Diabetes is the leading cause of new cases of blindness among adults aged 20-74 years.
- 25% of adults with diabetes or about 1.6 million people report that they are visually report they are visually impaired.
- 90% of diabetes related blindness is preventable through early detection and treatment.
- Only 60% or people with diabetes are receiving annual diabetic eye examinations, a key strategy for preventing blindness caused by diabetes.

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1998

Cholesterol is another modern day disease that is on the rise in United States. An estimated 104.7 million Americans have total blood cholesterol values of 200 mg/dL and higher. Of these, about 37 million have levels of 240 and above. Levels of 240 mg/dL or higher are considered high risk.
High blood cholesterol level is one of major risk factors for heart disease. The greater the blood cholesterol level, the higher the chances are for developing heart disease which is the number one killer of men and women in the United States. Doctors agree that a number of factors can affect cholesterol levels but some important steps are, maintaining normal weight, watching the food intake and becoming physically active.
To reduce the risk of heart attack, it is important to maintain healthy cholesterol levels. By lowering blood cholesterol levels, chances for heart disease, heart attack or stroke are lowered as well.

Many other factors can affect cholesterol and triglyceride levels and thus affect your heart health.

Several medicines can worsen cholesterol levels. These include widely used drugs such as thiazide diuretics, oral estrogens and some beta-blockers (a class of blood pressure drugs.

Smoking can lower HDL cholesterol levels.

Although small amounts of alcohol help HDL cholesterol levels, greater amounts can increase triglycerides.

Several illnesses can affect cholesterol levels, including liver disease and hypothyroidism.

Source: American Heart Association