The subjects in this study were volunteers from a Zimbabwean population: 794 men and 705 women, ages between 20 and 65 years. They were receiving no medication and had no disease that could influence lipid metabolism. For determination of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and apolipoproteins, they were screened for the known risk factors for coronary heart disease, to exclude factors known to influence those analytes. The results showed a significant sex- and age-dependence. The means and ranges for cholesterol, apolipoprotein B, and triglycerides were lower than those found in European populations. The high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and apolipoprotein A concentrations, on the other hand, were higher than in the European populations. This study established the reference ranges of the analytes studied and suggests that the prevalence of coronary heart disease may be low in Zimbabwean Africans.