Lowering Cholesterol

The goal of treatment for high cholesterol is to lower your low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL) enough to reduce your risk of heart disease or a heart attack. Lowering cholesterol begins with lifestyle changes, such as losing weight and changing your diet. If lifestyle changes alone are not enough, medication may be called for. Statins, bile acid sequestrants, and cholesterol absorption inhibitors are medications that may be prescribed to decrease cholesterol levels.

An Introduction to Lowering Your Cholesterol

It can take decades for
 high cholesterol to have a negative effect on your health, although it still does damage even when you don't have any noticeable cholesterol symptoms.
 
If you have high cholesterol, and nothing is done to lower it, you will be at greater risk for serious medical problems later, such as a heart attack or stroke. Therefore, lowering cholesterol is an important issue for anyone's general health. If you have high cholesterol, you will need to take steps to fight it every day, just like you would brush your teeth to fight gum disease.
 
The main goal of high cholesterol treatment is to lower your low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels enough to reduce your risk of developing heart disease or having a heart attack. The higher your risk, the lower your LDL goal will be.
 
(Click High Cholesterol Risk to see what your risk is and what your LDL cholesterol level should be under.)
 
Treating high cholesterol begins with lifestyle changes. If lifestyle changes alone do not lower cholesterol to a desirable level, cholesterol medication may be necessary.
 
For most people, living with high cholesterol is a lifelong journey.
 
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Written by/reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
 
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