Cholesterol - is it good or bad?

My father didn't die of a heart attack in his fifties, despite a family history of heart disease. He was lucky enough to become involved in one of the earliest studies into the effects of cholesterol, back in the early 1970s. The research was being conducted at Birmingham University, and he was an ideal subject for the study; overweight, very fond of good living, history of heart disease, in his fifties, highpowered executive whose only exercise was gardening, AND the father of five children aged roughly between 25 (me) and 12 (my youngest brother).

So we all got tested. Dad was told to cut his cholesterol or die, and chose the strict diet (with a bacon and egg treat lunch on Saturdays) which gave him another healthy 25 years of life. Two brothers and myself had high cholesterol levels, my sister and another brother low ones. Back then there were no 'lite' foods or low-fat options - they advised me to eat steak and salad, but as unfortunately I was on a bread and cheese budget at the time I just put the warnings to the back of my mind. I had other more pressing things to think about, then and later, although I have adopted lower-fat, more sensible eating options as they have become available at a reasonable price in the intervening period.

Recently I was offered the opportunity to take part in a trial of Flora pro-activ, a spread containing plant sterols which can, they say, lower LDL cholesterol by 10-15%. Well, why not, I thought, especially as it wasn't going to cost me anything, not even for the cholesterol tests I would have to have done before and after starting the four week trial. So I signed up.

This morning I went on an adventure to Sainsbury's superstore in Plymouth to have my first test. I hadn't been there before, and took some time to find the pharmacy (I was walking round the edge, it was right in the middle). The test was simple and painless, but the results were surprising:

Total: 3.95 (recommended below 5.0)
HDL 2.00 (recommended above 1.2)
Ratio 2.00 (recommended below 5.0)

Well within the healthy recommended limits before I start, then. I must have been doing something right all these years... And now I am about to start the trial. I shan't change anything at all in my diet or habits apart from substituting the pro-activ for the olive spread I usually use, and we'll see what the results are in four weeks' time.