For adults, cholesterol tests, also known as a lipid panel, are commonly carried out as the result of a new patient intake procedure or as a regular routine every three or five years. Cholesterol tests come with an order from your doctor to fast for 8-12 hours beforehand, but many patients wonder about the definition of fasting. A common question among avid caffeine consumers on the morning of their visit is: can I drink black coffee before a cholesterol test?

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Practitioners have long prescribed a fast of 8-12 hours before a lipid panel, also known as a cholesterol test. Indeed, most doctors who have practiced for over 10-15 years will still require fasting to prevent the results of the test from being affected by the patient’s metabolic processes. However, more recent research suggests that lipid panel fasting vs non-fasting results are more complexly indicated depending on the situation.

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Before a cholesterol test, your doctor will likely tell you to fast for 8-12 hours. This is to prevent an intake of calories from disrupting the results of your test, which will measure your total cholesterol, as well as the amounts of HDL (“good” cholesterol), LDL (“bad” cholesterol), and triglycerides. This has led many who have been diagnosed with high cholesterol to wonder: if fasting is prescribed before a lipid panel, does fasting help cholesterol levels in the long term?

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