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Dr. Berg’s Healthy Keto and Intermittent Fasting Podcast

How Cholesterol Was Made Scary

Dr. Berg’s Healthy Keto and Intermittent Fasting Podcast

Dr. Eric Berg

Health & Fitness

4.71.7K Ratings

🗓️ 19 February 2026

⏱️ 8 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Is cholesterol bad? Is low cholesterol safe? In this video, we’ll cover common cholesterol misinformation, how cholesterol was demonized, and the cholesterol truth you need to know now for better health.



👉 Download Dr. Berg’s Free Daily Health Routine: https://drbrg.co/45qtO07



0:00 Introduction: When was cholesterol made scary?

0:21 Cholesterol truth

1:49 Two types of cholesterol

3:19 What causes high cholesterol?

3:44 Statin drug side effects

5:57 Cholesterol and heart disease

6:34 The problem with low cholesterol



Our bodies make 3000 mg of cholesterol each day! Babies are born with higher cholesterol, and our brain is composed of it. Cholesterol is vital for our cell membranes, hormones, vitamin D, bile salts, repair, and immunity.


Cholesterol isn’t a poison; it’s an essential building block! When a doctor measures your cholesterol, they’re measuring the cholesterol in the blood, not what’s deep in the cells.


There are two types of cholesterol: HDL and LDL. HDL carries cholesterol from the cells back to the liver for recycling, while LDL delivers cholesterol to the cells. There are two types of LDL cholesterol: small, dense LDL and large, buoyant LDL. Only an advanced lipid profile can discern the difference.


Small, dense LDL particles can cause inflammation and other problems, but this typically occurs only when your glucose is high or you have insulin resistance. If you’re on a low-carb diet and you don’t have insulin resistance, you’ll have more large, buoyant LDL. If you have high levels of large, buoyant LDL, it is not pathogenic!


Cholesterol is a building block of the precursor of cortisol, so if you’re dealing with stress, it could be the reason your cholesterol is high. Testosterone is also made from cholesterol, so if you take a drug to lower cholesterol, your testosterone levels may suffer.


If you have low cholesterol, you won’t produce enough bile. This will interfere with your ability to absorb fat, and you also won’t have enough raw material to make vitamin D.


High cholesterol is not a disease! If your cholesterol is high, it’s important to understand why. Consuming refined sugar and starch can raise your cholesterol and triglyceride levels. Inflammation and your body’s repair needs can also increase your levels.


Low cholesterol in older adults is associated with higher rates of death from all causes. Low cholesterol is linked to lowered immunity, depression, memory, and hormone issues. Cholesterol naturally rises in the winter and decreases in the summer. This could be related to your need for vitamin D.


Dr. Eric Berg DC Bio:

Dr. Berg, age 60, is a chiropractor who specializes in Healthy Ketosis & Intermittent Fasting. He is the Director of Dr. Berg Nutritionals and author of the best-selling book The Healthy Keto Plan. He no longer practices, but focuses on health education through social media.


Disclaimer:

Dr. Eric Berg received his Doctor of Chiropractic degree from Palmer College of Chiropractic in 1988. His use of “doctor” or “Dr.” in relation to himself solely refers to that degree. Dr. Berg is a licensed chiropractor in Virginia, California, and Louisiana, but he no longer practices chiropractic in any state and does not see patients, so he can focus on educating people as a full-time activity, yet he maintains an active license. This video is for general informational purposes only. It should not be used to self-diagnose, and it is not a substitute for a medical exam, cure, treatment, diagnosis, prescription, or recommendation. It does not create a doctor-patient relationship between Dr. Berg and you. You should not make any change in your health regimen or diet before first consulting a physician and obtaining a medical exam, diagnosis, and recommendation. Always seek the advice of a physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

When did cholesterol actually become a disease? High cholesterol is dangerous, right? LDL, the bad

0:06.3

cholesterol clogs your arteries. Lower cholesterol is always better, statin safe lives. But here's

0:12.8

the question that a lot of people don't ask about this. Is it actually safe to have lower cholesterol?

0:18.9

Does that mean you're actually healthy? Well, let's just take a look at it.

0:22.9

Our bodies make 3,000 milligrams of cholesterol every single day. Why would our bodies make

0:30.3

that much cholesterol if cholesterol was so damaging and dangerous? In fact, if you don't eat foods

0:37.1

with cholesterol, your body makes

0:38.8

more. Babies are born with higher cholesterol. Your brain is full of cholesterol. I mean, let me ask you

0:44.7

this. Do you really think human beings have evolved over 200,000 years making something as a precursor

0:51.6

that turns into cell membranes? H, hormones, vitamin D, bile salts,

0:58.0

something that actually repairs the body, structurally makes up the brain, helps support the immune system.

1:04.0

Our body has used cholesterol in so many different ways.

1:07.0

Cholesterol is not a poison. It's a building block.

1:10.0

It's essential in making the cell membranes.

1:14.4

Without these membranes, you can't have receptors for hormones to work. Without cell membranes,

1:20.4

you can't have things go in and out of the cell properly. Without these membranes, you can't

1:25.1

have the brain and nervous system activate. Without these membranes, you can't have the brain and nervous system activate.

1:28.6

Without these membranes, you can't repair.

1:31.0

And when a doctor measures your cholesterol, they're looking at the cholesterol in the blood.

1:36.2

They're not actually looking at cholesterol deep in the cells where all the work is really being done.

1:41.6

So if you think about cholesterol, cholesterol is kind of like inside these little packages of these protein delivery trucks. And the two main types of cholesterol

1:50.1

that people focus on are HDL and the LDL. The HDL is the delivery truck where we're taking

...

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