As part of National Heart Month, Newsweek offered a multi-page advertisement for Vytron, a pharmaceutical drug that was supposedly shown to reduce bad cholesterol more effectively than either Crestor or Lipitor. However, unlike most ads, included in these four or five pages were articles on how to keep your heart healthy -- with or without resorting to the product that was paying for them.

Always a sucker for a good quiz, I was immediately drawn to the "Test Your Cholesterol IQ," a somewhat eye-opening look at how misunderstood this silent killer can sometimes be. Here's a quick, paraphrased version of some of the questions that appear in this True or False quiz.

1. There's Nothing Good About Cholesterol. - False. Cholesterol is required for life. The problem is when there is too much of it in the blood, increasing the risk of heart disease and heart attack.

2. When It Comes to Cholesterol, Less is More. - False. Depending on the type of cholesterol you're talking about, low cholesterol levels aren't always best. For bad (LDL) cholesterol, yes, this is the case, as an elevated level can cause plaque build-up on the walls of arteries and other blood vessels. But, insofar as good (HDL) cholesterol is concerned, no, this is not the case. That's because good cholesterol removes cholesterol from the blood and artery walls and to the liver, from where it can later be eliminated from the body.

3. Since They're High in Cholesterol, Eggs and Shellfish are Best Avoided. - False. Barring people who have already been diagnosed with heart disease, you can eat these foods in moderation. Plus, shellfish naturally contain heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids, as do some fortified eggs.

4. It's More Important to Cut Down on the Saturated Fat in Your Diet Than to Cut Back on Cholesterol. - True. Saturated fats in food raise blood cholesterol more than the cholesterol content of foods. Still, you should try to keep your cholesterol consumption to less than 300mg per day.