High blood pressure and high cholesterol are the top two risk factors for cardiovascular diseases, such as heart attacks and strokes. An American will die from cardiovascular disease every 33 seconds on average, according to the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention.

You can understand why your life insurance company needs to know your cholesterol and blood pressure before approving you for a policy. But just because you've been warned to watch your diet, doesn't mean that you will pay higher premiums for life insurance.

Life insurance companies don't only consider your blood pressure or cholesterol levels in determining your coverage. They also look at your weight, age, tobacco usage and other risk factors for heart disease. The more factors, the higher premiums you may face.

Having only high cholesterol or high blood pressure may not keep you from the preferred premium rates. But if you have over two risk factors for heart disease at once, you may be looking at paying more.

How high can I go?

Doctors recommend that you keep your total cholesterol below 200. LDL cholesterol should be below 100 to remain healthy. If your blood pressure goes over 140 over 90, you may be seeing red flags waiving. Yet, life insurance companies are often more liberal with the standards of too high versus normal.

Acceptable blood pressure and cholesterol levels will depend on your age and gender. Most companies use charts to match your age, gender, blood pressure and cholesterol to determine whether you exhibit numbers of concern.

What is a problem?

If your doctor prescribes blood pressure medication or tells you to get your cholesterol in line, and you don't follow the orders, your insurer will charge you higher premiums for your life insurance policy. But if your doctor says you don't have anything to worry about, it won't affect your life insurance application.

Admit that you are on medication

If you take medication to keep your blood pressure or cholesterol under control, don't worry. It won't necessarily drive up your life insurance premiums. The medications on the market for bringing down cholesterol and controlling hypertension are very effective today. Most insurers will look at your current levels, not how you got there.

What if your insurer tells you of the problem?

You might not know that you have high blood pressure or cholesterol levels. You usually won't experience any symptoms, so it is common for these conditions to be found in a life insurance medical exam. You will be given a letter that includes the medical information provide to the company from the medical practitioner who examined you. You can use this information with your doctor to improve your health. Then you can petition your life insurer to lower your premiums.

Many people respond to medications within a few weeks. While life insurers take a bit longer, you could qualify for lower premiums in six months to a year after beginning your treatment.