New guidelines: Cholesterol in children

AUSTIN (KXAN) - When you hear cholesterol, you don't usually think about children. But new guidelines released by the American Academy of Pediatrics are about to change that.

The academy is now recommending that children should first have their cholesterol levels checked at age 9 to 11 and again at 17 to 21.

The change will help doctors identify and prevent heart disease.

Dr. Stuart Rowe was in the KXAN studio this Sunday morning to talk more about what the new guidelines mean.

Dr. Rowe is a pediatric cardiologist at Dell's Children's Hospital.