cholesterol comparatively.

Summary – Dietary Cholesterol vs Blood Cholesterol

Cholesterol is a water-insoluble lipid which plays a functional role in the animals. Cholesterol can be present in two forms. They are dietary cholesterol coming from dietary sources and blood cholesterol. Blood cholesterol is present in the blood bound to lipoproteins. That makes it enable to transport in the blood. Excess dietary cholesterol and blood cholesterol lead to an increased risk in cardiovascular diseases. This is the summary of the difference between dietary cholesterol and blood cholesterol.

Reference:

1.“Cholesterol.” MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 23 Oct. 2018. Available here
2. Jaret, Peter. “Dietary Cholesterol: Foods to Avoid.” WebMD, WebMD. Available here