The goal of high cholesterol treatment is to lower your cholesterol enough to reduce your risk of heart disease or a heart attack. To do this, it's usually best to begin with lifestyle changes such as losing weight, changing your diet, and getting exercise. For example, a diet that is considered good for reducing cholesterol involves steps such as:
Limiting the amount of saturated fat you eat
Increasing the amount of soluble fiber you eat (found in foods such as oatmeal and apples)
Eating only enough calories to achieve or maintain a healthy weight.
Quitting smoking or nicotine use can also help reduce cholesterol because nicotine can make blood vessels narrow and lower your HDL ("good" cholesterol).
If lifestyle changes alone do not reduce your cholesterol enough, medications -- such as fibrates, statins, bile acid sequestrants, and cholesterol absorption inhibitors -- may be necessary. While it can take decades for high cholesterol to have a negative effect on your health, it's important to remember that high cholesterol does cause damage even when you don't have any noticeable symptoms.
(Click Lower Cholesterol for the full eMedTV article on this topic. This article lists some serious medical problems that you're at greater risk of if you have high cholesterol for long periods and also explains why people with high cholesterol should to take steps to fight it every single day. You can also click on any of the links in the box to the right for more specific information.)
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