What are optimal levels of HDL cholesterol?

Cholesterol levels are measured in milligrams (mg) of cholesterol per deciliter (dL) of blood or millimoles (mmol) of cholesterol per liter (L) of blood. For HDL cholesterol, higher numbers are better.

	At risk	Desirable
Men	Less than 40 mg/dL (1.0 mmol/L)	60 mg/dL (1.6 mmol/L) or above
Women	Less than 50 mg/dL (1.3 mmol/L)	60 mg/dL (1.6 mmol/L) or above

People who have naturally higher levels of HDL cholesterol are at somewhat lower risk of heart attack and stroke. It's less clear whether the same is true for people who raise their HDL cholesterol levels with medicines.

Lifestyle changes known to increase HDL cholesterol have been shown to lower the risk of heart attack. These changes include moving more, quitting smoking, and eating a diet rich in vegetables, fruits and whole grains. But medicines used just to increase HDL cholesterol levels have not lowered the rate of heart attack.

Oddly, people who have very high HDL cholesterol levels naturally seem to be at higher risk of heart disease. Extremely high HDL cholesterol is a level above 100 mg/dL (2.5 mmol/L). Genes may be the cause of very high HDL cholesterol.