Global trends in total cholesterol by gender (1980-2018)

Elevated cholesterol is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease, one of the leading noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) worldwide. Monitoring long-term cholesterol trends helps evaluate the success of public health efforts and medical treatments aimed at reducing this risk. This study examines global trends in average total cholesterol levels among adult men and women from 1980 to 2018. Using data from the NCD Risk Factor Collaboration, we applied gender-specific linear regressions, a multivariate regression with interaction terms, and time series modeling to evaluate changes over time. We hypothesized that total cholesterol levels decreased in both genders during the period from 1980 to 2018. We observed a steady and significant decline in cholesterol levels for both genders, with men experiencing a steeper decrease. Women consistently had slightly higher cholesterol levels, and their decline was slower. Notably, the rate of decline accelerated after 2013 for both genders. The time series model confirmed strong year-to-year persistence in cholesterol trends. Together, our findings suggest improvements in global cholesterol levels across time, likely due to public health efforts and medical advances, but also highlight a gender gap that may require more targeted attention.