Take a look at the article at:
Lipid levels improve across US over 20 years: NHANES
Some interesting details:
1 - total cholesterol fell by 10 mg/dL over the 22-year study period, LDL fell by 13 mg/dL, and HDL levels rose by 2 mg/dL. Triglycerides fell by 8 mg/dL over the whole period, despite having risen in the initial few years.
2 - "Unfortunately, the average body-mass index and level of activity in adults are not as favorable, and this may be part of the reason that the age-adjusted mean triglyceride level increased in men and in women between 1988 and 2002,"
3 - They also found that from 1988 to 2010, there was an increasing trend in the percentage of adults taking lipid-lowering medications (from 3.4% in 1988-1994 to 9.3% in 1999-2002 to 15.5% in 2007-2010. Among men and women age 50 years or older, increases in use of lipid-lowering medications of up to 35% were observed.
4 - the prevalence of obesity among adults remains high, at more than one-third of the population
