What is an optimal ApoB level?
The short answer
An optimal ApoB level is under 60 mg/dL. That is Dr. Peter Attia's number. You can watch him say it below.
Most labs call ApoB high only above 100. So your report can call 80 normal while it sits above where he draws the line.
“by the time you're in your late 30s or early 40s if you have any measure of apo b that's even north of the 20th percentile that should be completely lowered, so in some ways i would view an apob ceiling of 60 as the limit and that's probably at about the fifth percentile, you'd sort of want everybody to be below the fifth percentile”
Where a number lands, and who said so
- under 60 mg/dL The range Dr. Peter Attia draws
- 60–100 mg/dL Normal on most reports. Above optimal“so fifth percentile from the framingham offspring study was is 62, i just in my mind keep keep 60. 10th percentile is about 70, 20th percentiles 78 so i just think…” Dr. Peter Attia · 37:22 →
- over 100 mg/dL Most labs flag this as high
What ApoB measures
Every cholesterol particle that can lodge in an artery wall carries one of these proteins. This counts them.
It is a headcount of the particles that cause plaque. Several of the doctors we cite follow it instead of total cholesterol.
Checked against MedlinePlus — Apolipoprotein B100.
One of the doctors we cite, on why it matters
“i just don't see a reason to have an apo b ever north of 60 milligrams per deciliter and i think when you look at a lot of the mendelian randomizations plus the clinical trial data if you have an ldl cholesterol below 30 or an apob below 40 milligrams per deciliter for a very long period of time i think the odds that you're going to suffer asvd are incredibly low”
Common questions
What is an optimal ApoB level?
Under 60 mg/dL, according to Dr. Peter Attia.
What is a normal ApoB level?
Most US labs print 0–100 mg/dL. Your report grades you against that range. It exists to catch disease, not to describe your best.
What does your ApoB number mean?
Under 0 mg/dL, your report marks it low. Between 0 and 100 it prints as normal. Over 100, your report marks it high. Where the people we follow draw their own line is above.
Is ApoB of 80 normal?
Your lab will call it normal. Dr. Peter Attia puts the ceiling at 60 mg/dL, so by that number it is high.
Do they all agree?
No. Dr. Mark Hyman puts the line somewhere else: “the level you should have is under 90 but ideally probably under 70 and if you have cardiovascular disease may be under 50”
What does the ApoB test measure?
Every cholesterol particle that can lodge in an artery wall carries one of these proteins. This counts them. It is a headcount of the particles that cause plaque. Several of the doctors we cite follow it instead of total cholesterol.
Where does this number come from?
Dr. Peter Attia, on video. The link above jumps straight to that minute.
They don't all draw the line in the same place
“the level you should have is under 90 but ideally probably under 70 and if you have cardiovascular disease may be under 50”