Cholesterol Lowering Drugs and Treatments

If you have high cholesterol, have no fear. There are a variety of cholesterol lowering drugs and treatments that can be used to address your cholesterol. Some of these treatments are simply related to making some changes to your lifestyle, whereas others involve taking medications to keep your cholesterol in check.

1. What Are Your Treatment Options?

There are a variety of options out there to help you to lower your cholesterol levels, ranging from simple changes to your lifestyle to taking medications. Based on your cholesterol test results, your healthcare provider will decide which treatment is best for you. In some cases, you may need a combination of treatments to help lower your cholesterol.

2. Changing Your Lifestyle to Lower Your Cholesterol

Lifestyle changes play a vital role in lowering your cholesterol, but they can be the most challenging, too. Changing your diet, exercising more, losing weight and/or quitting smoking are all healthy ways that you can help lower your cholesterol. In some cases, changing your lifestyle could help you to avoid taking medications to lower your cholesterol.

• Low Fat, Low Cholesterol Diet
• Lowering Your Cholesterol Through Exercise
• Stop Smoking Now

3. Medications that Can Lower Cholesterol

There are many types of cholesterol lowering drugs on the market. However, not all of them work the same. Some of these drugs may only lower your LDL (”bad” cholesterol), whereas other drugs may treat all aspects of your cholesterol profile. In any case, all of these medications are effective and your healthcare provider will select the right drug for you.The classes of cholesterol-lowering drugs are:

• Bile Acid Sequestrants
• Absorption Inhibitors
• Statins
• Fibrates
• Omega-3 Fatty Acids
• Niacin

4. Cholesterol Apheresis

Cholesterol apheresis is similar to kidney dialysis, but is used to only filter out LDL cholesterol from the blood. It isn’t a treatment that is used in everyone, though. It is mostly used as a last resort for people with very high cholesterol levels despite the use of high cholesterol lowering medications. Some people also decide to undergo this therapy because they have very high cholesterol levels, but cannot tolerate the drugs used to lower cholesterol. This procedure is effective, but it can be pretty costly, too.

5. Lowering Your Cholesterol Naturally With Herbs and Other Products

Some people may use natural products, such as herbs and spices, to help lower their cholesterol. Some of these treatments are effective, but some of them won’t help your cholesterol at all. If you decide to try a natural supplement, talk to your healthcare provider first, since some of these products could interact with other medications you are taking.

Some natural products used to lower cholesterol:

• Fiber
• Red Yeast Rice Extract
• Garlic
• Phytosterols

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