Coping With Stress Helps Cholesterol

The better you cope with stress, the better your "good" cholesterol level is likely to be, according to a new study.

"We know that stress and hostility affect cholesterol," says researcher Carolyn M. Aldwin, PhD, professor and chairwoman of the department of human development and family sciences at Oregon State University in Corvallis. There has been less research, however, on how coping skills can counteract the effects of stress, she says.

Good coping skills were associated with better levels of the so-called "good" cholesterol or high-density lipoprotein (HDL) in her study.