Are Home LDL Cholesterol Test Kits Effective?
Why is it important to know your cholesterol level? Basically, because of the role high blood cholesterol plays with coronary heart disease and stroke.
While most people find home test kits an attractive option for obvious reasons, there is little evidence showing their effectiveness. Even a doctor was quoted saying, "Home cholesterol test kits are not reliable or consistent enough to be useful in managing your cholesterol." and goes on to say "Although home testing may seem faster and easier, it does not provide any benefit if it produces inaccurate results." Even some lab tests done by professionals have a degree of variance. [1]
On top of that, most home cholesterol test kits only measure total cholesterol which doesn't do much good for someone trying to determine their LDL cholesterol level. So if you plan to use a home test kit, take the results with a grain of salt and never replace them with the advice of your doctor.
However, we don't want to just leave you hanging with a negative response. We want to recommend two options for those of you still looking to avoid an expensive visit to your doctor to get those cholesterol levels checked.
The first option is the best home cholesterol available. The way this test works is you collect samples at home to be mailed off to a laboratory for results. This is the best home test because they give you a much more detailed and accurate analysis - including numbers for HDL, LDL and total cholesterol.
The second option is my favorite because it costs you nothing to do. When you donate blood, they run several tests on your blood one of which is a cholesterol check. Ask the nurse if you can have the results for your blood because you want to know your cholesterol level. The results will contain a few other things like blood type. You are looking for the total cholesterol number measured in mg/dL. So not only do you keep tabs on your overall cholesterol figure for free, you also help save lives by giving blood. It's a win-win situation!
Sources: [1] http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/cholesterol-test-kits/AN01461...