As you know, a number of factors have been linked to high cholesterol, including stress and the amount of sugar you consume. Oddly enough, a genetic disorder connected to an aching Achilles tendon may be an indicator too.

Researchers have found a link between heel pain and the presence of heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (HeFH), the most common genetic mutation reported in America and Europe -- affecting two out of every 1,000 people -- that controls the removal of cholesterol from blood.

Patients with this condition have double the amount of cholesterol in their bodies and some of it is deposited in certain areas of tendons in addition to arteries, leading to painful inflammation and swelling in the Achilles tendon.

In fact, patients with HeFH are almost seven times more prone to suffer from a painful heel for three days or longer than those without it, and seek treatment for their Achilles many years prior to a diagnosis of high cholesterol, researchers said.

If you follow my Web site with any regularity, statins are no answer to elevated cholesterol and can be dangerous to your health. The two primary strategies that can normalize your cholesterol virtually every time:

• Reducing, with the plan of eliminating, grains and sugars from your diet.
• Getting the right amount of cardiovascular exercise daily.

Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases, Vol. 65, No. 3 March 2006: 312-315

MSNBC March 14, 2006

Oberlin Times March 14, 2006