Lipids

In Loop's laboratory results, 47.3% of reports with both measurements and normal total cholesterol have HDL below 40 mg/dL. A 2016 review described India's substantial cardiovascular disease burden and its earlier occurrence than in people of European ancestry. That burden gives lipid screening its importance. Prabhakaran et al., Circulation, 2016

HDL (high-density lipoprotein) and LDL (low-density lipoprotein) have different roles. Laboratory tests measure the cholesterol carried by each, usually labelled HDL-C and LDL-C. Low HDL is a risk marker worth reading. LDL lowering has trial evidence for reducing atherosclerotic events, such as heart attacks. Both deserve attention on the panel. Cholesterol Treatment Trialists' Collaboration, The Lancet, 2010 The Blood Sugar page examines the separate glucose findings.

The results cover employees and covered family members. Across all 7,260 HDL reports, 44.0% are below 40 mg/dL.

HDL distribution in 7,260 reports. About one in twenty reaches at least 60 mg/dL. The mean is 42.06 mg/dL.

HDL below 40 mg/dL was reported in 47.7% in WHI 2025 and 44.0% in 2026, a 3.7-point difference between samples. The earlier edition gave no separate HDL base; this edition uses 7,260 reports.

Seven in ten women's reports show low HDL#

Low HDL is more common in women's reports: 70.4%, compared with 54.0% in men's reports. NHLBI and ATP III use below 50 mg/dL for women and below 40 mg/dL for men as low-HDL criteria in metabolic-risk assessment. NHLBI: Metabolic Syndrome Diagnosis; ATP III Executive Summary

Together, 61.2% of the 7,260 HDL reports show low HDL under these clinical criteria.

Nearly half of reports with normal total cholesterol also show low HDL#

Among 5,163 reports with an HDL result and total cholesterol below 200 mg/dL, 47.3% have HDL below 40 mg/dL.

Total cholesterol includes cholesterol carried in different lipoproteins.

Elevated LDL peaks in the 40s#

The share of LDL reports at or above 100 mg/dL is highest at ages 40–49, at 71.2%. Across all 8,054 LDL reports, 62.6% are at or above 100 mg/dL (5,045 reports).

Lowering LDL reduces cardiovascular events such as heart attacks. A clinician uses the lipid results alongside other cardiovascular risk factors to decide whether treatment is needed. Cholesterol Treatment Trialists' Collaboration, The Lancet, 2010; Ference et al., European Heart Journal, 2017

LDL combines two test names and takes the first numeric result per report. Units are assumed to be mg/dL for 35 results; excluding them leaves the same rounded share, 62.6%.

More than six in ten LDL reports were at or above 100 mg/dL in both editions: 64.3% in WHI 2025 and 62.6% in the current 8,054 reports. WHI 2025: Lipid Profile

More than half of LDL reports in the 20s are already at or above 100 mg/dL, at 55.9%. The share reaches 71.2% in the 40s, then is lower in the older groups.

The age comparison covers 7,983 adult reports. It excludes 70 reports for people under 20 and one with unknown age.

Triglycerides peak later#

Triglycerides are fats that circulate in the blood. In adults, levels below 150 mg/dL are considered healthy; levels from 150 to 199 mg/dL are borderline high. NHLBI: High Blood Triglycerides

The highest observed adult age-group share with triglycerides at or above 150 mg/dL is 40.2% at ages 50–59. This is 17.1 percentage points above the 23.1% recorded in the 20s. Male reports also have a higher share than female reports, 40.7% versus 23.6%. The table gives the number of reports for each age or sex group.

Low HDL is common across all five metros#

Hyderabad has the highest share of HDL reports below 40 mg/dL, at 50.6%. But low HDL extends across all five metros: even Delhi NCR, with the lowest share at 39.1%, has close to four in ten reports below this level.

Cities are pincode reporting areas. These rates describe the selected HDL reports in each area.

Among women's reports, Mumbai has the highest share below 50 mg/dL of the three cities shown, at 78.1%. Hyderabad and Pune also exceed seven in ten, at 73.5% and 72.9%. The women's finding is therefore not confined to Mumbai.

Mumbai women's low-HDL share was 84.3% on a base of 121 in WHI 2025, versus 78.1% of 442 reports here. The 6.2-point difference reflects different city samples, not demonstrated improvement.

Normal total cholesterol still needs a full lipid review#